In 1787 and 1788, as representatives crafted the Constitution of the U.S. three prominent political writers, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison published a series of what would be called today op-eds. These three were not just writers, but were actively involved in the ratification of the Constitution -- James Madison headed the Virginia delegation at the Constitutional Convention. Through their writings, they hoped to convince the public to support the new Constitution’s ratification. These papers were collected and published in The Federalist. Of the three James Madison was the only writer to extensively discuss immigration.  Madison argued that the power to establish a “uniform rule of naturalization” must reside in the Federal government because states at that time had different, conflicting rules. He wrote in Paper No. 42: “In one state, residence for a short term confers all the rights of citizenship; in another,...(Read Full Article)