Monday, January 12, 2015

Who are the Federalists and Antifederalists?

The Federalists were supporters of the new Constitution. The Antifederalists were those who opposed the Constitution. In your textbook, read pages 209-210. Please discuss who belonged to the Federalists and who belonged the Antifederalists. In addition to the book reading, visit this website. After research, describe three contrasting views between the Federalists and Antifederalist. If you, as a prominent American leader, had a choice which would you support? Why? Keep in mind, the overall purpose of the Federalists and Antifederalists was the Constitution.







17 comments:

  1. Two very famous men in America were federalists, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. Other people like John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison were also federalists. These last three wrote different essays explaining/defending the constitution which appeared in Federalists Papers. Patrick Henry was more or less on the side of of the antifederalists. He warned that the constitution was "incompatible with {contrary to} the genius of republicanism." Antifederalists responded to the Federalists Paper by writing Antifederalists Paper. The federalists and Antifederalists had many different views on the constitution. First off, federalists didn't think a bill of rights was necessary while Antifederalists did. The reason being they thought the lack of a bill of rights section would result in the loss of individuals rights. Secondly, federalists believed that the power of the states should be limited and that the representatives in the Senate was enough, the Antifederalists didn't think so. They thought the states should have a lot of power in the government especially because they were worried they'd end up like Britain and have a monarchy. State control was a big key in the Antifederalists concept of democracy even though this issue comes up in the states rights argument in the 1800's. Thirdly, they even argued about what size the country should be. Antifederalists thought the country should be smaller because only a small republic could protect a citizens rights. Federalists thought a large republic was the best way to protect a citizens rights. If I was around way back when and had to choose between being a federalist and an antifederlist, I'd choose to be a federalist because I think the constitution is a good choice, the country should be bigger, and that we have a lot of representation in the senate and H of R. Of course, back then I may have been more weary about the decision because we had after all just gotten out of a monarchy so it'd be more if-y. (327)

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  3. Federalists had many important men on their side. Such as George Washington, and Benjamin Franklin. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay also supported the Federalists and wrote essays explaining and defending the constitution. These essays were called the Federalist Papers which appeared in many newspapers around the country. The Federalist Papers were also later published as a book and sent to delegates at the state conventions. The Antifederalists also wrote their own essays, known as Antifederalist Papers. Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Samuel Adams, and Patrick Henry were all Antifederalists. Antifederalists disagreed with the Federalists on many things. First, Antifederalists mainly argued that the government created by the Constitution would take away the liberties Americans had fought for in the war against Great Britain, but Federalist did not agree with them. Second, Antifederalists believed the Bill of Rights should have been added into the Constitution, but Federalists thought it was not necessary to include them. Lastly, Federalists favored central banking and central financial problems, while Antifederalists believed states should manage their own revenue and spend their money as they saw fit. If I had to choose between a federalist, and an antifederalist, I would choose an Antifederalist. I would be an Antifederalist because the Constitution had many problems that needed to be fixed. (213)

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  4. Federalists had strong men supporting their case. George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, the two most respected men in America. Also, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay helped back the Constitution. Those three men wrote a series of essays defending the Constitution. They were later called the Federalists papers. Now, the Antifederalists also had some strong men on their side including Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. The antifederalists responded to the federalists papers by writing their own essays, known as the Antifederalists. Now, if you cannot already tell, had very different point of views on the Constitution. First, antifederalists voted for a local government, when the federalists voted for a central government. Antifederalists feared that with a central government, it would be made up of a small group of people. Second, the federalists did not think they needed a Bill of Rights in the Constitution, but the antifederalists thought it needed one. Antifederalists worried that without a bill of rights, what would happen to the people’s rights?! Lastly, they debated over the size of the country! Yes, the size! Antifederalists thought it should be more of a smaller republic, because that is the only way you can protect citizen’s rights. However, the federalists thought complete opposite. Having a bigger republic was the best way to protect an individual’s rights! If I had to choose between a side, I would go with antifederalists. The antifederalists greatly influenced the Constitution. I agree that the Constitution needed some changes and some things added, and I think that it is good they really did care about the freedom/rights of people! (266)

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  5. anti-federalists were the people who didn't want the development of a strong federal government or the ratification of the Constitution in 1788, they wanted the power to remain in the hands of state and local governments. there was a lot of strong men who supported this idea there was:thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Samuel Adams, and Patrick Henry. these men wrote an essay known as the Antifederalist papers.
    Federalists wanted a stronger Central government and the ratification of the Constitution to help properly manage the debt and tensions following the American Revolution. This group was formed by Alexander Hamilton, the Federalist Party existed from 1792 to 1824. The culmination of American federalism and the first political party in the United States. John Adams, the second president of the United States, was the first and only Federalist president.
    three contrasting views of the Antifederalist, Felt the states were free now and should manage their money as they wanted and spend it when needed. they didn't agree with the constitution until the bill of rights were added. they didn't want to have their own power they wanted a government to make the decisions for them.
    Contrasting views of the federalists, they would do whatever they could do to get the antifederalists to join. they believed that the reason we were so weak is because the states had too much individual power. they wanted to pay their war debt off immediately. If i was the leader of them i would be on the federalists side because they realised they had a good thing and was willing to do almost anything to get people on their side so they could do this. and it was just a strong idea and shows they have great leaders in this group

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  6. Federalists were people who supported the Constitution. Some of the most respected men in the United States were Federalists. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay were Federalists. Madison, Hamilton, and Jay wrote a series of papers called the Federalists Papers, defending the Constitution. People who opposed the Constitution were called Antifederalists. They wrote their own set of papers called the Antifederalists Papers. Those who supported the Antifederalists were with Patrick Henry. The federalists felt that each state having its own money system was dumb. Having 13 different money systems made a lot of economic problems. They favored a central banking system and a central financial policies. Having one central currency is just common sense compared to having numerous banking systems. The antifederalists felt that each state were free agents and manage their own money and revenue as they saw fit. This one is obvious. The federalists wanted the constitution, and the antifederalists didn’t want it unless a Bill of Rights were added. The federalists wanted a stronger government (Constitution) to help sort through all problems. The antifederalists thought that a strong central government wouldn’t give enough power to the smaller states, so they favored a smaller local government. I would support the federalists because it’s just common sense. Everyone knows that we need a stronger government, so we should get one. Having 13 different types of money proposed numerous problems, so we should have one type of money. There is a reason why we are the United States of America, and not the Divided States of America.(262)

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  8. After a new constitution had been written, most people divided into two sides known as the federalist and the anti-federalist. The federalist wanted a strong central government that would help regulate trade, raise an army, control the money by raising taxes and have a central military army. The anti-federalist was afraid that this central government would be similar to being under control of England. This is what they fought against in the American Revolution. A central government would take away their freedom to make laws for their colony. They felt like only the wealthy would benefit from a central government. To protect the rights they insisted that individual freedoms be written into the constitution. If I was a leader during this time I would want to be a federalist because it is making the government stronger. It was uniting all of the colonies into one country. (146)

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  9. The Federalists was the group of people who strongly supported the Constitution. This group had two huge men in society supporting them, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. It also had some other big supporters including James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. These three men wrote essays on this group called the Federalists Papers. The people group who opposed the Constitution was called the Anti-Federalists. The Anti-Federalists favored a local government that is more closely controlled by the people. The Anti-Federalists strongly supported Patrick Henry, and he was their biggest supporter. One of the biggest contrast between the two groups is that the Federalists supported the idea of a strong national government, but the Anti-Federalists were the ones who did not support a strong national government. The Anti-Federalists did no support the idea of ratifying the Constitution in 1788, but Federalists wanted the ratification of the Constitution to help properly manage the debt and tensions after the American Revolution. Anti-Federalists felt that the people should be able to spend their money how they see fit. Federalists feels that people deciding how to spend their money brings economic struggles. If I was a American leader I would support the Anti-Federalists because I think the people should have the biggest say in the government. (218)

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  10. Let’s just be logical.

    George Washington and Benjamin Franklin--as well as people like Madison, Hamilton, and Jay--were respected men in the country; well, for the federalists, at least. They were mainly respected by them because they were on their side, the side that supported the Constitution.

    All of these men had something in common: They wanted a strong national government.

    This is where you really had to take a look at both perspectives. The federalists wanted this because they believed that this type of government would help America to manage and take care of any debts; however, the group of people known as the anti-federalists wanted the power of the government to be left to the states.

    Another disagreement between the two groups was that the federalists wanted a central banking and financial policy system. They believed that a method like this would help the economic problems America was facing. But, of course, the anti-federalists believed that each individual state should worry about their own annual income and take care of it the way they thought it should be dealt with. This one could really go either way, in my opinion, but I believe the most structural alternative would be to have a central banking because than every state doesn't have to deal with issues that only that state would know how to fix. If there was a problem with a certain state's revenue system, how would the central government be able to help out if only that particular state knew what they were dealing with…sort of? It would be like asking a construction team to build a baseball stadium without the plans of an architect or engineer.

    I believe that the most important disagreement between federalists and anti-federalists was having a bill of rights or not. The feds were all for it, but do I even have to say that the anti-feds disagreed? Individual rights is the most important thing any citizen could want, but still, there was no Bill of Rights added until 1791.

    Because of the last reason, I would have to say that if I was an important leader in America, I would definitely be on the side of the federalists. As I understand that the anti-federalists feared that a strong central government would start oppression like it had in Britain, there cannot be any order without a firm structured government, including concrete rights for citizens. Even George Washington, a smart man who knew what he was doing, was on the feds' side. Hello? Green flag?

    (422)

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  11. The anti-federalists opposed a strong federal government and wanted strong state governments. The federalists actually wanted a federal government unlike the anti-federalists. Anti-federalists felt like the states should have their own laws and only have to follow them, while the federalists thought one set of laws would benefit every one more. Finally the anti-federalists apposed the constitution until the bill of rights came. The federalists supported it even before the bill of rights. I would have to agree with the federalists because if it was America was a “team” then they would need one central power and goal and stay together. They can’t have one person teams.(107)

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  12. The antis didn't want a strong central govt. Cause they feared it would give the national govt. Too much power and states would lose most of their power. Feds wanted the strong central govt. cause states divided power and that divided the country. The antis also thought that each state should do whatever they want, have their own laws, own currency, etc. This would make a nation a ton of sub nations instead of 1 whole nation together. The antis wanted the constitution changed to be more state power until the bill of rights was added. The feds liked it no matter what. This made them compromise to have the nations central govt.

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  13. The controversy of the anti federalist and federalist was very real. they both had absolutely opposite believes on their government. The anti federalist disagreed with the idea of a central government. They wanted the states to have all of the power. the anti federalist also wanted the states to be in control of their affairs in the country. they also demanded the Bill of Rights. they didn't want their rights to taken from them.The federalist wanted a strong central government and wanted the states to share their power throughout the country. once they found out their differences they had to make a compromise on their way of government

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  14. The Federalists were people who supported the Constitution. Some of the most respected men in the United States were Federalists. For example George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay were Federalists. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay wrote a series of papers called the Federalists Papers to protect the Constitution. The People who opposed the Constitution were called Antifederalists. They wrote their own set of papers called the Antifederalists Papers. Those who supported the Antifederalists were with Patrick Henry. I would support the federalists because we need a stronger government. That’s why I think we would be nothing without the Constitution.(106)

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  15. A few people who supported the Constitution, Federalists, where George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. The last three wrote many essays on how the Constitution could help and how America needed the constitution. People who did not support the Constitution where called Anti-Federalists. The most prominent people were Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams.

    To get started most Anti-Federalists did not support the Constitution because it did not have a Bill of Rights. These people opposed the development of a strong federal government in fear of control over their lives like the British government originally. Federalists wanted a stronger national government and thought the ratification of the Constitution could help with debt and property management.

    In the end both sides won because the Federalists got the Constitution and on December 15, 1791 the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution, so they both got what they mainly wanted! (153)

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