To What Extent Was This Characterization of the Two Parties Accurate During the Presidencies of Jefferson and Madison?

During the Revolutionary Period in the early 19th century, the two dominant political parties, the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists, had many conflicting belies. The Federalists believed that the federal government had certain implied powers that were not laid out in the Constitution. The Jeffersonian Republicans, on the other hand, believed that the government did not have the power to do anything that was not granted in the document. In general, Jeffersonian Republicans favored limiting the powers of the national government, placed the interests of farmers and planters over those of financial and commercial groups, and supported the cause of the French Revolution. Contrary to this, Federalists believed in a strong central government that ruled with a loose interpretation of the Constitution where trade and manufacturing were emphasized, and they favored the national bank and tariffs. These beliefs, however, were not always completely held on to by either party. The Jeffersonian Republicans can habitually be depicted as strict constitutionalists and the Federalists can be seen as broad constructionists, but to a certain extent, this classification of these two parties during the administrations of Jefferson and Madison, from 1801 to 1817, were fallacious as they occasionally strayed from their core beliefs for what they thought may benefit the United States; Jefferson and Madison both stuck to their original political beliefs for the most part, but in certain cases, strayed from these beliefs for the betterment of their country.

While in office, the majority of Jefferson's political philosophy was the same as a constructionist's political philosophy. In Jefferson's first year of his presidency, he gave George Granger a letter in which he states his beliefs of following the Constitution strictly, and his opponents' (the Federalists) political views of loose interpretation (Doc A). It can be implied through this letter that Jefferson believed that the Federalist's view of loose interpretation would lead to a superior national government, similar to that of a monarchy, which would cut out state's rights which are clearly laid out in the Constitution. Jefferson wrote a letter in his last year of office to Samuel Miller (Doc B), in which he reinforces the image of a strict constitution by stating that he intends to break the precedent of his predecessors to better adhere to the Constitution's policy of separation of church and state. Another example of Jefferson's strict allegiance to the Constitution was his philosophy that the National Bank should not be established because it was unconstitutional.

Similar to Jefferson, Madison stuck to his Jeffersonian Republican political beliefs for the most part. Speaking for Madison, Daniel Webster questioned Congress's ability to draft men for the military