He believed that in order for the leader to be virtuous, he must be chosen by virtuous people. In ancient Greece, this safeguard came in the form of the aristocracy electing the leader. This Classical Republican trait was adopted by the Framers’ in the form of a Republic. Indirect elections serve as a protection against a majority election and ensure that the elites, in this case the Electoral College, still hold the final word. The role of a leader as the director towards common good, as advocated by the Classical Republicans, is espoused by James Madison in Federalist 57 when he claimed, “the aim of every political constitution is, or ought to be, first to obtain for rulers men who possess most wisdom to discern, and most virtue to pursue, the common good of the society; and in the next place, to take the most effectual precautions for keeping them virtuous whilst they continue to hold their public
He believed that in order for the leader to be virtuous, he must be chosen by virtuous people. In ancient Greece, this safeguard came in the form of the aristocracy electing the leader. This Classical Republican trait was adopted by the Framers’ in the form of a Republic. Indirect elections serve as a protection against a majority election and ensure that the elites, in this case the Electoral College, still hold the final word. The role of a leader as the director towards common good, as advocated by the Classical Republicans, is espoused by James Madison in Federalist 57 when he claimed, “the aim of every political constitution is, or ought to be, first to obtain for rulers men who possess most wisdom to discern, and most virtue to pursue, the common good of the society; and in the next place, to take the most effectual precautions for keeping them virtuous whilst they continue to hold their public