Pros And Cons Of The Anti Federalists

1505 Words4 Pages

The Anti-Federalist Papers documented the political background in which the Constitution was born. The Anti-Federalist saw threats to rights and authorizations in the Constitution. The Anti-Federalists thought that the Constitution created too strong a central government. A central government is the political authority that governs the entire nation. They felt that the Constitution did not create a Federal government, but a single national government. The Anti-Federalist proposed a “Bill of Rights”, to make sure the citizens were protected by the law. Anti-federalists continued to view a large and powerful central government as leading to autocracy, appealed to the actions of the British king and Parliament to demonstrate their point. Anti-Federalists …show more content…

Hamilton, Madison, and Jay argued that limitations on governmental power were built into the Constitution with a series of checks and balances. The two different parties, the Federalists and Anti-Federalists, interpreted the Constitution in a way to support the cause for ratification or rejection. The Federalists saw the new government in a way that would guarantee the rights of the governed. The Anti-Federalists saw it in such a manner that would make no such guarantee. While the Constitution was eventually passed, it was the Anti-Federalists who ensured that it would eventually contain a Bill of Rights to protect individuals, as such Federalists and supporters of the central government as Alexander Hamilton argued that a Bill of Rights was …show more content…

Constitution established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed rights for its citizens. America’s first governing document, the Articles of Confederation, the national government was weak and states operated like independent countries. The Articles of Confederation gave Congress the power to govern foreign affairs, conduct war, and regulate currency. The delegates, who are known as the “framers” of the Constitution, were a group of well-educated people that included merchants, farmers, bankers and lawyers. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, wrote a series of essays to persuade people to approve the Constitution. “The Federalist Papers”, detailed how the new government would work, and were published under the public in newspapers across the states starting in the fall of

Open Document