Graham/Summer 2014
AP US Government
Summer Assignment
Welcome to Advanced Placement US Government. I am looking forward to the 2014-2015
school year. A full course syllabus will be offered the first week of school. I may be contacted
over the summer at drbkgraham@msn.com. However, please note that I will be out of town for
much of the month of July. This (summer) assignment is available on-line at the KHS website
and, in hard copy format on my door, room 821 at KHS.
AP Government requires different thinking and writing skills than you used in U.S. History.
Writing for government requires the understanding and analysis of abstract concepts and
principles. You will depend less on recitation of facts than on your interpretation of the
facts. You need to have a basic understanding of governmental functions and from that,
application of broad applications of concepts and ideas. Each week, I will assign a “TWIG”
which is an acronym for “This Week in Government.” The TWIG will address material
covered in that week’s class and, will mirror questions on the AP Government exam. To that
end, I developed a summer assignment, which models a TWIG assignment.
Assignment: Read the enclosed TWIG on The Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers.
After reading the essays, answer each of the following questions in clear and concise statements.
Be prepared to discuss this assignment during the first week of school in September. Have a
good summer!
Dr. Graham
Graham/Summer 2014
AP Government/TWIG The Federalists and Anti-Federalists
Following the debacle of the Articles of Confederation, the framers realized a strong national
government was needed. Nearly four months after a hastily convened Constitutional Convention
opened, the framers presented a document which crafted a new federal government. The
proponents of the new charter, who wanted the strong national government, were dubbed
“Federalists.” There was considerable opposition. This group became known as the “AntiFederalists.” It is ironic that the opponents felt that they were the true believers in authority since
they wanted to protect the states from the tyranny of the federal level. The viewpoints of these
two groups formed the bases of the later first American parties, and the first general discourse in
American politics.
The press became a battleground on the new document. Americans argued about how much
power the national government was given. They disagreed on the need for safeguards on
governmental authority. They further debated adequate representation for all citizens. And, they
inherently disagreed on the issue of direct versus indirect democracy. These political values
shaped the debate of the new government. Both the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists
presented important alternative visions of America.
Beginning in 1787, a series of eighty-five newspaper articles defending the new document began
to appear (The author was identified as “Publius” yet we now know that James Madison wrote
the bulk of the essays). The Federalist papers are the greatest link to the political theories that
the framers had in crafting the new document, and pushed many observers into the corner of
ratification. The Federalist papers countered the strongest arguments by the Anti-Federalists. It
rejected the argument over government tyranny, and over control of the government by a small
majority. Indeed, the most brilliant of the Federalist papers was number 10 (we will study this
later in the early stages of AP Government). Federalist 10 is considered as Madison’s
masterpiece. It refutes the argument of a small majority dominating the US Government (known
as a “Faction”). The other relevant and critical essays were numbers 47, 48, and 51. These three
essays address the division of power between the branches. The argument presented was that the
Framers attempted to structure the government in such a way that it would meet the needs and
aspirations of the people and at the same time check the arbitrary use of that power. The doctrine
of the separation of powers was designed to prevent any one group/branch from gaining control
of the national government. Federalist 10, 47, 48, and 51 most critically advance this ideal.
Not to be outdone, the Anti-Federalists offered their own intellectual treatise for rejecting the
Constitution. In several essays ( Penned under the name ”Brutus” and “Federal Farmer) the
Anti-Federalists attacked the centralization of power in a strong national government by
claiming it would obliterate the states and violate the standards espoused in the Declaration of
Independence. Further, there was a great fear of the loss of liberty. They wanted the preservation
of the Articles and thus, the continued guarantee of state sovereignty. Anti-Federalist 17 is
considered to be the strongest of the essays arguing against the new government. This essay is
directed entirely at the fear of state authority elimination and the ability of the federal
government to expand its powers.
Analysis:
The purpose of the new constitution was to address the inadequacies of the Articles and the
inferior confederate styled government. The failure of the Articles was evident by the economic
chaos that reigned in the confederacy. The framers wanted a balance between the powers of the
national and state governments. This exact balance became a very delicate issue and nearly
derailed ratification of the Constitution. The deliberation that emerged from the creation and
ratification of the Constitution presented a thesis on Governmental authority that exists to the
present day. Americans still debate the theory of governmental authority. The framers and
opponents merely created the first political debate and commentary for a government that has
endured over 200 years.
Assignment: Listed below are links for three of the Federalist Papers (47, 48, and 51). (We will
address Federalist #10 in a separate TWIG later in the school year). Also, there is a link for
Anti-Federalist #17. Read each of the essays and think of the argument that is being presented.
http://www.thisnation.com/library/antifederalist/17.html ( Anti-Federalist 17)
http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa51.htm ( Federalist 51)
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed47.asp ( Federalist 47)
http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa48.htm ( Federalist 48)
Answer each of the following questions in a short format. The answers should be typed, double
spaced, and flow in a concise essay of approximately 10-15 lines. These questions are formatted
to mirror potential AP Exam questions.
Analysis Questions:
1. From Federalist 47, extract the meaning of this paragraph:
“ …there can be no liberty, where the legislative and executive powers are united in the
same person, or body of magistrates”; or, “ if the power of judging, be not separated
from the legislative and executive powers”
( Montesquieu, French theorist who greatly influenced the Framers)
Q: for analysis: What was Madison’s argument here about the nature of the (proposed)
US Government and the separation of powers?
2. In Federalist 48, Madison addresses the intent of the Constitution to create a strong
legislative body versus a weaker executive. Extract any part of the essay which reiterates
this theory and explain how the statement reflects a desire for a strong legislative branch.
3. Federalist 51 is considered as the second strongest of the papers ( behind Federalist 10).
Federalist 51 further builds upon the concept of the separation of powers between the
different branches of government. It also addresses the need for a strong government.
Q: for analysis: How does Madison continue to build the argument for a strong legislative
body? Further, where is there evidence that Madison argues about the nature of man and
the governed? What does his passage indicate about the need for a strong government in
society?
4. Anti-Federalist 17 was designed to raise fears of central government authority. It attacks
both the necessary and proper clause (often referred to as “the elastic clause”) and,
Article 6, “ The Supremacy Clause” ( all laws of the federal government were to be” the
supreme law of the land..”).
Q: for analysis: Detract and define the many statements that Anti-Federalist 17 makes
about the loss of state sovereignty. Describe and define the arguments made about state
versus federal authority. Extract any one statement about taxation and define the fear of
the Anti-Federalists.