The American Constitution : Madison 's Refusal

In Federalist 10 by James Madison, he addresses key issues like factions and democracy, all while focusing on the usefulness of the Constitution and the necessity of a strong central government, to defend his Federalist ideology. Personally, I agree with the foundation of his arguments, especially on the topic of forms of government, as well as the role of representation in our government.

“While the authors of the United States Constitution are frequently portrayed as noble and idealistic statesmen who drafted a document based upon their conception of good government, reality is that the constitution reflects the politics of the drafting and ratification process. Unfortunately, the result is a document that is designed to produce an ineffective government, rather than a government that can respond to issues in a timely fashion.” In support of this conclusion, the issues of slavery, The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, and the civil rights struggle keenly demonstrate the ways in which our constitution hinders the expediency and effectiveness of America’s government. The constitution’s provisions towards voting eligibility and

James Madison and Patrick Henry were two significant individuals when it came to the proposal and opinions concerning the Constitution of the United States. James Madison was known to be a federalist, meaning he was in favor of the Constitution and the Republic which it formed. On the other hand, Patrick Henry was an anti-federalist and was against the new form of government being proposed due to his belief that the rights of citizens were at risk through the implementation of the Constitution. Although both give strong arguments on their position, I believe that the side of the debate which is the most ethical would be the side of the Federalists, who want to form a country with more specific representation and a more controlled government and country as a whole since too much democracy could lead to the destruction of the rights of individuals in itself.

A constitution is a written document that sets forth the fundamental rules by which a society is governed. Throughout the course of history the United States has lived under two Constitutions since the British-American colonies declared their independence from Great Britain in 1776. First in line was the Articles of Confederation (1789-1789) followed by the Constitution of United States of America (1789-present). The Articles of Confederation was the first formal written Constitution of America that specified how the national government was to operate. Unfortunately, the Articles did not last long. Under the words of the Article’s power was limited; Congress could make decisions, but had no power to enforce them. Also the articles stated

Marbury v. Madison has been hailed as one of the most significant cases that the Supreme Court has ruled upon. In this paper, I will explain the origins and background in the case, discuss the major Constitutional issues it raised, and outline the major points of the courts decision. I will also explain the significance of this key decision.

The US Constitution states “We The People of the United states in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for more common defense, promote the General Welfare, and secure the blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” The main purpose of the U.S Constitution is to establish the basic rights of all American Citizens. This follows that every United States Citizens have equal rights. Belonging to a minority group because of culture, religion or race does not assert that one is unconstitutional. In times of war, evacuation of minority groups only in NOT constitutional; however, evacuation of ALL United

My single story about the constitution was that it came right after America gained its independence. After deep analysis of James Madison quote about framing a government “We are in the wilderness without a single footstep to guide us” I learned that creating a government is trial and error and is more complex than I imagined. This quote was able to show me the fear of trying to carve out a new system of government. In eighth grade when I “learned” about the constitution it was about the amendments but not why the constitution was created (Articles of Confederation) and how the founding fathers were taking a gamble by forming a democracy. While creating the constitution the founding father had tried to appease the American people*. The constitution

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 Federalist Papers were 85 essays that were published in 1787 and 1788. They were anonymous and always signed by “Publius.” Publius was actually 3 men, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay. They wrote the papers to convince the people of New York to vote to ratify the Constitution. These essays were published in newspapers throughout the state of New York. Federalist 10 was written by James Madison and was titled The Utility of the Union as a Safeguard Against Domestic Faction and Insurrection (continued). This essay was a continuation of Federalist 9. Federalists like James Madison and Alexander Hamilton thought that if the states continued to maintain complete control, each state would become its own nation, which would leave the U.S. bankrupt. They believe that a strong central government would have the ability to stop this from occurring. Factions were James Madison’s worst fear. Madison believed that factions were what were going to keep states divided and more likely to turn to individual nations. James Madison’s opinions are correct.

In the case of Marbury v. Madison the power of judicial review was granted to the Supreme Court in 1801. The Constitution does not give power of judicial review. On Adams last day in office, several government officials upheld the case. Judicial review does not exist in countries that have a centralized or unitary form of government. The elected parliament declares it is the law of the land. Halsema Proposal to Netherlands has taken the initiative to start the process of judicial review.

In 1796 prior to retiring his position as president, George Washington had warned that the creation of a political government would most certainly lead to (crisis), perhaps because of their discrepancy of opinions. However Thomas Jefferson the 4th president of the United States also known as the father of the constitution and Alexander Hamilton who was the author of the majority papers written as well as the leading member of the constitutional convention the both of them took part in creating the(factions) that lead to the political systems also known as democracy being introduced.

The plan to divide the government into three branches was proposed by James Madison, at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He modeled the division from who he referred to as ‘the Perfect Governor,’ as he read Isaiah 33:22; “For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; He will save us.” http://www.eadshome.com/QuotesoftheFounders.htm

In the initial years of the United States a meeting of delegates appointed by the several states met for the sole purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation. The result of this meeting was the creation of the U.S. Constitution that would soon become the ultimate directive for both Federal and State Governments. Since its birth it has been revised, amended, and ratified in order to solidify the allocation of power between the separate branches of government. Although this may be the case, distribution of the powers has been disputed ever since the formation of the Constitution. These political, legal, and quasi-legal constitutional disputes triggered civil unrest and led to explicit acts of opposition involving nullification and

The Marbury v. Madison decision expanded the power of the Supreme Court in general, by announcing that the 1789 law which gave the Court jurisdiction in this case was unconstitutional. Marbury thus lost his case, which the Court said he should have won, but, in explaining its inability to provide Marbury the remedy it said he deserved, the Court established the principle of judicial review, i.e., the power to declare a law

In discussing the Madisonian Dilemma, one must first ask, “How do you give government enough authority to preserve social order and communal values, but not so much that it places unfair and inappropriate limits on individual freedom of choice?” (Bond & Smith 2013, p. 111) This delicate balance between governmental rights and individual freedoms has been a source of much contention and debate. James Madison, a primary framer of the Constitution and author of 30 of the Federalist Papers, believed that the only way this balance of power could be achieved was through controlling the effects of factions through a representative government, fragmenting the power of that government and creating a system of checks and balances within, and