War should only be declared by the authority of the people, whose toils and treasures are to support its burdens, instead of the government which is to reap its fruits.

Quote by James Madison

Topics: James Madison Quotes

A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a...

A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a...

Of all the enemies of public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded,...

Of all the enemies of public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded,...

The personal right to acquire property, which is a natural right, gives to property, when...

The personal right to acquire property, which is a natural right, gives to property, when...

The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted

The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted

Public opinion sets bounds to every government, and is the real sovereign in every free...

Public opinion sets bounds to every government, and is the real sovereign in every free...

I go on the principle that a public debt is a public curse, and in...

I go on the principle that a public debt is a public curse, and in...

Strongly guarded as is the separation between religion and government in the Constitution of the...

Strongly guarded as is the separation between religion and government in the Constitution of the...

What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men...

What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men...

There is no maxim, in my opinion, which is more liable to be misapplied, and...

There is no maxim, in my opinion, which is more liable to be misapplied, and...

A standing army is one of the greatest mischief that can possibly happen

A standing army is one of the greatest mischief that can possibly happen

The internal effects of a mutable policy poisons the blessings of liberty itself.

The internal effects of a mutable policy poisons the blessings of liberty itself.

And I have no doubt that every new example will succeed, as every past one...

And I have no doubt that every new example will succeed, as every past one...

The executive has no right, in any case, to decide the question, whether there is...

The executive has no right, in any case, to decide the question, whether there is...

The safety and happiness of society are the objects at which all political institutions aim,...

The safety and happiness of society are the objects at which all political institutions aim,...

The rights of man as the foundation of just Government had been long understood; but...

The rights of man as the foundation of just Government had been long understood; but...

The number, the industry, and the morality of the priesthood, and the devotion of the...

The number, the industry, and the morality of the priesthood, and the devotion of the...

The diversity in the faculties of men, from which the rights of property originate, is...

The diversity in the faculties of men, from which the rights of property originate, is...

A man has a property in his opinions and the free communication of them.

A man has a property in his opinions and the free communication of them.

In no instance have... the churches been guardians of the liberties of the people.

In no instance have... the churches been guardians of the liberties of the people.

The happy Union of these States is a wonder; their Constitution a miracle; their example...

The happy Union of these States is a wonder; their Constitution a miracle; their example...