Federalist No. 70 (1788) is Alexander Hamilton's defense of the Constitution's choice to place executive power in a single President. Hamilton first argues that energy in the executive is essential to good government, and that unity is one of the ingredients of that energy, because one person acts with more decision, speed and secrecy than a group. He then argues against both forms of a plural executive, several equal magistrates or a single chief bound by a council: either invites dissension that weakens the government, and either lets blame be shifted so that the people cannot hold anyone responsible. He concludes that a single executive is both more energetic and safer for liberty, since one person is easier to watch than a small group whose members can combine.
Original summary for this showcase, informed by public sources including Wikipedia.
Read more: Federalist No. 70 on Wikipedia · Full text: Federalist No. 70 at Project Gutenberg
Alexander Hamilton (1755 or 1757–1804) was an American statesman, a New York delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. Born in the West Indies, he served as George Washington's aide during the Revolutionary War and became the most forceful advocate of a strong national government. He planned The Federalist, recruited James Madison and John Jay to write it with him, and wrote fifty-one of its eighty-five essays, including those on the executive and the judiciary. He was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804.
Original summary for this showcase, informed by public sources including Wikipedia.
Read more: Alexander Hamilton on Wikipedia
Federalist No. 70 (1788) is Alexander Hamilton's defense of the Constitution's choice to place executive power in a single President. Hamilton first argues that energy in the executive is essential to good government, and that unity is one of the ingredients of that energy, because one person acts with more decision, speed and secrecy than a group. He then argues against both forms of a plural executive, several equal magistrates or a single chief bound by a council: either invites dissension that weakens the government, and either lets blame be shifted so that the people cannot hold anyone responsible. He concludes that a single executive is both more energetic and safer for liberty, since one person is easier to watch than a small group whose members can combine.
Original summary for this showcase, informed by public sources including Wikipedia.
Read more: Federalist No. 70 on Wikipedia · Full text: Federalist No. 70 at Project Gutenberg