Acton Republican Town Committee

James Madison (March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836), an American statesman, political theorist, party leader and fourth President of the United States of America (1809–1817), was one of the most influential Founding Fathers of the United States. Considered to be the "Father of the Constitution," Madison played the central role in designing the 1787 document and promoting its ratification. In 1788, he wrote over a third of the Federalist Papers, still the most influential commentary on the Constitution. As a leader in the first Congresses, he drafted many basic laws and was responsible for the first ten amendments to the Constitution, and thus is also known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights." As a political theorist, Madison advanced the theory of republicanism. His Madison's most distinctive belief was that the new republic needed checks and balances to limit the powers of special interests, which Madison called factions.[2] He believed very strongly that the new nation should fight against aristocracy and corruption (especially of British origin), and was deeply committed to creating mechanisms that would ensure Republicanism in the United States]].[3]