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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!!