Source identified1
Image design Botanical Sage
Read & copy
“If men were angels, no government would be necessary.”
Meaning & context
Madison uses the hypothetical contrast with angels to explain why constitutional institutions need checks on both governed people and those who exercise governmental power.
Source details
The Federalist No. 51, February 1788. The line sits inside Madison’s argument for checks and balances and institutional controls; it is political theory about constitutional design rather than a factual measurement of human nature.