Question

excerpt 3: federalist no. 51 – james madison
“…in framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. ambition must be made to counteract ambition.”
questions:
a. what challenge does madison identify in designing a government?
b. how does the constitution address this challenge?
c. what does “ambition must be made to counteract ambition” mean in terms of checks and balances?
excerpt 4: anti - federalist no. 84 – anonymous
“the constitution is silent on the subject of a bill of rights… it is evident that no government can be free where the rights of the people are not secured by a bill of rights.”
questions:
a. what is the author’s main criticism of the constitution?
b. why does the absence of a bill of rights concern anti - federalists?

Explanation:

1. Madison identified the challenge of designing a government as the need to control those who govern. This was addressed through a system of checks and balances in the Constitution. For example, the separation of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches ensures that no single branch becomes too powerful.
2. "Ambition must be made to counteract ambition" means that the self - interested nature of individuals in government positions can be used to keep each other in check. For instance, the power of Congress to override a presidential veto is an example of this.
3. The Constitution addresses the challenge of ambition through the system of checks and balances. Different branches have powers that can limit the actions of other branches, such as the judicial branch's power of judicial review over laws passed by Congress and actions of the executive.
4. Anti - Federalists were concerned about the lack of a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. They believed that without it, the rights of the people were not secure. They thought a Bill of Rights was necessary to explicitly protect individual liberties from potential government overreach.

Answer:

1. The challenge Madison identified in designing a government is the need to control those who govern, given that it is to be administered by men over men.
2. "Ambition must be made to counteract ambition" means using the self - interested ambitions of individuals in government to balance and limit each other's power.
3. The Constitution addresses this challenge through a system of checks and balances among the different branches of government.
4. The main criticism of the Constitution by Anti - Federalists was the absence of a Bill of Rights, as they believed it was necessary to secure the rights of the people.