Posted on 03/04/2010 7:56:50 AM PST by Publius
Before the Civil War dealt a death blow to Jacksonian federalism, the anti-Federalists formed the base of Jefferson's Republican Party and Jackson's Democratic Party. After the Civil War, the Jeffersonian impulse formed the basis of the Progressive Movement.
Following World War II, Goldwater brought the heirs of the anti-Federalists and Jeffersonians into the modern Republican Party, and Reagan brought them to power -- for a while. Today the heirs of John DeWitt and Jefferson reside in the Tea Party movement.
The anti-Federalists are still among us, but in a different form.
But of course, once the Constitution was ratified, antifederalism (federalism) was a lost cause, as we have seen. I don’t really like Jefferson’s name attached to antifederalism. While the antifederalists were resisting big government consolidation, Jefferson was out of the country taking Madison’s word for everything. Madison, once his great plan was hatched, immediately began scurrying around, scheming with Jefferson against Washington and Hamilton, who were only doing what any antifederalist could have told them (and did) would happen. By then it was too late, and they both come off looking like fools.
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