fundamental principles that drove the founders of our constitution to break from england and to draft their own constitution. the principle that in this country no one is king. we have followed that principle since before the founding of the constitution and it s recognized around the world as a fixed, inspiring, american ideal. in his third message to congress in 1903 president theodore roosevelt delivered one of the finest articulations of this principle. he said, no one is above the law and no man is below, nor do we ask any man s permission when we require him to obey it. obedience to the law is demanded as a right, not asked for as a favor. three features of our constitution protect the funneledmental principle that no one, not even the president is above the law. first in the british system, the public had no choice over the monarch who ruled them.