Federalists vs. Republicans

587 Words2 Pages

Today the United States government is ruled by two parties, the Democrats and the Republicans. Stereotypically, Democrats are often seen as more liberal and Republicans seen as more conservative. Our government as always been controlled by two parties, but the parties have changed numerous times. In the age of our founding fathers, the dominant political parties were the Federalists, founded in 1789 by Alexander Hamilton, and the Democratic-Republicans--also known as the Republicans or the Jeffersonian Republicans--, founded in 1791 by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. (http://www.fjc.gov/, The Sedition Act Trials — Historical Background and Documents ) The beliefs held by the Republicans--in comparison to the Federlists-- had more liberal views. From the viewpoint of a nineteenth century American citizen, I would be a Republican. Since the writing of the Constitution there has been innumerable arguments regarding its meaning, but only one side is correct-- the Republicans. The Federalists’ ideology regarding the Constitution reverted back to the government they had just escape...

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