Download federalists versus anti-federalists

FEDERALISTS VERSUS ANTI-FEDERALISTS
from Lessons on the Federalist Papers by John J. Patrick & Clair W. Keller
On September 17, 1787 the Constitutional
Convention
ended.
Thirty-nine
delegates,
representing 12 of the !3 United States of America
(all except Rhode island) signed the Constitution,
which they had created during a long, hot summer
in Philadelphia. They sent the proposed frame of
government to Congress, the governing body of the
United States under the Articles of Confederation.
On September 28, Congress voted to send
the proposed Constitution to the legislature of each
state. Congress asked each state to convene a
special convention, which would decide to approve
(ratify) or reject the proposed Constitution. If 9
states voted to ratify, the Constitution of 1787
would become the supreme law of these United
States.
On September 27, only 10 days after the
conclusion of the Constitutional Convention, a
letter was printed in the New York Journal that
sharply criticized the Constitution of 1787 and
urged the people to reject it. The author, probably
George Clinton of New York, used the pen name
“Cato” to disguise his identity.
On October 1, a reply to “Cato” was printed
in the New York Daily Advertiser and signed
“Caesar”—a pseudonym chosen by Alexander
Hamilton.
Hamilton strongly preferred the
Constitution to the existing alternative, the weak
government of the United States under the Articles
of Confederation.
The clash between “Cato” and Caesar” in
New York was an example of debates on the new
nation’s future that had been taking place
throughout the US during the 1780s. Americans
argued about how to solve serious problems that
threatened the survival of the United States.
Supporters of the Constitution called
themselves Federalists.
Their opponents were
known as Anti-federalists.
What ideas separated the Federalists and
Anti-federalists?
Limited Government and the Rule of
Law. Both groups favored limited government and
the rule of law; that is, they wanted a written
constitution that restricted the powers of
government officials—that indicated what they
could and could not do under the law of the land.
However, they disagreed about how much to limit
the powers of government. Anti-federalists tended
to favor a weak government such as Congress
under the Articles. They feared that a strong
national government would threaten the rights of
the people and their state governments.
By
contrast, Federalists wanted a national government
that could act forcefully to maintain order, provide
security, and guarantee liberty under law.
Republicanism and Federalism.
Both
groups wanted a republic—government by
representatives of the people acting for the people.
Both groups also wanted federalism—a division of
power between a central government and several
state governments. However, the Anti-federalists
preferred the kind of federal republic established
by the Articles. By that definition, the central
government is only a creation of the states, who
retain their sovereignty and independence of
action.
Anti-federalists believed that state
government should have more powers and duties
than the central government, because they are
closer and more responsive to the people. By
contrast, the Federalists favored a division and
sharing of powers between state governments and
a national government in which the national
government is supreme within its own sphere of
action. This means that state governments cannot
defy or contradict laws or actions of the national
government that are permitted by the Constitution.
The Constitution of 1787 gave much more power to
the government of the United States that it had
under the Articles of Confederation. The Antifederalists favored states’ rights and believed that
the Constitution gave too much power to the
national government at the expense of the states.
They believed that the Constitution would create a
consolidated government of the United States, in
which states would be greatly reduced in power
and importance.
Popular Sovereignty.
Both Federalists
and Anti-federalists want government by popular
consent. However, Anti-federalists believed that
government by and for the people was best
achieved by giving most powers of government to a
legislature comprised of members elected by the
people. They tended to support the Articles of
Confederation in which the Congress dominated
the government.
By contrast, the Federalists
believed that power in the national government
should be shared by legislative, executive, and
judicial branches. They also believed that the
people (eligible voters) should directly elect only
members of one part of the legislative branch—the
House of Representatives. Anti-federalists feared
that the Constitution of 1787 gave too much power
to the executive branch at the expense of the other
branches of government.
A Bill of Rights. Anti-federalists criticized
the Constitution, because it lacked a Bill of Rights
to guarantee civil liberties of the people against the
powers of government officials. Federalists argued
that a Bill of Rights was unnecessary, because the
national government had only those powers
granted to it in the Constitution.
Thus, the
government would not be able to deprive
individuals of their basic civil liberties.
Please create a chart
listing the similarities and
differences between the
Federalists and AntiFederalists. BE
THOUROUGH!!