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Comparing The Rhode Island Responses To The Kentucky And Virginia Resolutions

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In the early 19th century, the United States of America was still just a young nation trying to find its way. Two parties emerged as competitors for the people’s votes and the opportunity to enact their view of how the young government should be handled. On opposing sides were Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. The Federalist philosophy of Hamilton was less trusting of the common man and more valid for the time period given the state of the United States in the early 19th century than the Anti-Federalist views, divisive actions, and philosophy of a strict constitutional interpretation of Thomas Jefferson.
Alexander Hamilton authored a great many of The Federalist Papers of the late 18th century. Consequently, his views on many parts …show more content…

The view here is that the states would have the final say in anything the federal government says or does. In Document H, the Kentucky Resolutions, secretly written by Jefferson and Madison, articulate this in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions condemned the acts as unconstitutional and thought that the states should have the right to declare them as such and ignore them. Document I, the Rhode Island Responses to the Kentucky and Virginia Resolution, a Federalist approach is taken. This resolution, surprisingly, used a very literal interpretation of the Constitution to argue the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions. It stated that giving states this right would be, “1st Blending together legislative and judicial powers. 2nd Hazarding an interruption of the peace of the states by civil discord, in case of a diversity of opinions among the state legislature. 3rd Submitting most important questions of law to less competent tribunals; and 4th An infraction of the Constitution of the United States, expressed in plain terms,” and therefore could not be allowed to happen according to the Constitution. The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions shows the desperation of the Anti-Federalists to decentralize government. However, the powers they wished to give to the states were too extreme and these resolutions were rejected by nearly all other states in the

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11) The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions set forth a states’ rights interpretation of the constitution, saying that the states had the right to judge the legitimacy of national laws. The documents were written by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The resolutions opposed the alien act, the deportation of foreigners, and the sedation act, which prohibited publication of insults on the president or members of congress. Republicans argued that the sedation act violated the first amendment, such as the freedom of speech and press. The documents argued that the federal government had no right to impose powers not specifically granted to them and if the federal government imposed these powers, acts under them would in turn be null and void.

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A state resolution passed in 1798. Written by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in 1798 and 1799 declaring the Alien and Sedition Acts unconstitutional, the resolution supported the idea of having more self government and more rights for states. Opposing the Alien and Sedition Acts which extended the powers of the federal national. The resolution hinted that states had the power to nullify federal laws that were

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Although it can be argued that Thomas Jefferson’s government policies were better than Alexander Hamilton’s, Hamilton, overall, had the better policy because of his persistence to progress, his federalist beliefs, and his understanding of the issues with Jefferson’s trust in the common man’s morals. Thomas Jefferson can be described as a leader who lived in the present*, whereas Alexander Hamilton had his vision set on the future of the country. He saw America’s strength lying in its commerce, and saw industry, trade, and manufacturing as forces of progression. In order to fuel the nation’s success in the global marketplace, a strong federal government would be needed. Hamilton supported a powerful central government because he recognized that

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In 1789, George Washington was elected as the first president of the new American republic. He selected several people to serve in his cabinet, among which were Alexander Hamilton, an ambitious young immigrant, and Thomas Jefferson, a wealthy plantation owner. Hamilton and Jefferson argued endlessly over various issues, and decisions about these issues contributed greatly to the shaping of our nation. Many of their beliefs have influenced our country to this day, especially their varying perspectives on the Constitution. Hamilton’s belief that the Constitution should be interpreted loosely had a greater effect on the early republic than the strict constructionist view that Jefferson held.

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The problem here was that the government had no standing army and depended on the states to provide protection, and the government was too weak to force the states for help. The Constitution was drafted and the Federalists wanted it to be ratified, but the Anti-Federalists were

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It appears that the resolution only defends the federal government as long as it remains beneficial to the states. Despite this the Virginia Resolution still declares its loyalty to the Constitution first, showing that even if the theoretical account may differ from Publius the end is the same. From here the resolution sets out to determine its rights and duties in defending the

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The Kentucky Resolution was drafted by the vice president who in that time was Thomas Jefferson, the Kentucky Resolution talked about the things that have been resolved about the country. That people have more liberty and that they have the right to have power to judge the constitution. He says that the constitution does not have the right to take away the rights that the people have. “The Kentucky Resolutions, drafted by then Vice-President Thomas Jefferson, argued that the government was formed by a compact among the states and that the federal powers were limited to those delegated to it in the Constitution.” It is shown that Thomas Jefferson was trying to limited the power of the constitution, so the constitution would not abused their power with the country.

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Alexander Hamilton was a Federalist who believed in his loose Constructionist views, a support for manufacturing and trade, and a strong national government. Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican, believed in his strict Constructionist views, a support in agriculture, and a strong state government. These two both played impacts on the Early Republic. However, Hamilton’s views on the Constitution, the central government, and an ideal economy greatly influenced the formation of the United States in the Early Republic times. Hamilton’s loose constructionist ideas overrode Jefferson’s strict constructionist views, as seen in the National Bank.

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In the late 18th century, the newly formed United States of America was facing numerous challenges as it sought to establish a stable government that would ensure the protection of its citizens and the preservation of their liberties. The country was divided over the issue of the proper role of government, with some advocating for a strong central government and others favoring a more decentralized system. Alexander Hamilton, one of the nation's founding fathers, recognized the importance of a strong central government and wrote about it in Federalist Paper No. 6. Hamilton argued that the United States was too large and diverse a country to be governed by a weak central government. The country was spread out over a vast area and its citizens had different cultures, interests, and ways of life.

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Alexander Hamilton, founder father of the Federalist Party, was a Scottish aristocrat who spent his early life in poverty, thanks to his devotion to the patriot cause he came to the attention of George Washington. His contribution to the “The Federalist” revealed him to be one of the chief political thinkers of the republic, his fiscal policies aimed always at consolidating the power at the national level; he never feared the exercise of centralized executive authority and regarded his fellow human beings with unvarnished cynicism. Like Hamilton, federalists believe on broad constructionism which mean that congress should be exercise many implied powers, allowing the government to take a greater role in shaping the economy. In 1798, the federalist

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