James Madison's Argument For The Ratification Of The United States Constitution

Madison’s primary focus throughout the beginning of this paper is factions. He holds a deep disdain for them as he thinks that they solely focus on themselves, while hurting other Americans, which is evident in this quote, (“…united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens, or to the

“…that our governments are too unstable, that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties, and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority.”

Federalist 10 has the strongest argument that supports our current Constitution. Madison’s view goes against the traditional view that a small republic is better than a larger one. The proposed government that Madison supports was trying to establish a strong government that would be capable of controlling violence and damage that are caused by factions. Factions being a group of people who gather together to protect and promote their social economic interests and political opinions (Madison, 72). The biggest concern was that the factions would become too powerful and start to over power the government if the United States did not have a strong government. Different factions with contrasting ideas pose a threat to the wellbeing of the people. The factions could be either a majority or minority of a whole. If the factions have closer contact with one another they are more likely to participate in acts of violence, which would effect the way the United States is governed. A small republic would draw attention to everyone’s different interests, therefore highlighting the major contrasts between different

On July 3rd, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously declared the independence of the thirteen United States of America from Great Britain. Determined to unify the thirteen colonies, the Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, the first constitution of the United States, on November 15, 1777. However, ratification of the Articles of Confederation by all thirteen states did not occur until March 1, 1781. Although the articles did not prevent the United States from winning independence, the innate flaws of the articles became apparent in the years following the revolution. The problems of the weak, purely legislative national government became too prevalent for agents of the revolution, such as James Madison and George Washington. Madison and Washington were strong supporters of a federal, or national, constitution, and on June 21, 1788, congress ratified the Constitution of the United States. And in doing so, violated the “Revolutionary Ideology” and the will of the American people.

To solve the problem of republican government in a nation as geographically vast and culturally and economically heterogeneous as the United States, the Federalists needed a political theory to combat this problem. Madison felt that factions posed the greatest danger to governments of the people. Through Federalist Paper No. 10, Madison described the effects and downsides to factions. In the paper he explains, the causes of faction cannot be removed; and that relief is only to be sought in the means of controlling its effects. Faction will counteract faction, and all of them will keep each other in check. The more factions there are, the more competition there is to keep them in check. Madison explained that there are two methods of curing

What Madison is saying is that factions are going to be in a society no matter what. People are going to have different opinions. Factions are always going to exist, and no matter what, the government cannot remove factions because if they do then they are eliminating peoples rights. The constitution protects against this. ?Liberty is to faction, what air is to fire, an aliment without which it instantly expires. But it could not be a less folly to abolish liberty, which is essential to political life, because it nourishes faction, than it would be to wish the annihilation of air, which is essential to animal life, because it imparts to fire its destructive agency.? This is one reason that the Americans had success (Ziegler 216).

A key concern the federalist’s held since the start of the war with parting from England is that citizens of America could ultimately divided against each other if their voice is not heard with the new form of government that

Although James Madison despised factions as explained in Federalist Paper No. 10, Madison believed factions were an essential part of government, that needed to be revised through careful governmental intervention. Madison was careful to ensure his vision for the country 's future would protect the given right to liberty; therefore he found in the Constitution multiple outlets for these factions to dissolve. However, the government itself was corrupt so the three branches had to be separated to prevent tyranny and be successful in stopping the dangerous factions. Therefore, in Federalist Papers No. 10 and No. 51, Madison would outline his goals for creating a more cohesive country.

The most politicized debate in American history has been the arguments made by the Federalists and the Antifederalists over the ideas and powers stated within the United States Constitution. A large number of authors who write about the debates between these two political groups present the ideas of the Federalist and Antifederalist as separate, opposing ideologies about how the U.S. Constitution should either stay the same for the sake of the country or be amended to grant border rights to the public and states. To begin a paper about how this assumption of the two factions always being at odds, first there should be an explanation about the Federalists’ and Antifederalists’ main arguments. The Virginia debate over ratification will be the used as the platform to present the details of their arguments. After those two main objectives are complete, the presentation of information found on the topics that the two parties had arguments between themselves over the true future of the Constitution, and that certain Federalists and Antifederalist shared certain ideas about the problems this Constitution could cause or solve for the United States. To conclude those ideas, a presentation of the political figures of this time period will be used to understand the similarities and differences between the parties. Towards the end of the paper, there will be an explanation of how the ideas of the two parties, mostly Antifederalists, have led to the creation of amendments added to the

But it could not be less folly to abolish liberty, which is essential to political life, because it nourishes faction, than it would be to wish the annihilation of air, which is essential to animal life, because it imparts fire its destructive agency,” (Document A). Arguing that factions are only preventable by the abolishment of liberty, Madison reasons that factions are a necessary evil to the functioning of our political system, as liberty is essential to democracy. There are always going to be groups of people with varying opinions, however for a republic to truly work these factions are necessary, no matter what form they come in. For example, unions and corporations may form an opinion and attempt to share it with others but there is no way to prevent this without jeopardizing their liberties. Corporations and unions are made up of citizens, citizens who share similar views and want to share their ideas, they have the same rights and liberties as any other citizens and have the right to free speech.

One way in which a republic deals with factions is the delegation of government to elected officials. The object of the elected officials is “to refine and enlarge the public views by passing them through the medium of a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country (Publius,76).” This in effect will put the power of our country into the hands of qualified individuals. These individuals will be able to hear the voice of the people and decide what is the right decision for the country.

On April 18, 1996, Baylor University hosted the annual campus-wide celebration of Diadeloso. This celebration, however was different, because this was the first permitted time in 151 years that dancing was to be on Baylor’s campus. When Baylor first opened in 1845, dancing was a moral wrong, according to Baptist teachings. However, as time went on, things changed and eventually there was no longer a ban on dancing. Biblical law itself was untouched, but the human understanding of it was shifted, and that is when the dancing ban was lifted. Thomas Jefferson argued similarly this idea to James Madison. While both Jefferson and Madison had excellent points, Madison’s rebuttal addresses Jefferson’s concerns and assesses why a constantly revised constitution would not be effective. Indeed, this essay affirms Madison’s position that the constitution should not undergo review.

One of the biggest sources that factions come from are from the distribution of land. There are two main ones, those with lots and land and those with little land. Even though these groups conflict, the government is obliged to guard the interests of each group. Madison stated two ways to control factions, which were to remove its causes and controlling its effect. Madison says next that he worries about corruption of members of the new government, but says it is less likely because representative will be chosen by a large population. He also discusses the differences between a republic and a democracy, along with that the main goal of the Constitution is to make all 13 states secure from threats and invasion.

Factions come together for a various many reasons, but the most common one is the uneven distribution of property to people. Other reasons for factions include varying opinions about government, religion, and even activities that other citizens are involved in (Federalist).      James Madison, the author of the Federalist 10 states that the reasons for factions can never be removed. He says that those who would remove or judge over the

In 1790s the difference in philosophy had been the center of the debate over the Constitution. One side stood a group believing America needed a strong, national government with centralized authority, a complex commercial economy, and strong in world affairs. The other side stood a group that wanted a weaker central government and should not be highly commercial or urban that it should stay dominated in rural have a central government, leave most power to the states and the people knowns as Federalists, their opponents the Republicans.