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Federalist No. 15 Explained: Why America's First Government Failed
Four years after winning the Revolution, America could not pay its debts, enforce its own treaties, or make Britain leave forts on American soil. Federalist No. 15 is Alexander Hamilton's diagnosis of why — and it comes down to one design flaw: a government whose laws are addressed to states instead of people can never be more than a suggestion. This episode follows Hamilton from the frozen camp at Valley Forge to the angriest essay in the series so far, and explains the single idea that separates a real country from a league of friends.
The skinny
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