Direct answer: The Declaration of Independence asserts that political power in a nation is ultimately derived from the people. It argues that governments are instituted to secure the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and that when a government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish that government and to establish new governance that better secures their safety and happiness. In short, sovereign authority rests with the governed, and legitimate government must rest on the consent of the governed and the protection of natural rights.