Last Best Hope of Earth
A Blog Exploring American History and Politics
Constitution Sunday: David Ramsay to Benjamin Lincoln
Charleston, South Carolina January 29, 1788 A letter from a South Carolinian to a Massachusettsan—and from a budding historian to a Revolutionary War hero—captured the spirit of the moment as South Carolina was preparing to assemble its convention to consider the Constitution. David Ramsay, who would soon publish a two-volume book about the American Revolution, […]
MoreConstitution Sunday: “Publius,” The Federalist XLVI [James Madison]
New-York Packet January 29, 1788 James Madison, who would later become the fourth President of the United States, sought to quell fears of an overreaching and overly powerful federal government. The Constitution’s opponents had shared their fears—fears that Madison called “chimerical”—of a federal government that took power from the states and dominated the country’s governing. […]
MoreThe Civil War: New York Daily News: The Right of States to Secede
November 16, 1860 With the idea of secession permeating the public discourse, there were questions of whether states even had the right to secede. These questions were not confined to academics and lawyers; even the newspapers of New York City explored these questions—one of which, the New York Daily News, was a conservative newspaper that […]
MoreThe Civil War: Benjamin Hill: Speech at Milledgeville
November 15, 1860 There is an assumption that people throughout the South were the only ones calling for a dissolution of the Union. This is a faulty assumption; there were people in the North who saw no potential for reconciliation and called for dissolution. Some people even argued that the Constitution’s acknowledgement of slavery was […]
MoreConstitution Sunday: “Publius,” The Federalist XLV [James Madison]
Independent Journal (New York) January 26, 1788 A nation comprised of states (or provinces) will inevitably have tension between the national government and each of the state governments. Most frequently, at the center of that tension is sovereignty; one state’s policy preference may be anathema to another state.
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Constitution Sunday: “Publius,” The Federalist XLIV [James Madison] Part II
New-York Packet January 25, 1788 The Federalist XLIV [James Madison] Part II Article I, Section 8, Clause 18 of the Constitution has long sparked controversy, granting Congress the power to create necessary and proper laws to execute its other powers. James Madison, in the Federalist Papers, defended this provision against those who deemed it excessive. […]
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