James+Madison

= James Madison = By: David Bui

James Madison, also commonly known as the __**Father of the Constitution**__, 4th President of the United States, and one of the Founding Fathers. Such a term had come from the fact that he wrote and administered the //United States Constitution//. It was during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that he made such a proposal. This document that he had written helped to produce a government that was more effective than what the __Articles of Confederation__ established. Before the Constitution was actually approved though he met much opposition against the document. Madison responded by writing a group of articles called the __Federalist Papers__. They were successful in convincing the people in approving his Constitution. He also wrote the //Bill of Rights// after such a document became necessary.

Madison was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party. He served in office as President from 1809 to 1817. His Vice President during both times was George Clinton. His past experiences in the government also include serving as a member of Virginia's House of Delegates, Secretary of State, and Secretary of the Treasury. During his time in the treasury, Madison proposed the idea of the __Bank of the United States__. This would act as a national banking system that would help manage other banks. Congress had approved of his plan and made a charter for it. When the charter for the first Bank of the United States expired, Madison helped win passage for another one. After the second bank's charter expiration though, no new bank was created due to opposition.

Later on, Madison also played a part in the __War of 1812__. His support for a war was one of the steps taken towards allowing America to become involved in such a conflict. Support for the war was also what had helped him to win reelection. This proved to be important because of how America began to have its economy prosper again after the war. If the War of 1812 did not occur then the economy may have been in turmoil in the following years. Some decisions made during the war were also influenced by the Constitution which he wrote.

It is very much arguable to say that James Madison was the greatest President of all time because of how he wrote the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The Constitution created a powerful government system that is used even to this very day. While it has been changed several times because of some loopholes, the United States Constitution is probably the closest document America has to a perfect piece of legislation. If the Constitution did not exist then the country could very much be led by a corrupt and tyrannical government. The Bill of Rights also provides equal human liberties to citizens of the United States.

Other facts on Madison's life:
 * Born and raised in Virginia
 * Grew up as a planter
 * Attended Princeton
 * Spoke out against state power

__Sources__ [] [] Alan Brinkley, American Textbook