The Second Treatise of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration
John Locke (1632-1704) wrote "Second Treatise of Government" in 1690. This was a major political philosophical source for the Founding Fathers when they signed the "Declaration of Independence" and formed a new government.
Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms [of government] those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.