“We Have It In Our Power to Begin the World Over Again”

Image of four American founders, clockwise from top: Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Paine.

Updated: March 17, 2026 In “Common Sense”, Thomas Paine wrote, “We have it in our power to begin the world over again” to urge American colonists to break from British rule and create a new, independent, and democratic republic. In the answer to our quiz, we mentioned there is a twist: this famous sentence was […]