James Madison: Timeless Techniques
A momentous chapter in American history is the story of the making and ratifying of theConstitution of the United States. The challenge before the Constitutional Convention was todraft a document that would harness political power in a responsible fashion. The direction of theyoung country's future, and the delegates' ability to fulfill the promise of the AmericanRevolution, which the Articles of Confederation had clearly failed to do, loomed large in theConvention's deliberations. The outcome of this decision-making has remained valid for over twocenturies, a feat that deserves analysis. The reason for its timeless quality and ability to thrivethroughout the years can be traced back to one man, James Madison. He guaranteed apermanent, stable form of government for the United States by emphasizing "checks andbalances" and different levels of power among the three branches of the proposed system. While drafting the Constitution, Madison drew together the concepts of several Britishand French political philosophers and developed his view of how the government should be run. Not only did he understand the value of such concepts, he actively pursued enacting them in theUnited States Constitution. Madison made it a
The government resembled ademocracy in that the people themselves rule the country directly in some ways. Popularwill puts pressure on the executive and legislative branches to get results, yet an unpopular actiontaken by one branch may be challenged by the other branch or by the citizens themselves. Thus, the efforts of both the legislative branch and the judicialbranch served as a check on the executive branch and proved the strength of the system devisedso long ago by Madison. Congress has the task of persuading two-thirds of its members to vote forany bill that has been vetoed by the President before that bill can become a law (Findlay 61). His refusal to cooperate with Congress led to one ofthe articles of impeachment against him. By separating the branchesof government in this fashion, Madison wanted to disperse authority so that no one branch couldbecome dominant. These lifetime appointments are intended to insulate them from everydaypolitical pressures. This system identified three branches of the government: theexecutive, the legislative, and the judicial. The Senate has two members per state, no matter its size orpopulation. But even Congress is allowed to make only those kinds of laws which the Constitutionallows. Thisexecutive power and responsibility is given to the President. Theforum in which such challenges take place is a federal court, a part of the judicial branch. In essence, eachbranch helps to keep the other two from doing unwise or unjust things (Findlay 11). As Congress's main duty is to pass laws, it is necessary to explore how a bill becomes alaw in the first place. Forexample, the people, based on population of districts, directly elect members of the House ofRepresentatives (Findlay 15).
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