The government, therefore, consistently with the trial by jury, can exercise no powers over the people, (or, what is the same thing, over the accused person, who represents the rights of the people,) except such a substantially the whole people of the country consent that it may exercise.
Spooner contends that the government can only exercise powers that the people consent to, emphasizing accountability.
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More from Lysander Spooner
A man has a natural right to enforce his own rights and redress his own wrongs.
In that case the trial is really a trial by the government, and not by the jury.
But there is no reason why a judge should have the power of punishing, for contempt, any more than for any other offence.
From the sale of that justice which every citizen has a right to demand, it was an easy transition to withhold or deny it.