Final answer:
Hamilton and Madison, initially allies in ratifying the Constitution, disagreed on the national bank because Madison feared concentration of power and challenged its constitutionality based on strict construction, while Hamilton supported it for economic stability under broad construction.
Step-by-step explanation:
Disagreement of Hamilton and Madison on the National Bank
Although Alexander Hamilton and James Madison collaborated in supporting the ratification of the Constitution, they had a vehement disagreement regarding Hamilton's proposal for a national bank. Hamilton, as Secretary of Treasury, advocated for a national bank to handle the nation's economic issues and stabilize the economy. Madison, once an ally, led the opposition due to concerns of power concentration reminiscent of the British monarchy and the bank’s constitutionality. As a proponent of strict construction of the Constitution, Madison contended that the bank charter neither collected taxes nor borrowed money for the general welfare and thus lay outside federal powers. This put him in direct conflict with Hamilton's broad construction perspective, where the bank was deemed vital to the country's economic interests and within the elastic clause's allowance for necessary and proper government initiatives. President George Washington, initially unsure about the constitutionality of the bank, was eventually swayed by Hamilton's arguments and signed the bill, making the Bank of the United States a reality.
Madison's earlier nationalist tendencies, including support for equitable debt payment, had shifted towards advocating for economic liberty and fear of speculative profit at the expense of veterans and citizens. The debate over the bank exposed the deep philosophical divides between Federalists, who favored a strong central government, and Democrat-Republicans like Madison and Jefferson, who favored limited government and state sovereignty. The issue of the national bank continued to be a contentious one, with Madison's views evolving when, during the War of 1812, the absence of a national bank posed significant challenges to war financing.