John Quincy Adams: [A] Letters of Publicola, 1791 6

Paine's intention appears evidently to be to convince the people of Great Britain that they have neither Liberty nor a Constitution-that their only possible means to produce these blessings to themselves is to "topple down headlong" their present government, and follow implicitly the example of the French. As to the right, he scruples not to say, "that which a whole nation chooses to do, it has a right to do". Mr. Paine has departed altogether from the principles of the Revolution, and has torn up by the roots all reasoning from the British Constitution. The merit of effecting the establishment of the Constitution of the United States belongs to the party called Federalists-the party favorable to the concentration of power in the federal head. The purposes for which the exercise of this power was necessary were principally the protection of property, and thereby the Federal Party became identified with the aristocratic part of the community.