12/12/2025
James Madison rejected the idea that either the federal or state governments would “be able enlarge [their] sphere of jurisdiction at the expense of the other” because “it is only within a certain sphere, that the federal power can, in the nature of things, be advantageously administered.”
He saw the federal and state governments as being “different agents and trustees of the people, instituted with different powers, and designated for different purposes.”
The federal government cannot annihilate or overstep the authority of the state governments, because the newly proposed Constitution, Madison explained, does not grant it the legal power to do so.
Learn about the challenges of federal overreach & the consolidation of power in the hands of the federal government. Explore how it undermines state sovereignty & our system of federalism.