Kent State Massacre :: essays research papers

The Virginia and Kentucky ResolutionsThe Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions were authored in secret by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in solvent to the repressive Alien and Sedition practices go alonged in 1798. In the spirit of Jefferson and Madison, the Acts were unjust. They also represented a major victory for the Federalists. By authorship the Resolutions, Jefferson and Madison spearheaded the protests of those against the Alien and Sedition Acts and those in support of stronger states rights. Although the Resolutions were successful in the two originating states, they did not have much success in the different states. Still, the new ideas presented in the Resolutions were almost revolutionary. Although the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798 and 1799 were not very successful, they were important because they provided obligatory arguments for the supporters of greater states rights against the proponents of a stronger central government.The Alien and Sedition A cts played major roles in the coming about of the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions. Passed in early 1798, the Acts laid subject a number of harsh restrictions on foreigners. The Alien Act stretched the token(prenominal) years for eligibility for naturalization from five years to fourteen years. It also gave the chairman the power to expel any alien from the country. The Sedition Act was level off harsher it gave the government the right to arrest anyone accused of seditious activities. The Sedition Act thus cracked down on many Jeffersonian newspapers which criticized the government. Of course, Jefferson criticized these Acts he even called them worthy of the 8th and 9th century (2 / p.174). With these laws the Federalists were thought to be repress the power of the Jeffersonians.Through the Alien and Sedition Acts, those in support of a stronger federal government achieved a major victory. The Acts gave new powers which were not determined in the Constitution to both the exe cutive and legislative branches. The Federalists were able to pass these acts with their logic found upon dead translations of the Constitution, especially the elastic clause. In peacetime, these Acts would not have had a chance in being passed, but the unavowed war with France had riled up Congress enough to accept these loose translations.The opponents of the Alien and Sedition Acts were led by Jefferson and Madison in response to the Acts the Republicans launched an attack on what they believed were breaches of the Constitution. The attack on the Alien and Sedition Acts was based upon the strict construction theory of the Republicans.