Tag Archives: James Madison

First Principles: To Suppose That Any Form of Government Will Secure Liberty or Happiness Without Any Virtue In the People, Is A Chimerical Idea

“Is there no virtue among us? If there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks-no form of government can render us secure. To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without any … Continue reading

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First Principles: You Must First Enable the Government To Control the Governed; and In the Next Place, Oblige It To Control Itself

“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.” – … Continue reading

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First Principles: It Is A Principal Incorporated Into the Settled Policy of America, That As Peace Is Better Than War, War Is Better Than Tribute

“It is a principle incorporated into the settled policy of America, that as peace is better than war, war is better than tribute.” – James Madison (1816)

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First Principles: No Government, Any More Than An Individual, Will Long Be Respected Without Being Truly Respectable

“No government, any more than an individual, will long be respected without being truly respectable; nor be truly respectable, without possessing a certain portion of order and stability.” – James Madison (1788)

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First Principles: Law Is Defined To Be A Rule of Action; But How Can That Be A Rule, Which Is Little-Known, and Less Fixed?

“Law is defined to be a rule of action; but how can that be a rule, which is little known, and less fixed?” – James Madison (1788)

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First Principles: In Republican Government, the Legislative Authority Necessarily Predominates

 “In republican government, the legislative authority necessarily predominates.” – James Madison, The Federalist No. 51

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First Principles: If Men Were Angels, No Government Would Be Necessary

“If men were angels, no government would be necessary.” – James Madison (1788)

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First Principles: It Is A Principle Incorporated Into the Settled Policy of America, That As Peace Is Better Than War, War Is Better Than Tribute

“It is a principle incorporated into the settled policy of America, that as peace is better than war, war is better than tribute.” – James Madison (1816)

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First Principles: There Is No Maxim…Which Is More Liable To Be Misapplied,…Than…That the Interest of the Majority Is the Political Standard of Right and Wrong

“There is no maxim in my opinion which is more liable to be misapplied, and which therefore needs elucidation than the current one that the interest of the majority is the political standard of right and wrong.” – James Madison … Continue reading

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First Principles: Wherever the Real Power In A Government Lies, There Is A Danger of Oppression

“Wherever the real power in a Government lies, there is the danger of oppression.” – James Madison (1788)

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