Funding+the+Debts+P7


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Defenition: __**

The National debt was money owed that resulted after the Revolution. It became an issue when Washington took office and wanted a way to get rid of this debt. Federalists wanted the debt to be united as one and for all states to help pay it off. However, Anti-Federalists felt that states like Virginia who had already payed off all their debt should not have to pay again. This became a huge problem with the Federalists and Anti-Federalists and led to much controversy. The debt was going no where and something needed to be done. Federalists thought all debt should be pooled in order for it to be payed off as one so everyone could prosper, but anitfederalists thought this was very unfair.


 * __T. Jeffs. Viewpoint:__**

Thomas Jefferson believed that the earth belonged to those who live on it and that it is their responsibiIty to take care of it while they're occupying it. Therefore, Jefferson believed that the funding of national debt should be individual rather than it being national. He saw it as unfair to the future people of the nation because they would have to pay for the things that did not happen in their lifetime and they may not even agree with what they're helping fund. It also gave the national government the power to tax the people as much as they needed to fund their decisions. Whether this power was used or not, it was power that the people did not want the government to have. The thought of the future American citizens being scammed crossed Jefferson's mind. He felt that the government should not have to assume all the debts of the staes and that it was unneccesary. Assuming the debts on all the colonies would send Virginia in an uproar, they were the most opposed to this idea because they were the strongest power and had already paid off all their debts. Jefferson and other Anti-federalists sought this as an unfair gesture. Jefferson felt that other more powerful colonies did not have to stoop down to match their lower neighbors. He felt that the success of Virgina after the Revolutionary War was what the colonies all should have been like, free and becoming more prosperous then their previous counterpart. He did not think that colonies from Virgina should all take on a burden and be yet again held down. Anti-Federalists felt that prosperous colonies should not be left to baby sit and support the less prosperous ones.

__**Questions:**__ 1. Can you justify the fairness in colonies that had already paid off their debt having to pay more for the sake of other colonies? 2.  Wouldn’t you think that having a paid off colony pay for another cause tension against the poorer colonies, maybe even resentment towards them?  3. Why should a stronger economic colony have to help out a lesser one by lowering their standards, isn’t that a communist ideal?