Federalist 51 - Lecture Notes

Introduction

• Date: February 8, 1788
• Author: James Madison
• Title: The Structure of the Government Must Furnish the Proper Checks and Balances Between the Different Departments.
• Purpose: To explain how the Constitution’s structure provides checks and balances to protect against abuses by the national government.

Separation of Powers

• Power divided among three branches:
  • Legislative (Congress)
  • Executive (President)
  • Judicial (Supreme Court)
• Goal: To prevent any branch from becoming too powerful.

Checks and Balances

• Each branch has power to check the others.
• Human nature perceived as imperfect; political elites likely to pursue power.
• Harnessing ambitions of each branch to check others is crucial.

Independence of Each Branch

• Each department should have a will of its own.
• Members should have minimal influence in appointing members of other branches.
• Independence in terms of salary/emoluments is critical.

Protection Against Concentration of Power

• Administrators of each department need constitutional means and personal motives to resist encroachments.
• Ambition counteracts ambition: officials' interests tied to constitutional rights.

Core Reflection on Human Nature

• Government is a reflection of human nature.
• Necessity of government arises because men aren't angels.
• Government must control the governed and itself.

Dependence on the People

• Primary control on government.
• Auxiliary precautions needed due to human nature and political dynamics.

Legislative Authority

• Legislative branch naturally predominates in a republic.
• To mitigate, division into different branches is necessary:
  • Different election modes.
  • Different principles of action.

Double Security in Compound Republic

• Power divided between two distinct governments:
  • National
  • State
• Each government subdivides into separate departments.
• Result: Double security for people's rights.

Protecting Against Majority Injustice

• Society should protect against oppression by rulers and between societal factions.
• Different interests exist; majority might threaten minority rights.

Methods Against Majority Injustice

1. Creating a will independent of the majority: precarious security.
2. Incorporating diverse interests in the society:
   • Minimize unjust majority combinations.
   • Exemplified in the U.S. federal republic.

Justice as the End of Government

• Pursuit of justice is the goal of civil society.
• Protects against anarchy where stronger factions can oppress the weaker.
• Government should protect all, not just dominant factions.