Answer:
The best way to paraphrase this excerpt is:
c. Britain has oppressed the colonists in many ways.
Explanation:
According to Thomas Paine in this excerpt, Britain was not only taxing the colonists. It was binding them in "all cases whatsoever", meaning Britain was trying its best to keep colonists under its control through several designs. In other words, Britain's government was oppressing the colonists in such a way that Paine felt it was comparable to slavery. Colonists had no freedom, no choice. As could be expected, such oppression led to rebellion.
the constitution has to protect us from the government.
