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__Thesis__ James Madison, “Father of the Constitution,” was a good president. As a president, Madison should receive a B+. He should receive this grade because he decided to go to war with the British which gave the nation confidence and unity, and helped stop the Indian threat. He did however, not have a very good rein on the congress, and passed the Intercourse Act, which hurt the economy. __Goals__ James Madison had several goals throughout his presidency. One of these goals, although mostly accomplished before his presidency, was to make sure things were constitutional. He accomplished this goal fairly well. The Bill of Rights, previously written by Madison, helped with this. Another of Madison’s goals, at the beginning, was to not go to war. He did not accomplish this goal very well, because as circumstances changed, Congress removed the Non-Intercourse Act that Madison had set. Congress then passed a piece of legislature called Macon’s Bill No.2. This bill made the U.S. free to trade with any other country. The bill also included a part that said that if either France or England repealed their trade laws, then the U.S. resume the boycott against the one that did not. Madison did not like this because he thought that it made the U.S. appear weak to other countries. In the end, Madison’s goal of not going to war ultimately failed when Madison had to ask congress for a declaration of war June 1, 1812. __Relationship with Congress__ James Madison’s relationship with congress was not a great one. Throughout both of his terms, the majority party was Republican. Some legislature that was passed while Madison was in office was the Non-Intercourse Act of 1809 which was a little less severe than Jefferson’s Embargo, Macon’s Bill No.2 1810 which was introduced earlier, and the Declaration of War in 1812 which said that the U.S. was going to war with England. A piece of legislation that Madison vetoed was a bill that wanted a church to be recognized by the government of a town in the District of Columbia. Madison vetoed this bill on February 21, 1811 because he said that it violated the Constitution __Most Positive and Negative Actions__ The decision of Madison’s that had the most negative outcome was the Intercourse Act. This act was meant to stop England and France from threatening American trade. However, the U.S. was hurt by the lack of trade with the two countries much sooner than they were. The decision with the most positive outcome was the decision to declare war on Britain. This created good feelings with many of his enemies that wanted war, and stopped the Indian problem. Tecumseh and other Indians were allied to the British and had been attacking the settlers moving west onto their land. This gave an arm, led by General Harrison, reason to help out the settlers and stop the Indian threat. Also, surviving another war with Britain gave the United States more confidence and unity. __Most Influential Decision__ The most influential decision Madison made was to declare war on Britain. It was really incredible that the U.S. survived another war with Britain. This earned America more respect from other countries because it showed that it could not be bullied. Also, it stopped the trade restrictions previously enforced by Britain. Maybe even more importantly however, this war showed the U.S. how important it was that they stay United. If James Madison had not made the decision to declare war on Britain, then the United States may not have become as United or had as much respect from other countries. __Conclusion__ The United States was better off after James Madison’s terms as president because he earned the country foreign respect, and created unity within the United States. He deserves a B+ because although he did do many things well, he did do some things that hurt the country, like the Intercourse Act. So in conclusion, James Madison was an above average president whose leadership helped the country in many ways.
 * __James Madison Jr.__** Born March 16, 1751 Died June 28, 1836 Democratic-Republican Terms of Office- 1809-1817 VPs- George Clinton (First term) and Elbridge Gerry (Second Term)

__Bibliography__ DeGregorio, William. __The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents__. Fort Lee: Baarricade. 2005. “Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present.” __United States Senate.__ October 9, 2009 [] “James Madison (1751-1836).” __American President An Online Reference Resource.__ 2009 http://millercenter.org/academic/americanpresident/madison/essays/biography/1