Jul 26

Jul 26 Does the US Have a FEDERAL or NATIONAL Government? - Federalist #39

Federalist 39 is one of the most important of the Federalist Papers.

In this essay, James Madison responds to Anti-Federalist criticism that the Constitution is a National Government which expects to wrest the rights from the States.

Madison suggests that the new Government is part Federal and part National, emphasizing that it is wholly republican.

Federalist #39

January 18, 1788

James Madison

“The proposed Constitution, therefore, is, in strictness, neither a national nor a federal Constitution, but a composition of both.”

-James Madison, Federalist #39

Part Federal - Part National

Perhaps the greatest criticism of the Anti-Federalists against the Constitution was that it comprised a National Government.

They preferred the Articles of Confederation because it was a Federal Government.

The difference is, according to James Madison, that (in a Republic) a National Government is one State which is elected by the people while a Federal Government is several States working closely together.

Madison suggests that the Constitution would be part-National and part-Federal.

The Congressional Example

To support his argument, Madison first notes that the House of Representatives is elected directly by the people, making it National.

The Senators, at the time, were chosen by the members of the State Governments, making it Federal.

This is a small sampling of a recurring theme throughout #39, where James lists both the Federal and National qualities of the new government.

Independent Nations

One of the biggest reasons the Anti-Federalists fought so hard against the Constitution was that the general feeling of the time was that each former colony was an independent nation. They were not ‘States in the Union’ but a ‘Union of States.’

Though the States declared independence together they were just that...independent.

The idea that they would be consolidated into one massive nation took many people by surprise.

That’s The Point

Madison, who was no fool, acknowledges this situation. In fact, he believed that the sovereignty of the States is exactly what made the Constitution a Federal Government.

The people were responsible for choosing their State Representatives.

It was the responsibility of those State Representatives to deal with the Federal Government, and the voting public would need to keep that in mind.

Have you missed our previous Federalist Friday articles?

Take a look at the full list here.

You might also like this article on James Madison’s Congressional Campaign:

Madison Beats Monroe - The Small Election with Big Implications

The Federalist Papers are written in 18th century English and can be difficult to understand.

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