Luther Martin vs. Landholder: Anti-Federalist Warnings on Consolidation and Tyranny
By: Mike Maharrey In a heated war of words, Luther Martin responded to a series of essays penned by Oliver Ellsworth under the pseudonym Landholder, defending his colleague Elbridge Gerry against ...
Read more.Luther Martin’s Warning: The Constitution as a Threat to State Sovereignty
By: Mike Maharrey Luther Martin, a prominent Anti-Federalist, warned that the proposed Constitution would destroy state sovereignty by concentrating power in a centralized national government. One of the few opponents ...
Read more.Bill of Rights: Forgotten Role of the 10th Amendment in Its Creation
By: Michael Boldin The Bill of Rights was born from intense battles between Federalists and Anti-Federalists over delegated and reserved powers. This clash not only shaped its contested origins but ...
Read more.A Republic at Risk: Cato’s Anti-Federalist Warnings
By: Mike Maharrey “A vile and arbitrary aristocracy or a monarchy.” That’s what the anti-federalist writer Cato warned we would get under the Constitution. This was because, in his view, ...
Read more.Tench Coxe: A Detailed Breakdown of State vs. Federal Powers
By: Mike Maharrey Despite being little known today, Tench Coxe was an influential founding father, and in early 1788, he provided what was possibly the most comprehensive list of examples ...
Read more.17th Amendment: How it Broke the Safeguard Against Consolidation
By: Michael Boldin When the framers designed the Senate, they envisioned it as a safeguard for the states, with a key component being state legislatures choosing senators instead of the ...
Read more.Tench Coxe: States and People as Checks on Federal Power
By: Mike Maharrey In his fourth essay of “An American Citizen,” Tench Coxe countered Anti-Federalist fears of federal tyranny by arguing that the Constitution’s structure kept the people and ...
Read more.Tench Coxe Defends the Structure of the House of Representatives
By: Mike Maharrey Countering Anti-Federalist fears that Congress wouldn’t represent the diverse interests of the American population, Tench Coxe came out swinging, insisting that the House would be “the immediate ...
Read more.Tench Coxe on the Senate: A Counter to Anti-Federalist Aristocracy Fears
By: Mike Maharrey The structure of the Senate was a serious point of contention for many Anti-Federalists, who warned it would quickly become a permanent or baneful aristocracy, with most senators serving for life. Tench ...
Read more.Tench Coxe on the Executive Branch: President, not a King
By: Mike Maharrey American presidents behave almost like elected kings, exercising vast powers with very little accountability. But that wasn’t the plan. Tench Coxe was a key figure in ...
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