Bulletin n. 2/2007
October 2007
CONTENTS
  • Section A) The theory and practise of the federal states and multi-level systems of government
  • Section B) Global governance and international organizations
  • Section C) Regional integration processes
  • Section D) Federalism as a political idea
    • Miller Tiffany Jones
    James Madison's Republic of "Mean Extent" Theory: Avoiding The Scylla and Charybdis of Republican Government
    in Polity , Volume 39, Issue 4, October ,  2007 ,  545-569
    Most scholars believe Madison embraced the extended republic merely as a means of reducing the majority's influence over government; they thus view his turn to the Republican party—a party dedicated to the mobilization of a national majority—as rejection of that theory. Careful attention to Madison's explanation of the extended republic shows, however, that his turn to the party was consistent with this theory. From the beginning, Madison believed a republic of "mean extent" was the key to striking a balance between unjust majorities and unjust rulers. Striking this balance required extending the sphere far enough to suppress majority faction without extending it so far as to prevent the majority from uniting in defense of its rights, thereby effectively enabling the government to escape its dependence on the people. Understanding that protection against unjust majorities comes at the expense of the ease with which the people can check unjust rulers, Madison embraced the Republican party as a means of preserving the government's dependence on the people in a context and time when it was in doubt.
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