What Are The Three Main Ideas Regarding The Federalist Paper

LS500 – Legal Methods in Process
Ideas that Shaped the Constitution

The Federalist Papers were a series of 85 articles and essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay encouraging the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. The papers were published between 1787 and 1788 in New York. Alexander Hamilton wrote the majority of the letters. He write 52 letters, James Madison wrote 28 followed by John Jay who contributed the remaining 5. Hamilton wanted a new national government that had complete political authority. He disliked state governments and believed that they should be eliminated entirely.
I will discuss 3 main ideas regarding the Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers wanted to protect the people as a whole, not just individuals. Before the U.S. Constitution was formed, the
leaders believed that a weak central government wouldn’t have enough power to protect the rights of individual people. After the U.S. Constitution was created, the document called for a strong central government, one that would have power over the state governments and provide a unified authority on legislating, enforcing and judging laws.
What was the purpose of the Federalist Papers?
The overall purpose of the Federalist Papers was to convince the people that a stronger centralized government would be more protective of their rights. The Federalist papers were written to convince people to ratify the Constitution. The papers discussed the unequivocal experience of the incompetence of the federal government and the need for a stronger central government. They wanted the public to support the constitution and get involved.
Many leaders wanted a centralized government because they feared if the power remained in the states it would eventually tear the government apart.
States fought with each other over power and they wanted the power to be centralized not at the states level. The States had more power than the government.
Many far-sighted leaders realized that the self-interests of the states would eventually tear the union apart, and that the Articles of Confederation provided no legal or political means to stop it. States quarreled with one another over land claims, commerce regulations, and frequently erected imposts against neighboring states. Although strictly forbidden by the Articles, states established relations and treaties with foreign nations and refused to send much needed tax money to Congress. Due to the difficult amendment process, attempts to endow congress with greater authority to tax and to regulate commerce could be stopped by the refusal of a single state.
Who was the attended audience?
The original purpose of the Federalist Papers was to elect pro-Constitution delegates to the New York state ratification convention. The proposed audience was the merchants of New York City, whose support was vital if the upstate Antifederalists were to be overpowered. This effort ultimately failed. Only nineteen Federalists were elected from New York City, while forty-six Antifederalists were elected from upstate, led by Governor George Clinton. The papers were printed in only a dozen papers outside of New York, and their influence on the overall vote was nominal.
Why did the Articles of Confederation fail?
The articles of confederation were written to oversee the 13 original states after breaking away from Great Britain in 1776.
The articles of confederation failed for many reasons. The main reason was that the states had too much power leaving the federal government weak. There was no one person in charge, there was no executive branch. Congress didn’t have any power; decisions had to be approved by all 13 states.
Drafted during the years 1776 and 1777, while the colonists were still fighting for independence, the Articles of Confederation created a weak national government with most of the governmental powers retained by the states. The Articles provided no separation of branches. Congress, the legislature, was the only branch of government. When laws were presented, they required unanimous votes. Congress voted as states not as individuals.
The Articles of Confederation were written to govern the interaction of the thirteen original states after winning independence from Great Britain in 1776. They proved to be ineffective so in 1787 the US Constitution was adopted to replace the Articles of
Confederation.
In conclusion, an active government is critical to the protection of individual rights. The plan of government under the Articles of Confederation was unable to effectively protect individual rights because it did not act directly upon the people, and had no authority to enforce its laws. The Constitution requires that the people, not the states, are needed to ratify the document and decide whether they will take the advice of the framers or not. The framers did the best within their abilities to provide a plan that would best ensure the happiness of the American people. .
The state and federal governments are not contending for power, but designed to successfully work together in protecting the common good for the people by the people.

References:
The Federalist Papers. retrieved on December 14, 2013 from http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/federalist/context.html
The U.S. Constitution, retrieved on December 14, 2013 from http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html
The Federalist Papers, (2002), retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://www.crf-usa.org/foundations-of-our-constitution/the-federalist-papers.html