James Madison

In Federalist No. 48, James Madison argues that while a strict separation of powers is important, it is not enough to prevent tyranny of one of the branches of government. He stated his belief in checks and balances and its importance in preventing one branch from becoming too powerful. Relying on…

In Federalist No. 47, James Madison writes about separation of powers and argues that it is sufficient to prevent tyranny within government. He argues that the Constitution does not undermine separation of powers and that shared authority is important within a functional government. He also states…

This article describes the Founding Fathers' views of the role that the federal government should take towards educating its citizenry. The author discusses the views of James Madison and Thomas Jefferson and how they felt regarding whether or not the federal government should fund education.…

In Federalist No. 46, James Madison discusses whether the state or federal level of government will receive more popular support. He believes that the American people will be more attached to their state governments than the federal government and that the federal government will not encroach into…

<p><span class="deck"><span class="typestyle">A leading American historian challenges the long-entrenched interpretation originated by the late Charles A. Beard</span> </span></p>

<p><span class="deck">At Ghent five Americans—divided and far from home—held firm for a treaty that won their nation new respect, and began a lasting alliance</span></p>

<p><span class="deck"><span class="typestyle">Was the old South solidly for slavery and secession? An eminent historian disputes a long-cherished view of that region’s history</span> </span></p>

<p><span class="deck">Jefferson and Madison led a revolutionary fight for complete separation of church and state. Their reasons probed the basic relation between religion and democracy</span></p>

<p>In her later years, Dolley was <span class="body">urbane and gracious, </span>but ruined financially by her spendthrift son.</p>

<p><span class="deck"> The idea goes back to the very beginnings of our national history. Then as now, it was built upon human relationships, and these—as Mr. Jefferson found to his sorrow—make a fragile foundation.</span> </p>

<p>The year was 1814, and within three weeks our “young and not always wise” nation suffered acute shame and astonishing victory</p>

<p><span class="deck"><span class="typestyle">"With half the western world at stake,</span> <span class="typestyle"> See Perry on the middle lake.”</span> <span class="typestyle"> —Nineteenth-century ballad</span> </span></p>

<p><span class="deck"> The Unknown Alexander Hamilton</span> </p>

<p><span class="deck"><span class="typestyle">In an age of ersatz heroes, a fresh look at the real thing</span> </span></p>

<p><span class="deck"> Did the fifty-five statesmen meeting in Philadelphia at the Constitutional Convention know that a witch-hunt was taking place while they deliberated? Did they care?</span> </p>

<p><span class="deck"> <span class="typestyle"> The Founding, Fathers never did agree about the proper relationship between church and state. No wonder the Supreme Court has been backing and filling on the principle ever since.</span> </span></p>

<p><span class="deck">The framers of the Constitution were proud of what they had done but might be astonished that their words still carry so much weight. A distinguished scholar tells us how the great charter has survived and flourished.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck"> James Wilson was an important but now obscure draftsman of the Constitution. Carry Wills is a journalist and historian fascinated by what went on in the minds of our founders. The two men meet in an imaginary dialogue across the centuries.</span> </p>

<p><span class="deck">Every one of the founders was a historian who believed that only history could protect us from tyranny and coercion. In their reactions to the long, bloody pageant of the English past, we can see the framers’ intentions.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">200 years ago, the United States was a weakling republic prostrate beneath a ruinous national debt. Then, Alexander Hamilton worked the miracle of fiscal imagination that made America a health,y young economic giant. How did he do it?</span></p>

<p>It has always been politics as usual.</p>

<p><span class="deck"><lead_in>DURING THIS TRIP, HE GAVE THE NEW</lead_in> nation a new industry, wrote a proto-guide to New England inns and taverns, (probably) did some secret politicking, discovered a town that lived up to his hopes for a democratic society, scrutinized everything from rattlesnakes to rum manufacture, and, in the process, pretty much invented the summer vacation itself.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">VOTER TURNOUT MAY BE DOWN IN RECENT YEARS, BUT THE INVOLVEMENT OF THE COMMON CITIZEN HAS GROWN TO FAR SURPASS ANYTHING THE FOUNDING FATHERS EVER DREAMED OF.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">Suppose they could go on "Meet The Press"...</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">Without major compromises by all involved, and the agreement to avoid the contentious issue of slavery, the framers would never have written and ratified the Constitution.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">At five critical junctures in American history, major political compromises have proved that little of lasting consequence can occur if the entrenched sides don't make serious concessions.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">A diminutive, persuasive Virginian hijacked the Constitutional Convention and forced the moderates to accept a national government with vastly expanded powers.</span></p>

<p><span class="deck">Written in haste, on an April midnight in 1803, the unedited text of the message that led to the Louisiana Purchase is printed for the first time.</span></p>

<p>An impetuous and sometimes corrupt Congress has often hamstrung the efforts of the president since the earliest days of the republic.</p>

<p>It has been called one of the most consequential debates in American history. The Revolution's greatest orator later fought to stop ratification of the Constitution because of his worries about the powers proposed for the federal government.</p>

<p>It is important to tell the story of the Constitution’s origins in a way that demythifies it. Impressive as they were, the men who wrote the Constitution were not demigods; they had interests, prejudices, and moral blind spots.</p>

<p>Members of the first federal Congress had to create a new government almost from scratch.</p>

<p>To know what the Framers intended, we need to understand the late-18th century historical context.</p>