Anti-Federalists were not necessarily against federalism. They were against the ratification of the Constitution for believing that it gave too much power to the government and so, took away far too much power from the people, stating that “As long as we can preserve our unalienable rights, we are in safety”. They felt like it was necessary for the states to be supreme because they were closer to the people, however, they did believe that there should be a somewhat stronger central government. Moreover, some anti-federalists only agreed with the ratification of the Constitution for as long as it was …show more content…
They believed the practice of Checks and Balances — quoting Federalist No. 51, “But the great security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department consists in giving to those who administer each department the necessary constitutional means and personal motives to resist encroachments of the others” —would make sure no power would overcome another, thus ensuring the stronger federal government wouldn't become too powerful. They claimed the Bill of Rights shouldn't be added to the Constitution as the state governments already had such bills. Plus, the Constitution would protect the people’s rights, as quoted on Federalist No. 39, "We may define a republic to be a government which derives all its powers directly or indirectly from the great body of the