Federalists

The concerns of the Anti-Federalist were as follows the first was that a large republic cannot attract the voluntary obedience of the people, second was the proper system of representation, and the third was the need for republican simplicity and public spiritedness. The first concern of the Anti-Federalists was that a large republic can not attract the voluntary obedience of the people and is therefore driven to execute its resolutions by military force. (1) The Anti- Federalists believed that the laws of the majority would govern over the law of the few and alienate the rights of the minority, more and more people would follow the laws due to the law enforcement that was put into place by the national government. The second concern was the proper system of representation. The following line explains exactly what they felt. What the Anti-Federalist Were for on the bottom of page 43. Anti-Federalists complained that in a large republic they wouldn’t be able to choose men like themselves and the representative body will inevitably be composed of the natural aristocracy. There concern was valid and they didn’t want to go back to the way it was before the revolution where the people didn’t have a voice, but this concern in particular would be answered by Hamilton in the Federalists Papers. The final concern was the diversity of the extended commercial republic. Most of the Anti-Federalists thought along the lines of Brutus that “in a republic, the manners, sentiments, and interests of the people should be similar. (2) The Anti-Federalists were afraid that a commercial republic without the same commercial views would have no loyalty to their neighbor or their state, which would eventually lead to no loyalty in their country. To these concerns the Federalists replied and in particular one Federalists Alexander Hamilton. In Hamilton’s view a faction was a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community. (3) Hamilton states that there are two methods of curing a faction the first by removing its causes and the second by controlling its effects. In order to remove a faction there are two things that can be done the first is destroying the liberty which is essential to its existence and the second is giving the same options, opinions, and passions to every citizen. Both options in removing a faction are unattainable. The first of removing liberty would be worse than having a faction in the first place. The second would be impractical and counter productive. The very sane government that is responsible for freedom of speech, thought and passion, will give way to one simple option, truth, and thought for all citizens. It wouldn’t make any sense to go through with the latter; therefore leaving us with the choice of controlling the effect of factions. The only way to cure a faction is to control its affect, and a republican principle which allows the majority to defeat the faction by vote. Although the faction maybe formed and may hold power Hamilton comes to the conclusion that under the current constitution it would be impossible for a faction to mask their violence. Hamilton explains that through a republic which is the term he calls for a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, a representation he says opens a different prospect and promise to reach the cure to a faction. Through the proper representation in a republic the citizens pass their ideas on to set of chosen citizens who discern the true interest of the country and patriotism will out weigh their own personal interests. Even if the elected citizens start to form a faction for the purpose of their own self interest it would be totally transparent and the republic as a whole would be privy to the true intentions. The effect will be felt in the next election, therefore it would be in the best interest of the candidate to uphold the wishes of the public or at least to try and do what’s in the best interest of the country. Another reason why the republic would lead to a cure for factions is that if smaller territories existed then there would be smaller parties of interest, where there are smaller parties of interest there would be a majority of the same parties with the same interests. (4) I f you broaden the spectrum and involve more citizens, more territories, and more parties then it would be harder to find a party with the same interests that would involve interference with the other parties. This doesn’t necessarily mean that there aren’t exceptions but in the choices given it would be of way of choosing the lesser of two evils. In a confederation the same evils will exist but n a republic those evils would be exposed. The influence of factious leaders may kindle a flame within their particular States but will be unable to spread a general conflagration through the other States. (5) [1]Storing 41. [2]Storing 43. [3]Hamilton 72. [4]Hamilton 78. [5]Hamilton 79.