Madison’s Federalist 10

1. Madison’s Federalist 10

2. Federalist 10 • Madison wrote Federalist 10 as an argument that countered those who felt that democracies would inevitably dissolve into turmoil and disorder because of factions that were concerned with their own interests as opposed to the nation’s interests • Many in the late 18th Century felt that monarchies were needed to restrain the destructive tendencies posed by factions

3. Madison’s Issues With Factions

4. The Dilemma of a Pure Democracy • In a pure democracy, the people assemble and administer the government in person • Pure democracies can only exist in small geographic areas • Pure democracies will inevitably fall victim to……the mischief of factions. • Pure democracies will fail because they are unable to protect individual liberty and the rights of the property. • As a result, Madison (and others), saw Greek democracy as messy and unsuitable for the United States

5. So We Should Just Destroy the Faction, Right???.... • No, according to Madison, destroying the liberty that allows the faction to develop in the first place is essentially a cure that is worse than the disease. • Giving everyone the same opinion is impractical, thus the solution is to control the effects of the faction… • If the faction is less than a majority, then rely on majority rule to control it. • If the faction is the majority, then rely on the type of political system to control it. • The cure to the problem of factions would be a large republic.

6. The Characteristics of the Republic

7. One Final Issue to Solve…District Size OR The Federal Solution A federal system would provide a “happy combination”. The national government would deal with national issues while the state government would address local issues.

8. A Summary • Madison wrote Federalist 10 to defend the Constitution against one of the main arguments against it --- that a faction would soon gain control and that they would substitute their own interests before the national interest. • The antidote to the problem of faction, Madison argued, was that a large republic with a variety of interests would create a system that would make it unlikely that a majority faction would form. • Did Madison think of factions as good or bad? • BOTH! On one hand, they went against the best interests of the community and were selfish in nature, BUT on the other hand, they counterbalanced one another and represented the diversity of the republic!

9. Some Questions For Thought… • Does Madison have an idealistic or realistic view of human nature? What is the basis of your answer? • What are the causes of factions in today’s society? Is, as Madison referred to it, “various and unequal distribution of property” still a major source of division? • How do each of the following constitution provisions reflect the founders’ bias against pure democracy? • The Electoral College • The original process of choosing Senators • The procedure for Constitutional amendments • The presidential veto