But in the same way that the debates at the Constitutional Convention were resolved by compromises that no one, Madison included, found fulfilling, the debates over ratification forced modifications in Madison’s version of how the document should be understood. All of which throws a cloud of confusion over all pursuits of the original meaning of the document itself, in part because his position kept shifting, in part because the shifts were not voluntary changes of mind but rather mandatory adjustments to changing political circumstances. In that sense, Madison’s claim that the Constitution
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