John Jay writes the second Federalist paper, where he concerns himself with the dangers of a weak federal government and with the States having too much power. He first outlines the power of the government, in relations to the power of the citizenry. The citizenry, he believes, must cede some of their natural rights to the government, and allow the country to be one union under a federal government, rather then a a split confederacy. The essay answers the question: should America be one nation under one federal government, or should it give to the head of each State that power and divide into separate sovereign powers?
After the union was created, there was a move towards a government that was weak with the states having more of the power. John Jay believed that the prosperity of the American people was being undermined by politicians who believe that the prosperity of this country lies in its division of the states into distinct confederate States. The “variety of soils and productions...innumerable streams...navigable water”, all was given to Americans by providence. It was from God, John Jay believed, in order to unite the people into one country. The people, who are connected by race, religion, and customs, should never be “split into a number of unsocial, jealous, and alien sovereignties”. So this move away from one strong Union is an act against America’s destiny as set out by providence.
After the union was created, there was a move towards a government that was weak with the states having more of the power. John Jay believed that the prosperity of the American people was being undermined by politicians who believe that the prosperity of this country lies in its division of the states into distinct confederate States. The “variety of soils and productions...innumerable streams...navigable water”, all was given to Americans by providence. It was from God, John Jay believed, in order to unite the people into one country. The people, who are connected by race, religion, and customs, should never be “split into a number of unsocial, jealous, and alien sovereignties”. So this move away from one strong Union is an act against America’s destiny as set out by providence.
John Jay goes on to argue that the history of America has been at war, made peace, defeated America’s enemy, formed alliances, and made treaties as one strong Union. He believes that people are moving away from this and advocate something different. The press with their pamphlets and weekly paper, and those that have their objective be against the public good, Jay believes, are were trying to undermine the Union. John Jay believes that many people were deceived, but “the great majority of the people reasoned and decided judiciously”.
The future of the Union, according to John Jay, rests on whether the United States will have a strong federal government, or its going to have strong, independent, sovereign States. Rejecting the idea that the union should be one united Union, with the Federal Government being the anchor, would ultimately put the Union in jeopardy. John Jay hoped that the good citizen would realize that the dissolution of the Union would arrive if America is not one strong Federal Union, and decides to be a weak and divided confederacy.
The Biblical quotation or saying “A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand (Mark 3:24)” could have been, if not implicitly, strong in the mind of John Jay and many other Federalist framers. In order to understand why John Jay’s argument in favor of a strong federalism was, is, and will be correct argument, one has to put the federalist paper of John Jay in pre and post-historical context of the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. During the pre-federalism period, the country waged a war for independence and established a confederation form of government that created a league of sovereign states. If, perhaps, Articles of Confederation gave states full rights during the war of independence, the claim of state sovereignties after the war was irrelevant due to the need of consolidation of many issues the country had to deal with in post-independence. Jay’s conviction about the need for a stronger Union was bolstered not only by the weak poster of America in Foreign Affairs by the impotence and instability he saw at home – paper money agitation, boundary conflicts between states, etc. Historically speaking, a weak central government could have been catastrophic for the country as a whole. Still today, John jay is right given the tremendous responsibilities the United States has around the world as a superpower. In my opinion, John Jay’s argument of strong federalism is relevant because of the threat posed by the age of globalization. We don’t want a weak federal government in the face of terrorist threat, violation of human rights in other sovereign nations, etc. Should there be disunities union among the states, one should not assume the ability of the U.S. in helping to maintain order around the world. However, one may not be sure if John Jay and many other federalists foresaw the coming of a tyrannical federal government that can trump the rights of citizens such civil liberties that American of today cherish dearly. Bush, in the war on terror, was a typical example.
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