The Paperless Federalists

The guys are back with a special Election Day episode where they discuss the Electoral College. They cover the history, the process, and current events involving the Electoral College including potential changes to the system. Tune in and enjoy!

It’s been a while, but we’re back. We’re surviving 2020 and reaching back to bring you an episode originally recorded in September 2019. We will have more episodes coming shortly. Enjoy!

Cary and Justin return to discuss Hamilton’s Federalist No. 28. They discuss how Hamilton is focused on the consolidation of power into a national government, and the dangers in Hamilton’s arguments. Welcome back to all of those listening!

Cary and Justin return to discuss Hamilton’s prolific paper, Federalist 27. Included in this episode are gems such as, “Good people like good government, and bad people like bad government.” Also, Cary teases a conspiracy theory like no other. Enjoy!

Cary and Justin are back to discuss Hamilton's faith in the congress to check to the power of the executive. Pop cultural references abound in this new episode!

Cary, Justin, and Hamilton return to continue the discussion about standing armies. After a break, the guys are back. Join us for a new episode!!

Hamilton recognizes the concern of standing armies in peacetime, and the danger to liberty they represent. As a way to calm these concerns, he offers a method by which the Legislative branch can check the power of the Executive. Instead of attacking his critics head on, Hamilton employs the “neutral observer” as a method of demonstrating how no well-reasoned person could possibly disagree with his position.

Hamilton returns to discus what sort of protection the federal government should provide to its member states, how much power the federal government should have, and how the federal government will exercise that power. During this paper, Hamilton reveals himself as a closet monarchist, and a champion of the Leviathan. Emperor Palpatine would be proud!!

Hamilton is back to discuss the need for nationwide regulation of commerce, a national military, equal suffrage between the states, and the need for a supreme court. In true Hamilton fashion, he presents his arguments as being the best possible choice. Join Justin and Cary as they discuss Hamilton’s arguments in this paper, and how they conflict with earlier arguments presented in these papers.

Justin channels his inner-Hamilton and keeps trying to go off topic. Cary keeps the guys on task and on the path as they discuss Federalist Paper No. 21.

The guys are back with an informal episode full of insights and laughs.

Hamilton and Madison return with one last example of a failed confederacy. This time they discuss The United Netherlands. As Cary points out, once again things look good on paper for The United Netherlands, but in practice they didn’t work out well. One key provision that held it back was the requirement for unanimous consent among its members. Ultimately, the authors end this section of the Federalist Papers with a resounding conclusion that a confederacy, as a form of government, will not work for The United States of America.

Hamilton and Madison are back to bring you simultaneously too much detail and also not enough detail at the same time. How do they manage this? Justin and Cary examine the authors’ analysis of German principalities, as well as Polish and Swedish governments.

If anyone doubted him, Mr. Hamilton returns to demonstrate his knowledge of ancient Greek societies yet again. Do his references really support the point he is trying to make in this paper? The guys return to discuss that and more in this episode.

Mr. Hamilton once again argues for a stronger federal government relative to the state governments. Justin and Cary welcome everyone to 2018. The guys return to their feuding ways, and debate the importance of this paper in the modern world.

Mr. Hamilton returns and continues his campaign for a stronger, more centralized form of federal government. Hamilton focuses on how one state’s choice to disobey the authority of the federal government could cause a chain reaction throughout the union that could lead to the destruction of the whole. Justin and Cary return in the final episode of 2017 to discuss Hamilton’s analysis. Enjoy.

Justin and Cary welcome Matt back to the podcast. Hamilton returns to offer his services as a guide to the reader. He then proceeds to list all of the embarrassments the nation was suffering at the time, and to point out that a law without consequence is really just a suggestion. Numerous pop culture references make there way into the discussion, and in the end the guys agree that cake is always a good thing.

Mr. Madison is back to explain the difference between a republic and a democracy to those annoying Anti-Federalists who just can’t seem to understand English. Cary and Justin return as well. The guys count down Madison’s reasons of why the American form of government will prevail. Cary takes Madison to task for his selective memory. Echoes of Jay’s arguments related to homogeny can be heard in this paper. Madison foresaw better roads in American’s future, but did he also foresee the Hyperloop? Did Madison also lay the groundwork for one unified world government? These questions and more are answered as the guys get swept up in Madison’s vigor.

In this episode Cary discusses his recent trip to Washington D.C. and his thoughts in light of the current project.

Cary and Justin are back, and this time they’ve brought a friend! Matt joins in to discuss Hamilton’s arguments that “no well-informed man” can disagree with. The ever budget conscious Hamilton points out that one strong federal government will be cheaper to manage than any number of small confederacies. The discussion gets briefly side tracked due to the awesome superpowers of the Federal Farmer. When they regroup, the guys wonder if Hamilton was the Nostradamus of his time. Does Hamilton correctly point out some of the regional fault lines that surfaced in the Civil War? Does Hamilton undercut some of the arguments of Jay by suggesting that there are regional differences in the population of American, and that there is a lack of homogeneity? The guys address these questions and more in this episode!!