James Madison was a central figure in the gatherings of Nationalists at the Constitutional Convention. He was a firm supporter of the central government and a firm believer on the importance of the Constitution. A key question in the debate about the new government was whether each state would have equal representation in the legislature or whether larger states would have more power than smaller states. The larger states came up with The Virginia Plan proposed; a bicameral national legislature, bigger states ought to have more power, an executive branch, and a judicial branch, right to tax for the government, and power to veto any act of a state legislature, and that the national government should have more power than the states. The alternative that the small states came up with was the New Jersey plan. Like the Virginia Plan, the New Jersey plan proposed that the government have an executive and judicial branch, and the right to tax. Unlike the New Jersey plan, this plan proposed that every state continue to have an equal vote in Congress. In addition, it ensured that the states would remain the most powerful governments in America. The compromise that was reached was that the legislative branch would be made up of two houses: the House of Representatives, and the Senate. In the house of representatives each state would have a number of representatives corresponding to its size. In the Senate each sate would have an equal number of representatives. Veto was refused. The Bill of Rights was the agreement that the federalists reached with the anti federalists. The Bill of Rights was intended to protect Americans from the powerful government the Constitution created. The Sixth Amendment, for example, ensured that the government could not put citizens on trial without a jury drawn from the people themselves.
The United States is currently ruled through the system of checks and balances. The government is ramified into the legislative branch, the judicial branch, and the executive branch. The control that James Madison wanted is found in the system of checks and balances. So strong was the Anti Federalist demand for a Bill of Rights that Madison and other Federalists gave in to it. Jefferson wished the Bill of Rights had been more explicit in protecting the rights of citizens. Unlike Jefferson who never really trusted the government and remained idealistic about the people, Hamilton believed that governmental power could accomplish great things.
Forging a constitution was a convoluted process. Numerous compromises had to be attained. Among these were the the Bill of Rights, and the compromise between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan. The Unites States eventually developed a system of checks and balances which consists of the judicial, executive, and legislative branch. James Madison, Hamilton and and Jefferson were all in favor of the formation of the Constitution.
The Constitution of the United States
