The Role Of James Madison In Destroy Liberty

James Madison, a founding father and an author of The Federalist Papers, once wrote, 'Liberty may be endangered by the abuses of liberty, as well as by the abuses of power.' This quote suggests the idea of natural law in which Madison was trying to express that government power needs to be restricted in order to protect rights because he believed that people were born naturally selfish. The purpose of the Federalist Papers were written to inform people as well as persuade them to accept the need for a centralized government to obtain this balance between order and individual freedom. Federalist No. 10 written by James Madison has to do with defending the form of republican government suggested by the Constitution. Madison argued that factions were dangerous because one faction always opposes another faction, therefore if one faction is satisfied, then the other faction will lose its freedom. Madison’s cure for this was to remove the causes of factions and/or by controlling the effects of them. Madison's solution for controlling the effects of factions was to create a republic with large numbers of people and representatives. In regards to factions and extending liberty in the United States I wanted to closely examine the contrasting factions we’ve seen in the American political system and how they’ve played a major role in influencing U.S. culture.

Madison believed that direct democracy was a major threat to the United States. His fear of direct democracy was based on the domination of congress and “factions,” which can be described as a group of people consisting of majority or minority merged together around a particular interest according to Frank Easterbook, author of, “The State of Madison’s Vision of the State: A Public Choice Perspective.” Madison wrote, “Complaints are everywhere heard from our most considerate and virtuous citizens, equally the friends of public and private faith, and of public and personal liberty, that our governments are too unstable; that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties; and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice, and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority.” (Madison 93) He believed that as long as people were allowed to exercise liberty that different opinions would be created. People have different opinions about government, religion, political leaders, etc. The most ordinary cause of faction is the “various and unequal distribution of property. Those who hold and those who are without property have ever formed distinct interests in society.” (Madison No.10) When the state is said to be dominated by factions which work through either or both of the two main official parties then the rules of justice are often violated. According to, “The State of Madison’s Vision of the State: A Public Choice Perspective,” written by Frank H. Easterbook, “the power of the factions don’t depend on cynicism.” Meaning that James Madison believed that cynics were unreliable and too costly. A faction provides its support to the individuals that have overlapping ideals in comparison to ‘group interest’ meaning that, “various groups/factions, would compete within the democratic system.”(Frank H. Easterbook) Madison observed that leaders who took tyrannical power often did so by taking advantage of internal divisions in political life. He wrote, “The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into the public councils, have, in truth, been the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished; as they continue to be the favorite and fruitful topics from which the adversaries to liberty derive their most specious declamations.” (Madison 93) Madison strongly believed that, “factious spirit has tainted our public administrations,” which is what led him to avouch the importance of breaking and controlling factions and points. In order to accomplish faction destruction it took two major actions: destroy liberty and have everyone think alike. This theory of Madison’s can be labeled as pluralism.

In the article, “James Madison and the Constitution” written by Jeff Broadwater for the Virginia Magazine of History & Biography, Broadwater shares that, “Madison’s fundamental beliefs include preserving majority rule, minority rights, and the balance of power between the branches and levels of government.” Madison believed in the will of the people as well as public opinion being the product of public attitudes and/or beliefs about government/politics. Pluralism emphasizes that the policymaking process is very open to the participation of all groups with shared interests, usually leaving no single group being dominated. Pluralists tend to believe that as a result, public interest generally prevails. Madison argues for a representative democracy, or better yet a large republic where the people elect a leader to represent them. Representatives can help to “refine and enlarge the public views,” according to Jeff Broadwater. Republics can be larger than pure democracies, making it more difficult for a majority faction to emerge. “The smaller the society, the fewer probably will be the distinct parties and interests composing it; the fewer the distinct parties and interests, the more frequently will a majority be found of the same party; and the smaller the number of individuals composing a majority, and the smaller the compass within which they are placed, the more easily will they concert and execute their plans of oppression.” (Madison 98) This quote sums up the comparison Madison was trying to make between a democracy versus a republic. Republics can surround larger territory with numerous factions in which they will, “secure the national councils against any danger from that source.” (Madison No.10) Madison’s form of government, as opposed to a direct democracy, renders stability because it keeps important government decisions from being made by the changing tide of public opinion. Representatives of the Union are more likely to be enlightened and unalloyed as well as less likely to be “tainted” by local injustices. According to Madison, the Union is more secure against cruel treatment from a conflicting party because of the greater variety of parties and interests it encounters. Because of the size, the Union poses greater obstacles to a majority faction taking action.

Factions are a way of life according to Gary Hunt, author of, “Factions-The Chains of Oppression.” We are all in factions and in many different areas. Two major examples of political factions in America would be Democrats/Liberals and Republicans/Conservatives but there are other factions that go head-to-head as well such as the Christian Right Social Movement and Homosexual rights groups. When we think of how our nation was founded, we know that it was placed upon Christian moral values. Gary Hunt writes that some of those values, however, “have been debated between various sects of Christianity since before the founding of this great nation.” For example, the First Amendment asserts, 'Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' meaning it was acquired to guarantee that the ability to practice one's religion, was a fundamental “God given right.” The Christian Right labelizes conservative Christian political factions as being characterized by, “their strong support of socially conservative policies,” pursuant to Gary Hunt. Christian conservatives apply their understanding of the teachings of Christianity to public policy and politics, consequently by affirming the value of those teachings or by pursuing to use those teachings to influence public policy and law. The Christian right influenced U.S. culture by playing a major role in the mobilization of conservative Christians as a political force and peculiarly in Republican presidential victories throughout the 1980s. Many Christians have beliefs that are not in unison with the beliefs of other Christians, though there is this aptness to suppress expressing them outside of one's own circle. Hunt writes, “It seems that as Christians subordinate their beliefs, they are adherents to, and a product of, the United States,” meaning they are what America stands for.

In contrast to the Christian Right, we’ve had Homosexual rights groups . This community, once a frowned upon group, used their voices, their bravery and assertiveness in which they managed to use the legislative process and court system to provide special privileges and special protection from what used to be a subject unworthy of discussion the majority of historical time. Gary Hunt shares that the word, 'marriage' with millennia of understanding of the definition, and still recognized in U.S. Code as between a man and woman, “Homosexual rights groups have managed to steal that word for their own uses and economic gain.” They have successfully lobbied for legislation that forces the government schools to encourage such behavior, contrary to the wishes of the parents who are clearly among the Principle Faction, and are advocating a moral degeneration of our society. According to Hunt, “The Principal Faction”is made up of two classes of people. These people are those who are depicted as the cause and purpose of the existence of the United States and its Constitution. In addition, Hunt elaborates, “those who were made citizens, though not fully empowered with the rights inherent within the Constitution, through the enactment of the Fourteenth Amendment, and are, or should be, of the Principle Faction,” which insinuates that advocates of homosexuality were in conflict with the Principle Faction.

It is clear to say that James Madison’s role in writing Federalist No. 10 was to defend the Constitution against the charge that a faction would soon gain control, which would result in an exchange of its own interest for the national interest. Madison's solution for the mischief of factions was to remove its causes and control its effects. Madison concluded that the causes of faction could not be removed because of clashing interests and people refusing to give up their liberty. In other words, Madison believed that forming a large republic with an abundance of interests, made it doubtful that a majority faction would form. Overall, the end supreme goal of the government, according to Madison, was justice. “Justice is the end of government. It is the end of civil society. It ever has been and ever will be pursued until it be obtained, or until liberty be lost in the pursuit.”