Constitutional arguments between the Federalists and the
Antifederalists:
The Antifederalists thought the
Constitution gave the Federal government too much control over commerce; they thought
that laws regarding commerce should not be passed except by 3/4 of each chamber of
Congress. The Federalists thought a simple majority was sufficient, as the Constitution
provided.
The Antifederalists thought the Federal
government should not have so much power over the state militias as the Constitution
gave it. The Federalists thought the Federal government should have power over the
state militias.
The Antifederalists thought the
Constitution gave the President too much power and he would end up being like a king.
The Federalists wanted a powerful president.
The
Antifederalists thought each state should have the same vote in Congress. Some
Federalists thought more populous states should have more votes in Congress. Some
Federalists thought wealthier states should have more votes in
Congress.
The Federalists pointed out that under the
Articles of Confederation, the Confederation government could not directly tax the
people, thus it could not repay foreign debts, it could not mount a respectable foreign
diplomacy, it could not provide for an effective national defense. The Antifederalists
thought that if the Federal government could tax the people directly, it would use this
taxing power to raise and spend far more money than good government needs and would grow
far bigger and more oppressive than good government needs to
be.
The Antifederalists pointed out that the Constitution
did not guarantee freedom of speech and other freedoms that Englishmen and British
Americans had long enjoyed. Federalists said that it did not need to guarantee them
because it did not give the government permission to violate
them.
Antifederalists thought that the Constitution gave
the Federal government so much power that it would do things it wanted to do whether or
not the Constitution gave permission. The Federalists said that separation of powers
and the very many and diverse interests that existed in so vast a republic would prevent
abuses of the power.
The Antifederalists said that the
Constitution should provide a means for the states to veto unconstitutional laws by
Congress. The Federalists said "no," the Constitution should provide for the Federal
government to veto unconstitutional laws by states.
The
Antifederalists said the President should refuse to enforce laws that he thought were
unconstitutional and the Supreme Court should refuse to hear cases brought under laws
that it thought were unconstitutional. The Federalists said the Supreme Court should
rule on the constitutionality of laws and the President should obey the
Court.
The Antifederalists wanted the Federal government to
have power to do only what could be done better by all the states collectively than by
each state individually. Things such as national defense, foreign treaties, regulation
of commerce. All other matters, such as welfare, transportation improvements,
regulation of property, inspection of businesses, etc., should be left up to the states
and the Federal government should have no power over them. Federalists desired a more
powerful central government than this interpretation would have
permited.
No doubt there were more arguments than I can
remember.
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