Federalist 10

one of the most important benefits of a well constructed union is

that the structure helps solve the problems created by factions

a common problem of government is that

decisions are made based on the selfish will of a majority rather than based on justice and the public good

some of the problems we blame on the operation of governments are

really caused by conflicts among factions and by tyranny of the majority

publius (in this case, Madison), defines a faction as a

group of citizens who are united by some common goal that is opposed to that rights of others or to the common good

there are two methods of removing the causes of factions:

1. destroy liberty 2. give everyone the same opinions and interests

the first remedy, removing liberty, is

worse than the disease of faction. Liberty is as necessary as air is to fire

Remedy 2

it would be both impossible and unwise to try to give everyone the same opinions

individual differences in

thoughts, skills, and interests give rise to property rights

diversity in people’s abilities and interests is

part of human nature, and it is the job of government to protect that diversity

the causes of faction, natural differences among people, have

often caused them to argue and to oppress one another

there are many possible causes of faction, but the most common is

the unequal distribution of property

regulation of conflict factions is the main task of

writing laws, and the harmful spirit of faction is part of the ordinary operation of government

when writing laws on topics like

debts, restrictions on imports, and taxation, people can be expected to disagree based on what is best for their own personal situations

it is not satisfactory to say that

wise leaders can resolve all these natural differences; wise leaders will not always be available

since the causes of faction are a permanent part of human nature,

government must be designed to control its effects

if a harmful faction is in the minority, it can be

controlled by majority rule

when a harmful faction includes the majority,

simply putting questions to a vote endangers the individual rights of the minority

we cannot rely on either religious or moral motives in order to

control the evils of a majority faction

in a pure democracy there is

no check on a majority taking advantage of those who hold minority opinions

a republic is

a system of government in which people elect representatives to express the public will. In a democracy, the people directly express the public will themselves

In a republic there is a smaller number of people

in charge of conduction the business of government and a greater number of citizens who are represented

In a republic, the voice of the people is

passed through representatives who have been chosen because they are patriotic and love justice. This process is more likely to achieve the common good than if the people voted in a direct democracy

The public good is a safer in a large republic than is

in a small one. In a small republic it is more likely that corrupt men could persuade people to elect them to power. In a large republic there are more potential candidates to choose from and it Is less likely that local passions will control elections

while a large republic is better than a small one, it is

possible for a republic to be so large that the elected officials are not really familiar with the needs and wishes of those who elected them

The constitution resolves this problem because

national interests will be represented by the central government, and state governments will still deal with issues that only affect state or regional interests

in a large republic, it becomes less likely that

a majority will have a common motive to deprive people of their individual rights

just as a republic is better than

a democracy in controlling the mischiefs of factions, a large republics is better than a small one

a large republic makes it more likely that

individual rights will be protected because it is harder for anyone to gain a position to oppress others

Factious (selfish, corrupt, power-hungry) leaders are

less likely to gain power in a large republic than in a small one

The best remedy for the republican disease of faction is

republicanism itself