James Madison 1

As a society, we are taught that history repeats itself. Therefore, it is important to understand our history and recognize our faults in order to prevent the same failures in the future. After reading James Madison’s Federalist #10, it is interesting to relate our countries’ earliest foundational problems with the problems we face today. It is safe to say that history has repeated itself, and Madison’s paper is as relevant to today’s politics as if it were written a month ago.
            James Madison maintained that government should be constructed to prevent overbearing majorities from trampling on the rights of minority groups. Particular points in the paper were so directly relatable to today that it was remarkable. For example, early in the paper, Madison writes, “complaints are everywhere heard from our most considerate and virtuous citizens, equally the friends of public and private faith, and of public and personal liberty, that our governments are too unstable, that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties, and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority,” (Dolbeare and Cummings, 83; Madison, Federalist 10). In today’s politics, the overbearing majority is the wealthy class, and big business. This includes insurance companies, banks, and of course, the pharmaceutical industry. These are the companies that the government will bail out, and continue to help gain more and more wealth. It seems as if the rights and justice of the minor party (everyone else), is disregarded. It is partially ironic that in this case, the overbearing majority is actually a minority of people, and the minority party, is actually the bottom ninety percent of the nation. This reason for this is simply because money runs the nation. In order for our government to run and in order for elected officials to properly campaign,...