Essay Sample: What Is Democracy as Defined by the American Framers?

The framers of the American constitution were very instrumental in shaping the history of the nation. They included those who drafted, debated and signed the constitution and later served as appointed or elected officials in the newly created federal governments. The significant contribution of the American framers in establishing protocols of administration is indeed substantial. They were visionaries who aimed at designing a constitution that will not only endure for their lifetime but foundational principles that would sustain and guide the nation in the uncertain future (Stone & Marshall, 2011). Surprisingly, the word democracy does not appear anywhere in the two most fundamental founding documents of the USA that is the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Democracy was a contending issue amongst the founding fathers and framers of our great nation. During the 1787 Constitutional Convention, the framers presented opposing views regarding democracy. For instance, Thomas Jefferson advocated for a pure democracy while Alexander Hamilton and Madison argued that real liberty could not be found in extremes of democracies but rather in moderate governments. The framers did not all agree with the theoretical and practical provisions regarding the structure and principles of the new government but discussed the issues, compromised and came to a consensus. Majority of the framers supported the establishment of a federal republic as opposed to a pure democracy. The framers intended for the country to be a mixed republic consisting of a union of states bound by federal and national constitutions in which ensured liberal principles. In this new government structure, the people would elect representatives who would make decisions and policies on their behalf.

Previous philosophers like Aristotle and Machiavelli believed that the power of a city-state should be entrusted to people who are prepared for the duty. Ideally, democracy is defined as a government of the people, by the people and for the people. It is a form of state in which the leaders derive their powers from the people and are accountable to them for the use of that power. The framers who supported federalism contended that democracy is a tyranny of the majority and is a self-defeating mechanism that evolves into anarchy. The mistrust of the framers of democracy was well articulated by John Adams when he stated that democracy never lasts for long, it soon wastes, exhausts and murders itself (George Mason University, 2007). Democracy is defined as a rule by the omnipotent majority, and the minority have no protection against the unlimited power of the majority. In pure democracies, there lack legislative measures in which decisions made by the majority may be appealed; this is because the majority is considered to have absolute power. The framers studied analytically previous forms of governments like the Athenian Democracy and the Roman empire and sought to avoid drawbacks of monarchs, oligarchs, weak centralized governments, and factions. Alexander Hamilton and James Madison were the most active proponents of federalism and vehemently opposed a democratic republic.

Madison in the Federalist Papers No. 10 argued that public views could be enlarged and refined through the elected body of citizens whose wisdom was best at discerning the genuine interest of their nation. The majority sometimes may lack the required level intellect to handle policy issues and may be swayed by irregular passion, misinterpretation and misguided by the interests of others and thus may end up making poor decisions that they may condemn later and which may be in contradiction to national interests. For this reason, a representative form of government in the manner of a republic would best prevent poor policy choices from the masses as the duty of policy is entrusted on a chosen body of individuals that are competent (Federalist No.63). The framers were against the ballot and referendum initiative because they felt that sometimes the masses lack the capacity to comprehend complex issues presented at the ballots or referendum. Madison, who was an essential actor in the constitution process, believed that the chosen representatives were to be given autonomy to make decisions for the public good.

Madison also contended that the opinions of the minority would fare well in a nation of competing for interest where a unified majority would be prevented from exerting full control (Jones, Thomas, Vicki, Peter, & May 2014, pp. 209-210).Other founders' distrust for democratic government is in the separation of powers in the Constitution and some anti-majoritarian provisions, for example, the Electoral College, two-thirds vote to override a veto and the requirement that three-quarters of state legislatures of the state to ratify changes to the Constitution. There have been criticisms and calls for the abolition of the Electoral College as critiques have argued that it goes against the ethos of democracy that the US identifies itself with (Williams, 2007).

It is important to note that the framers did not oppose a popular type of government but intended to create a sound popular administration government that could check the majority. All the founding fathers did not share the same vision of the newly established government. In 1789 there emerged the democratic-republicans who were strongly opposed to the federalist form of government. They advocated for the rights of states and the active participation of ordinary citizens in politics (Jacqueline, Thomas, Vicki, Peter, & Elaine, 2014, pp. 217-219). The strong divergent views of the political leaders in the 1790s led to the creation of a two-party system, which is the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans led by Hamilton and Jefferson respectively. The Federalists supported a strong national government that would promote commerce and manufacturing while Jefferson and his supporters favored the rights of states which were more democratic as they provided the chance for the local citizens to immensely contribute in policy formulation. It implied a more inclusive government where the ruled could make their opinions count.

The founders feared to leave the power to the masses because populist pressures may compel the governments to adopt policies that may ill-serve the same people clamoring for them in the long run. The framers were skeptical of turning unfiltered public opinion into public policy because the majority is not always right. Sometimes the public is insufficiently informed and may take up policy directions based on minimum knowledge and information, and these policies may have adverse setbacks. If pure democracy was to be adopted it meant that each person could vote for every law and this would slow down policy formulation as the nation was too vast. Thus, a republic was the best way to go as it would reduce these pressures of democracy. Americans would vote in their leaders who would have the autonomy to make decisions on their behalf.

The framers may have put in place some logical and valid arguments as to why democracy was not the best course for the nation to take. However, some skeptics feel that their principal goal wasn't serving the country but themselves. The framers belonged to the wealthy and elite class. Critics have argued that these group of people formulated a constitution which was favorable to them, they ratified a structure in which they could have substantial influence and control over the direction in which the young nation would go both regarding domestic policy and foreign policy. They wanted to prevent the redistributive measures of wealth adopted by the majority in the 1780s.

Be it as it may the representative form of government established by our founders was very crucial. However, it wasn't immune to impediments. If the populace votes in irresponsible leaders then they will have to endure with their choice even when the leader has poor policy direction. Democracy by itself is a very complex topic that many front-runners have taken advantage of to sway voters even when the promises they make may be unachievable.

References

George Mason University. (2007, March). Democracy or a republic. Retrieved from econfaculty.gmu.edu: http://econfaculty.gmu.edu/wew/articles/fee/democracy.html

Jones, J., Thomas, B., Vicki, L. R., Peter, H. W., & Elaine, T. ,. (2014). Revolutionary Legacies,1789-1903. In Created Equal A History of the United States (pp. 217-219). Pearson Education Inc.

Jones, J., Thomas, B., Vicki, L. R., Peter, H. W., & May, E. T. (2014). New Beginnings : The 1780s. In Created Equal: A History of the United States (pp. 209-210). Pearson Education Inc.

Stone, G., & Marshall, W. P. (2011). The Framers Constitution . Retrieved from democracyjournal.org: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/21/the-framers-constitution/

Williams, W. E. (2007, June 1). Democracy or a Repbulic? The Founding Fathers Intended for the United States to be a Repbublic. Retrieved from fee.org: https://fee.org/articles/democracy-or-republic/