Political Cultures

3rd 11/16/06

Political Cultures

James Madison cured the disease present in America during the seventeen eighties, at least a disease by Cosmopolitan or Federalist standards. The disease was too much, unrestrained freedom in the hands of the general population. This freedom if unchecked in Madison's and other Federalist's opinion would produce more tyranny than a king or prince. This so called "abuse of power" came from the constitution of the time, The Articles of the Confederation. This constitution gave power almost entirely to local governments. The people inhabiting these local governments were known as Localist and were in stark opposition of the Federalist perception of the constitution so they were given the title of Anti-Federalists. These Localists were self-serving farmers and merchants concerned only with local government, local problems and wished only to pay taxes for local government expenditures. They were also very suspicious of the aristocracy of the time, the Cosmopolitans and their goals, which worked towards the greater good. The Cosmos as they are referred to, were city folk which came from old money, were well educated, and felt strongly about civic duty. Their main priority was to change America into a world power through exploiting it's economic potential, they were the Federalist. The differences between these two groups came down to the level of power held by the government. The Federalists who aspired for a strong central government ran by the aristocracy and the Anti-Federalist who felt that freedom was better secured in the hands of the everyday man, debated their points of view. Madison began to explore a middle ground between the tyranny of the unrestrained majority and the oppression of a hierarchy of centralized government. The outcome is the America we know today, where the power of the people is granted but restrained and each branch of government is checked and balanced by the others, the essence of Montesquieu's dictums. No group or faction can pervade the entire union and no group or faction can't be heard.