James Madison is perhaps America’s most enigmatic Founding Father, misunderstood by contemporaries and historians alike. But his political theory is incredibly rich, and when combined with his political career, can shed vision on his profoundly American vision of how politics was supposed to function. If we look carefully at Madison’s ideas and example, we can better understand how our system is intended to work, and what we can do to make it work better.
Bio: Jay Cost is the Gerald R. Ford Senior Nonresidential Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author of four books, most recently James Madison: America’s First Politician. He is a regular contributor to the Washington Examiner and previously wrote for The Weekly Standard and RealClearPolitics. He earned a PhD in political science from the University of Chicago. Jay’s research interests are focused on republicanism and constitutionalism, and how the two intersect in the American tradition. His next book, at this point untitled, is a philosophical and historical defense of the United States Constitution against calls for progressive changes to it. The book will be published by AEI Press some time in 2023.
