Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

Cultural  

1. Statements of principle adopted by two state legislatures in the 1790s; they affirmed states' rights in response to the federal Alien and Sedition Acts. James Madison wrote the Virginia Resolutions, and Thomas Jefferson wrote the Kentucky Resolutions. Jefferson's draft of the Kentucky Resolutions included the statement that nullification was an appropriate course of action for a state in the face of a dangerous increase in the strength of the federal government. Although the Kentucky legislature approved most of his draft, it did not adopt this statement.

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Example Sentences

In that role, he worked to undermine Adams’ controversial Alien and Sedition Acts, designed to halt immigration and suppress “harmful speech,” by drafting the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions with James Madison.

From Time • Aug. 4, 2016

Jefferson and Madison mobilized the response to the acts in the form of statements known as the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions, which argued that the acts were illegal and unconstitutional.

From Textbooks • Dec. 30, 2014

The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions called the voter's attention to the Federalist abuse of power and did much to form public opinion.

From A Short History of the United States by Channing, Edward

In advancing this argument, the New England people quoted the opinion of the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions that "an unconstitutional law is not binding on the people."

From The United States of America, Part 1 by Sparks, Edwin Erle

The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions are printed in full in MacDonald's Select Documents, 1776- 1861, pp. 149-160.

From A Brief History of the United States by McMaster, John Bach