Federalist Essays No 10 & 51

Analisa Milkey

Period 5

The American form of government works for two reasons: it is not a true democracy and it has a system of checks and balances.

In Federalist No. 10, Madison discusses the importance of limiting the power of factions (people united in a shared cause or interest). He describes two different ways of attempting this before coming to the conclusion that the government cannot stop factions from developing but can control the effects of factions on the nation as a whole. Madison talks about the difference between a republic and a democracy and which one can better control the effects of factions. He says a pure democracy is when every person is directly represented in the government, while in a republic, the people have representatives. He claims that democracy will not help limit factions:

“From this view of the subject it may be concluded that a pure democracy… can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction…. Theoretic politicians, who have patronized this species of government, have erroneously supposed that by reducing mankind to a perfect equality in their political rights, they would, at the same time, be perfectly equalized and assimilated in their possessions, their opinions, and their passions.”

Here, Madison is saying that since we do not live in a perfect world, we cannot expect true democracy to ever work. If the American government was a true democracy, factions would have much more power than they do now, meaning those in the minority or not in the faction would not be as well represented in the government. The current U.S. government, however, is not a democracy but a republic, which curbs the power of factions:

“The influence of factious leaders may kindle a flame within their particular States, but will be unable to spread a general conflagration through the other States…. A rage…for any...improper or wicked project, will be less apt to pervade the whole body of the Union than a particular member of it….”

As Madison says above, in a republic, one particular faction is less likely to influence the entire country than in a republic. Because representatives are elected in a republic, each individual person has less power, but the will of the majority is more likely to prevail. Today, the same idea occurs. Although there are many extremists in both religion and politics, because we have a republic, these radical ideas do not get directly represented in the government, meaning the more moderate views are what prevail.

The second reason the American government works is because of its system of checks and balances. In Federalist No. 51, Madison describes this system as being similar to the one we have today:

“In the compound republic of America, the power surrendered by the people is first divided between two distinct governments, and then the portion allotted to each subdivided among distinct and separate departments. Hence a double security arises to the rights of the people. The different governments will control each other, at the same time that each will be controlled by itself.”

This quote shows why the checks-and-balances system of government is effective: although the people have to give up some power in a republic system, the idea of checks and balances makes it so that the inalienable rights of the people are not taken away by the government. The American government works because there are so many checks and balances that it is difficult for one person in the government to radically change an idea without the support of others. This is similar to the idea of a republic vs. a democracy where one person has less power in a democracy, while the power goes to the masses in a republic.

While the main checks and balances in our government come from the other government branches, Madison describes how the people can also check the government:

“Were this principle rigorously adhered to, it would require that all the appointments for the supreme executive, legislative, and judiciary magistracies should be drawn from the same fountain of authority, the people, through channels having no communication whatever with one another.”

This shows that, although our government is a republic, not a democracy, the people have more power than it initially appears. As Madison says, the three branches of government can check each other, but they all stem from the “fountain of authority,” the people.

Overall, our government is successful because it is a republic and because it has checks and balances. The American government seems to have found the right balance between giving the people too much power and not giving them enough power, which has led the United States into being one of the most influential and powerful nations in the world.