The Federalist Papers (version 2)


Read by Mark F. Smith

(4.9 stars; 14 reviews)

“The Federalist Papers” are a collection of 85 linked essays that explain the construction of the U.S. government and why it was built that way. The Papers are regarded as the best pipeline into understanding the U.S. Constitution and the founding principles of the government it would establish.

I have endeavored here to present these essays, not as articles in a newspaper, but as you might have experienced them if you had sat in a comfortable tavern with a tankard in hand, and listened while these ardent men ranged in front of a friendly fireplace as they attempted to convince you of their arguments.

Following the Revolutionary War, the newly-independent United States of America were organized under the Articles of Confederation. This well-intentioned document was faulty to the purpose, and the new nation rapidly found itself in dire financial distress.

Consequently, in 1787 a Constitutional Convention was called to produce a new blueprint for the government. After completion, that plan was sent to the States in September of that year for ratification, but it immediately came under fire for the powers it granted to the central government.

In New York, views on either side were heated. To persuade the public to support the Constitution for ratification, Alexander Hamilton (who had been a delegate to the Convention) and John Jay (who had helped negotiate the treaty with Great Britain that ended the War), began a series of anonymous essays to educate the citizenry in how the government would be arranged, and why those choices had been made. Later, when Jay was rendered unable to continue by an attack of rheumatism, Virginian James Madison (another Convention delegate who was in New York, serving in the Confederation Congress) was recruited to fill in.

Each wrote essays that were signed “Publius,” the name of a general who had helped to found Rome, to conceal their identities, which might have led to difficulties as Hamilton and Madison had been inside the deliberations at the Convention. These essays were published serially in New York newspapers, eventually reaching the total of 85.
(Summary by Mark Smith) (23 hr 40 min)

Chapters

General Introduction 12:34 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning Dangers From Foreign Force and Influence 14:25 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 12:35 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 13:32 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 11:30 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning Dangers From Dissensions Between the States 17:16 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 17:32 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Consequences of Hostilities Between the States 15:36 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Union as a Safeguard Against Domestic Faction and Insurrection 15:38 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 23:30 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Utility of a Union in Respect to Commercial Relations and a Navy 19:02 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Utility of a Union in Respect to Revenue 16:29 Read by Mark F. Smith
Advantage of a Union in Respect to Economy in Government 7:41 Read by Mark F. Smith
Objections to the Proposed Constitution From Extent of Territory Answered 15:55 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Insufficiency of the Present Confederacy to Preserve the Union 22:34 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 15:29 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 12:25 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 16:52 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 16:12 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 12:42 Read by Mark F. Smith
Other Defects of t he Present Confederation 15:21 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 25:23 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Necessity of a Government as Energetic as the One Proposed to the Preservat… 13:44 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Powers Necessary to the Common Defense Further Considered 14:03 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 15:02 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Idea of Restraining the Legislative Authority in Respect to the Common Defe… 17:51 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 11:07 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 12:18 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning the Militia 16:32 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning the General Power of Taxation 14:45 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 13:10 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 11:37 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 13:20 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 16:17 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 16:37 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 19:52 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning the Difficulties of the Convention in Devising the Proper Form of Go… 21:56 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued, and the Incoherence of the Objections to the New Pl… 24:57 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Conformity of the Plan to Republican Principles 19:18 Read by Mark F. Smith
On the Powers of the Convention to Form a Mixed Government, Examined and Susta… 23:18 Read by Mark F. Smith
General View of the Powers Conferred By the Constitution 26:40 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Powers Conferred by the Constitution Further Considered 20:35 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 25:28 Read by Mark F. Smith
Restrictions on the Authorities of the Several States 21:52 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Alleged Danger From the Powers of the Union to the State Governments 16:07 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Influence of the State and Federal Governments Compared 18:56 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Particular Structure of the New Government and the Distribution of Power Am… 20:45 Read by Mark F. Smith
These Departments Should Not Be So Far Separated As To Have No Constitutional C… 14:42 Read by Mark F. Smith
Method of Guarding Against the Encroachments of Any One Department By Appealing… 12:37 Read by Mark F. Smith
Periodical Appeals to the People Considered 9:12 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Structure of the Government Must Furnish the Proper Checks and Balances Bet… 14:46 Read by Mark F. Smith
The House of Representatives 13:44 Read by Mark F. Smith
The House of Representatives, Continued 16:43 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Apportionment of Members Among the States 15:24 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Total Number of the House of Representatives 15:18 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Total Number of the House of Representatives, continued 11:52 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Alleged Tendency of the New Plan to Elevate the Few at the Expense of the M… 16:25 Read by Mark F. Smith
Objection That the Number of Members Will Not Be Augmented as the Progress of P… 15:46 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concerning the Power of Congress to Regulate the Election of Members 13:57 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 16:13 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued 11:16 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Senate 17:35 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Senate Continued 22:45 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Powers of the Senate 17:57 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Powers of the Senate Continued 14:35 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Power of the Senate to Set as a Court for Impeachments Further Considered 16:08 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Executive Department 13:00 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Mode of Electing the President 11:10 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Real Character of the Executive 19:12 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Executive Department Further Considered 22:39 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Duration in Office of the Executive 12:27 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Same Subject Continued, and the Re-Eligibility of the Executive Considered 15:05 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Provision for the Support of the Executive, and the Veto Power 16:51 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Command of the Military and Naval Forces, and the Pardoning Power of the Ex… 7:42 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Treaty-Making Power of the Executive 14:16 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Appointing Power of the Executive 14:08 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Appointing Power Continued and Other Powers of the Executive Considered 14:25 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Department 21:48 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Continued 7:57 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Powers of the Judiciary 18:31 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Continued, and the Distribution of the Judicial Authority 27:04 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Continued 11:28 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Continued in Relation to Trial By Jury 22:36 Read by Mark F. Smith
The Judiciary Continued in Relation to Trial By Jury 19:19 Read by Mark F. Smith
Certain General and Miscellaneous Objections to the Constitution Considered and… 28:17 Read by Mark F. Smith
Concluding Remarks 19:33 Read by Mark F. Smith

Reviews


(5 stars)

Wow Ray must not have seen the play.