Compare And Contrast Federalist And Anti Federalists

Ratification DBQ The Constitution is a document that still stands as America’s governing body, proving its strength and ability to stand the test of time. Although some aspects of the document are debated and the argument of what is and what is not constitutional is discussed often, it has proven to be right for America and its people. However, in the late 1700s, not everyone saw the Constitution as strong and supported its state-power-heavy predecessor, The Articles of Confederation.

Most of the federalist were either debaters, farmers, or in the lower class. For example, Diffen claimed, “Anti-federalists were closely tied to rural landowners and farmers who were conservative and staunchly independent” (“Anti-Federalist vs Federalist”). In other words, this meant the anti federalists followers were of the common people, so the anti federalists wanted a government that fit the majority of the population. The anti federalists did not want rich men to represent the government because it was similar to the government in England. Most of the anti federalists did not want the government to have all of the control, but wanted the nation to have certain principal regardless of power.

Are you a Federalist or an Anti-Federalist? The proportional representation of the people and the government in the pursuit of equality and happiness is thoroughly explained through the Anti-Federalist party. Jackson Turner Main wrote, "to them, the man of 'federal principles' approved of 'federal measures,' which meant those that increased the weight and authority or extended the influence of the Confederation Congress." By stating this he intended to provide the explanation and root of the problem; the egos of both parties, especially federalists were a constant wall blocking the parties from a resolution The Anti-Federalists were composed of many differential elements.

September 17, 1787, the new founded Constitution was approved by the convention and was ready to be sent to each of the states for ratification. It was time vote on the new formed constitution, and each state had an equal number of votes. The voting results came back with thirty-nine out of fifty-five delegates approved of the new constitution, which was barely enough to win. The Untied States finally had a constitution and a strong national

The Federalist believed that once the Federal Government had more power the problems with the nation's debt would be handled better (Diffen.com, n.d.). The anti-federalist was against the ratification of the Constitution and did not want the government to have more control over them (Diffen.com, 2016). They were also against having a president out of fear of tyranny and preferred individual states to handle their affairs (Diffen.com, 2016). They did not feel comfortable with ratifying the Constitution until the Bill of Rights was added (Diffen.com).

This led the Anti-federalists to argue that the federal government should be limited to issues of national defense and interstate commerce and all other powers to the state. The Anti-federalists believed this plan granted the national government undue economic power over the states. Anti-Federalists found many problems in the Constitution. They saw no sense in throwing out the existing government.

Most Anti-Federalists were in the working class, debtors, poor, and people living in the backcountry or rural areas. The well-known Anti-Federalists at this time were Patrick Henry and Sam Adams. Federalists and Anti-Federalist were different in many ways and each believed that their form of government was best for them and the United States, but money played a big role in their decisions also. Document A, written by James Madison, supports Federalism. It talks about how to remove a faction and how to cure its outcomes.

Before I state my opinion, I must lay out the two opposing sides between the federalists and the anti Federalists. To put it simply, federalists were people who supported the ratification of the constitution. 
On the other side of the spectrum the anti-Federalists were people who opposed the ratification of the constitution. If I was living in the in the 1780’s I probably would have voted and supported the ratification of the constitution. I am the type of person that wants a strong and unified central government.

The Federalist main argument was stated based off the opinion that the government would never have complete power over the citizens, but the citizens would also have a little more power and a say in the things that involve them. On the other hand, the Anti-Federalists believed in limited powers specifically stated, they wanted strong state governments, and wanted a Bill of Rights added to the Constitution to protect the people from the government (Document 4). This was their point of view due to the fact that they believed that the individual states know and can act more based on their people that on federal government can. They focused their argument on the rights of the citizens. For the Federalists and Anti-Federalists to agree on a new government, they created a compromise that combined each of their ideas.

The Federalists wanted a strong central government. The Anti- Federalists claims Constitution gives the central government too much power and, and they worried about the new constitution will not give them any rights. That the new system threatened freedom; Also, threatened the sovereignty of the states and personal liberties; failed to protect individual rights. Besides, some of famous peoples such as " Patrick Henry" and artists have came out against the Constitution. Although the anti-Federalists were unsuccessful in stopping the passage of the Constitution, their efforts have been responsible for the creation and implementation of the Bill of

The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787. Yet, the government it created couldn’t rule over people’s lives until one more step was taken. Each state had to vote to ratify1 , or approve of it. By 1789, eleven states had ratified the new government.

Represented by Alexander Hamlton, they favored the constitution and were against the bill of rights. The Anti-Federalists feared/preferred a weak central government. They were represented by Thomas Jefferson, they favored the articles of confederation and were for the bill of rights. The warnings from the Anti-Federalists about the constitution were right. They warned the Federalists about the consequences of undelegated power becoming abused.

In an economy aspect Federalist though big business would help the government and they believed in central banking and financial polices verse the Anti-Federalists were more about smaller rural communities and felt states show manage their own money. Federalists preferred the concepts of a stronger federal government verses Anti-Federalist preferred the ideas of a stronger state governments. The Federalists believed the Constitution was designed well enough to guard against oppression in the national government and that no Bill or Rights was necessary. Anti-Federalists perspective were that the Constitution gave too much power to the federal government, while taking too much power away from state and local governments. The compromise helped collect enough support for the Constitution to guarantee its ratification and lead to the implementation of the Bill of Rights.

Federalists and Anti-Federalists had opposing views in the Constitution because of their differences; but they also had many similarities that ended up leading to the ratification of the Constitution. Anti-Federalists and Federalist had many similarities. Both were supportive of this new country and knew that they needed a government. They both wanted the congress to have power to create war and to create treaties.

By January 9, 1788, five states of the nine necessary for ratification had approved the Constitution which included Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut.   Eventually, New Hampshire ratified also.