Answer:
Step-by-step explanation:
Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were prominent proponents of the States' Doctrine, which held that the states had significant authority under the Constitution. According to their interpretation of the Constitution, the States' Doctrine gave states the authority to do the following:
Nullify federal laws: The States' Doctrine held that states had the power to nullify federal laws that they deemed unconstitutional. This meant that states could refuse to enforce federal laws that they believed violated the Constitution.
Interpose state authority: The doctrine also allowed states to interpose their authority between the federal government and their citizens. This meant that states could act as a check on federal power, by intervening to protect their citizens from federal overreach.
Secede from the Union: Jefferson and Madison also believed that states had the right to secede from the Union if they believed that the federal government was overstepping its constitutional bounds. They argued that the Constitution was a compact between the states and that if the federal government violated that compact, states had the right to withdraw from it.
It's worth noting, however, that the idea of nullification and secession was a controversial one, and not all Founding Fathers shared Jefferson and Madison's views. The issue of states' rights would become a major source of tension in the decades leading up to the Civil War, with many southern states invoking the States' Doctrine to justify their secession from the Union. Ultimately, however, the doctrine was rejected by the federal government, which maintained that the Constitution established a strong and centralized national government.