American Government: The Madisonian Model

Almost immediately after the Revolutionary War ended, the members of the Continental Congress faced what one historian called the "unfinished agenda" of determining precisely what form of government would rule the newly-independent colonies (Binder, Online). Merely dividing power between Congress and the states under the 1781 Articles of Confederation had failed to create a government that could cope with all the issues of a growing new nation, in particular because the powers delegated to Congress under the Articles prevented it from discharging its duties. For example, although Congress was responsible for national defense, foreign relations and development of the West, the Articles did not designate the nature of its leadership or grant it the power to tax (Binder, Online). Only with the ratification of the Constitution of the United States of America, written in Philadelphia during the summer of 1787, were the thirteen sovereign states finally transformed into a federal union under a powerful central government (Hassing, Online).

James Madison was instrumental in the drafting of the American Constitution and consequently the form of government currently employed by the United States of America. In the battle to determine the precise wording of the Constitution and thus the form of government that would rule the states, Madison, along with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, wrote th

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he solution for opportunistic elements in the political system was for "[a]mbition . . . to counteract ambition" (Turley, Online). Checks and Balances However, Madison also argued that powers should not be entirely separate or distinct. Instead, he called for a blending of powers whereby the national government's powers would be shared among its branches (Dodd, 391). Thus, although judicial powers are lodged in the judicial branch, justices are nominated by the executive branch and confirmed by the legislative branch. Consequently, no one branch can ultimately dominate the others (Binder, Online). And after the legislature passes a bill, the president can veto it unless the veto is overridden by two-thirds of both the House and Senate. Likewise, although the legislature makes the laws, the judicial branch can interpret them (Binder, Online). In this way, separation of powers and creating checks and balances are the keys to preventing the accumulation of too much power within any one branch of government. Furthermore, by electing the House, Senate, and president by different constituencies for different lengths of time, the public retains its own check on the excesses of government officials (Binder, Online). Finally, wit
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