Aristotle did affirm the existence of a “law of nature,” but he was admired by and influenced the American Founders more for his related views on republican government and the rule of law.
Some of the Founders—notably, John Adams and James Wilson—refer frequently to Aristotle and show a deep acquaintance with his Politics. Moreover, Aristotle generally enjoyed an authority among the Founders like that which he had exercised over the learned world for centuries beforehand. A passage from Wilson’s treatise, Of the General Principles of Law and Obligation, is illustrative:
