American Government: Roots and Reform references, “An economic Interpretation of the United States Constitution by Charles Beard. In it, Beard claimed that the Framers’ intentions and considerations in drafting the Constitution were motivated self-interest. Until Beard wrote “An Economic Interpretation in 1913, the standard account of the Founding Era was that the Framers acted out of idealism and determination to create democratic institutions. Beard debunked this theory, and argued that the adoption of the Constitution itself constituted a triumph for those who were concerned with the protection of private property.
Beard advanced three main lines of argument. First, he explained the conflict between Federalists and Anti federalists as a clash of class interests between possessors of “personality” (merchants, creditors, public securities holders, and large slave owners) who tended to favor the Constitution, and owners of “realty”(yeoman farmers, debtors, and even the property-less) who often opposed it. Realty may be defined as the land and buildings thereon and anything permanently affixed to the land or the building. Personally on the other hand is anything which does not fit within the definition of realty
In support of his thesis, Beard analyzed the property holdings of the Constitutional Convention delegates, concluding that holders of personality, especially public securities, tended to become Federalists because they believed that the new central government would establish more effective protection for their property than the state governments, which had tended to adopt policies injurious to holders of personality.
Further, Beard argued that Federalist political thought reflected the economic interests protected by the Constitution. Specifically, Beard contended that Madison’s “Tenth Federalist,” paper with its emphasis on the Constitution’s ability to control factions, was directed particularly at controlling economic factions or classes in order to protect the rights of property.
Finally, Beard concluded that the Federalists were essentially anti-democratic elitists, out to reverse the democratic tendencies of the early state constitutions and the Articles of Confederation. Beard noted that Federalists favored restricting suffrage to property owners, granting unelected judges the power of judicial review over legislation, electing the President and the Senate indirectly, and limiting the power of the popularly elected House of Representatives by making it inferior to the Senate.
We've got everything to become your favourite writing service
Money back guarantee
Your money is safe. Even if we fail to satisfy your expectations, you can always request a refund and get your money back.
Confidentiality
We don’t share your private information with anyone. What happens on our website stays on our website.
Our service is legit
We provide you with a sample paper on the topic you need, and this kind of academic assistance is perfectly legitimate.
Get a plagiarism-free paper
We check every paper with our plagiarism-detection software, so you get a unique paper written for your particular purposes.
We can help with urgent tasks
Need a paper tomorrow? We can write it even while you’re sleeping. Place an order now and get your paper in 8 hours.
Pay a fair price
Our prices depend on urgency. If you want a cheap essay, place your order in advance. Our prices start from $11 per page.