[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 20254-20255]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



             THE JAMES MADISON COMMEMORATION COMMISSION ACT

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, it is unfortunate that James Madison's 
legacy is sometimes overshadowed by other prominent Virginians who were 
also founding fathers of the United States. Most Americans can readily 
recite the accomplishments of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. 
And while most people can identify James Madison as an important figure 
in American history, his exact accomplishments are sometimes less well

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known than some of his contemporaries. As we approach the 250th 
anniversary of James Madison's birth, I wish to bring to your attention 
the outstanding contributions he made to the fledgling United States.
  During the course of his life, James Madison exhibited all the best 
qualities of a politician and a scholar. As a politician, he served as 
a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, a member of the U.S. House 
of Representatives, U.S. Secretary of State, and two-term President of 
the United States. As a scholar, he is associated with three of the 
most important documents in American history: the U.S. Constitution, 
the Federalist Papers, and the Bill of Rights. In Virginia, we have 
paid tribute to James Madison by naming one of our fine state 
universities after him--James Madison University in Harrisonburg, 
Virginia.
  More than any other American, Madison can be credited with creating 
the system of Federalism that has served the United States so well to 
this day. Madison's indelible imprint can be seen in the delicate 
balance struck in the Constitution between the executive and 
legislative branches and between the states and the Federal government. 
In addition to his contributions to the Constitution and the structure 
of American government, Madison kept the most accurate record of the 
Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia of any of the participants. 
Madison's notes from the Convention are a gift for which historians and 
students of government will forever owe a debt of gratitude.
  After the Constitutional Convention, Madison worked toward 
ratification of the Constitution in two of the states most crucial for 
the new government: Virginia and New York. He narrowly secured 
Virginia's ratification of the Constitution over the objections of such 
prominent Virginians as George Mason and Patrick Henry. He assisted in 
the New York ratification effort through his contributions to the 
Federalist Papers.
  The Federalist Papers, written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, 
and John Jay are used to this day to interpret the Constitution and 
explain American political philosophy. Federalist Number 10, written by 
Madison, is the most quoted of all the Federalist Papers.
  As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Madison became the 
primary author of the first twelve proposed amendments to the 
Constitution. Ten of these were adopted and became known as the Bill of 
Rights.
  James Madison presided over the Louisiana Purchase as Secretary of 
State under President Jefferson and prosecuted the War of 1812 as 
President. He was a named party in Marbury vs. Madison, the famous 
court case in which the Supreme Court defined its role as arbiter of 
the Constitution by asserting it had the authority to declare acts of 
Congress unconstitutional.
  James Madison was born March 16, 1751, in Orange County, Virginia. 
Accordingly, I urge your support of the James Madison Commemoration 
Commission Act, legislation that will recognize the life and 
accomplishments of James Madison on the 250th anniversary of his birth.

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