James Madison and the search for nationhood

At long last, James Madison has his memorial on Capitol Hill, and in this grand Library building. As the bicentennial of the framing of our Constitution approaches, here we provide monumental evidence that our nation has not forgotten the chief architect and advocate of our still-vital Constitution. Historians will probably agree that James Madison was less effective as a politician than as a statesman, a scholar, and a political philosopher. If the politician must have his eye on the next election, and the statesman on the next generation, this Library, invigorated by the quiet scholarly spirit of Madison, can remind us of the vistas of the past, and future, generations. - Foreword.