What was the argument between them about the Bill of Rights?
Asked by: Alfred Rosenbaum | Last update: June 9, 2025Score: 4.9/5 (55 votes)
Federalists advocated for a strong national government. They believed the people and states automatically kept any powers not given to the federal government. Anti-Federalists wanted power to remain with state and local governments and favored a bill of rights to safeguard individual liberty.
What was the argument for the Bill of Rights?
Antifederalists argued that a bill of rights was necessary because, the supremacy clause in combination with the necessary and proper and general welfare clauses would allow implied powers that could endanger rights. Federalists rejected the proposition that a bill of rights was needed.
What was the main argument against the Bill of Rights?
Many delegates believed a bill of rights would be unnecessary because all the states had their own. There was a strong belief that individual rights were implied in the document they had already created.
What was the controversy about the Bill of Rights?
The birth of the Bill of Rights was controversial: Anti-Federalists demanded a concise constitution, which clearly delineated the people's rights and the limitations of the power of government. Federalists opposed the inclusion of a bill of rights as unnecessary.
What are the debates behind the Bill of Rights?
Some legislators saw a bill of rights as unneeded or unworkable while others saw it as an absolute necessity. Questions of states' rights, federal rights, and the rights of individuals were all part of the debate.
Why wasn’t the Bill of Rights originally in the US Constitution? - James Coll
What were the arguments against the Constitution?
Anti-Federalists argued that the Constitution gave too much power to the federal government, while taking too much power away from state and local governments. Many felt that the federal government would be too far removed to represent the average citizen.
What are 2 main ideas in the Bill of Rights?
These are a few of the key ideas in each amendment: First Amendment: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly. Second Amendment: the right of the people to keep and bear arms. Third Amendment: restricts housing soldiers in private homes.
Why do people dislike the Bill of Rights?
Even those who opposed the initial inclusion of the Bill of Rights in the original Constitution did so not because they did not support the Bill of Rights' libertarian guarantees, but rather, because they believed it was unnecessary to set forth these rights expressly.
What was the argument of the Federalists?
Within these documents, the Federalists argued for a strong national government and the protection of the people's rights. One of the strongest arguments expressed by the Federalists was that the Articles of Confederation could not protect the nation and provide for its defense in an emergency.
What was the main disagreement about adding a Bill of Rights?
Final answer: The disagreement about adding a Bill of Rights on whether it was necessary to protect individual liberties against potential government overreach. Federalists thought it was superfluous and possibly dangerous, whereas Anti-Federalists considered it vital.
What was a key argument against having a Bill of Rights?
In Federalist #84, Alexander Hamilton warned that a bill of rights could be dangerous, because defining certain rights vaguely would leave them subject to misinterpretation or violation. Moreover, Hamilton argued, in any bill of rights some important rights would be left out and therefore could become endangered.
What type of government did the Federalists want?
The Federalist Party supported Hamilton's vision of a strong centralized government and agreed with his proposals for a national bank and heavy government subsidies. In foreign affairs, they supported neutrality in the war between France and Great Britain.
Why was the Constitution a controversial document?
The Anti-Federalists fought hard against the Constitution because it created a powerful central government that reminded them of the one they had just overthrown, and it lacked a bill of rights. The ratification campaign was a nail-biter.
Was the Bill of Rights a good idea?
According to the National Archives, “The Constitution might never have been ratified if the framers had not promised to add a Bill of Rights. The first 10 amendments to the Constitution gave citizens more confidence in the new government and contain many of today's Americans' most valued freedoms.”
What did Hamilton and Madison disagree on?
For Madison, republicanism meant the recognition of the sovereignty of public opinion and the commitment to participatory politics. Hamilton advocated a more submissive role for the citizenry and a more independent status for the political elite.
Which amendment ended slavery?
13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Abolition of Slavery (1865)
What was the debate on the Bill of Rights?
The House of Representatives debated the Bill of Rights between June 8 and September 24, 1789, when the House voted on its final version of amendments. House debate was shaped by the extreme reluctance, if not the open hostility, of the members towards Madison's version of amendments.
How did Federalists feel about the Bill of Rights?
Federalists rejected the proposition that a bill of rights was needed. They made a clear distinction between the state constitutions and the U.S. Constitution.
What were the arguments against federalist?
- the excessive power of the national government at the expense of the state government;
- the disguised monarchic powers of the president;
- apprehensions about a federal court system and its control over the states;
What were the arguments of the Federalists?
They favored weaker state governments, a strong centralized government, the indirect election of government officials, longer term limits for officeholders, and representative, rather than direct, democracy.
Why didn't they want the Bill of Rights?
James Madison and other supporters of the Constitution argued that a bill of rights wasn't necessary because - “the government can only exert the powers specified by the Constitution.” But they agreed to consider adding amendments when ratification was in danger in the key state of Massachusetts.
What Bill of Rights were rejected?
In 1789, at the time of the submission of the Bill of Rights, twelve pro-were ratified and became the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Proposed Articles I and II were not ratified with these ten, but, in 1992, Article II was proclaimed as ratified, 203 years later.
What was the main argument of the Bill of Rights?
It guarantees civil rights and liberties to the individual—like freedom of speech, press, and religion. It sets rules for due process of law and reserves all powers not delegated to the Federal Government to the people or the States.
What First Amendment doesn't protect?
Only that expression that is shown to belong to a few narrow categories of speech is not protected by the First Amendment. The categories of unprotected speech include obscenity, child pornography, defamatory speech, false advertising, true threats, and fighting words.
Who has the power to declare war?
The Constitution grants Congress the sole power to declare war. Congress has declared war on 11 occasions, including its first declaration of war with Great Britain in 1812. Congress approved its last formal declaration of war during World War II.