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A Biography of Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804)


The Hamilton Plan (Constitutional Convention, June 18, 1787)


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James Madison made detailed notes of Hamilton's speech, in which he stated his opposition to the two previous plans, especially to the retention of state sovereignty as proposed by New Jersey. Hamilton then listed several ways in which state sovereignty worked against the operations of the federal government: in short, people and politicians are naturally tied to the benefactor closest to them, in this case, the state governments. As support will always naturally swing toward state interests, the continuance of state governments will render the federal government ineffective.

Hamilton's basic plan of government looked like this:

Hamilton was opposed to terms for the executive because he felt that the incumbent would spend his time in office creating a political machine to ensure his reelection. He saw, in retrospect quite clearly, that limited terms would effectively limit the chief executive to engaging in full-time electoral politics. "An executive for life has not this motive for forgetting his fidelity and will therefore be a safer depository of power."

Hamilton's use of the dreaded "M" word set alarm bells ringing to the exclusion of everything else he said concerning the subject. From Madison's notes: "It will be objected probably, that [an Executive for life] will be an elective Monarch, and will give birth to the tumults which characterize that form of Gov[ernmen]t. He w[oul]d reply that Monarch is an indefinite term. It marks not either the degree or duration of power. If the Executive Magistrate wd. be a monarch for life--the other prop[ose]d by the Report . . . wd. be a Monarch for seven years."

Hamilton was simply disarming the term by identifying its use as scare tactic. The word, however, had lost none of its odious connotations in the average American mind. His utterances at Philadelphia would be remembered, and Hamilton's opponents would soon find "monarchist" a handy appellation for him.

The following day Hamilton was taken to task for his remarks on state sovereignty, which some construed as a call for the abolition of states. Hamilton responded that he had been misunderstood, and explained that he did not advocate a complete abolition of the states, only a diminution of their status as political entities to ensure the preponderance of the federal government.

The Hamilton Plan of government would be another document filed away for want of support. Although the convention delegates listened to Hamilton's plan respectfully, they never seriously discussed it. The Virginia Plan was eventually chosen as the prototype to be hammered into the law of the nation.

After taking part in further debates on the length of senatorial terms and congressional pay, Hamilton left the convention to return to his law practice. On the way, however, he engaged in one of his favorite pastimes, a fact-finding mission. He wrote to Washington on July 3 that he had interviewed people on his way home, and found that by and large they wished for a strong government. Hamilton was probably talking more about himself, or describing the sentiments of those on whom he had worked his powers of persuasion, when he wrote, "The prevailing apprehension among thinking men is that the Convention, from a fear of shocking the popular opinion, will not go far enough."

Judging from his reply, it seems that Washington had enjoyed a friendly reunion with his former aide-de-camp at Philadelphia. Apparently depressed by events at the convention and tired of talking politics, he wrote: "I am sorry you went away. I wish you were back."

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