Alexander Hamilton - Union as a Barrier to Faction and Insurrection

Alexander Hamilton draws on Thomas Hobbes and John Locke in a battle of wits against the Jeffersonian Anti-Federalists

Hamilton looks to the western territories, and becomes convinced the thing that will really save us is a national debt.

Alexander Hamilton returns, and has a bevy of antique quotations to bring to bear. Steven and David wrestle with the mighty torrent of prose, and find their way through the labyrinth.

In this, John Jay's last contribution for a while, he shows us he is thinking about the future, and the long-term effects of this new form of government. Steven and David also take a delightful detour into 'Originalism,' and the ideas of Edmund Burke.

Steven and David marvel at the prescient visions of Alexander Hamilton--a veritable Walt Disney--and the rotten luck of John Jay.

"There's an anxiety at the heart of Federalist 3," Steven says. It's a fear that when republics grow too big, they cannot be maintained. We dive deep into the question in this episode.

Steven and David look at John Jay's arguments against confederation and for the Union, and liken it to "building the plane while you're trying to fly it," but ... you know ... in a good way.

Steven and David kick off their reading with the first Federalist Paper, penned by Alexander Hamilton. During the hour, they talk about why they're doing this, and what it all might mean.