<P> The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions ( or Resolves ) were political statements drafted in 1798 and 1799 , in which the Kentucky and Virginia legislatures took the position that the federal Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional . The resolutions argued that the states had the right and the duty to declare as unconstitutional those acts of Congress that were not authorized by the Constitution . In doing so , they argued for states ' rights and strict constructionism of the Constitution . The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798 were written secretly by Vice President Thomas Jefferson and James Madison respectively . </P>
<P> The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions ( or Resolves ) were political statements drafted in 1798 and 1799 , in which the Kentucky and Virginia legislatures took the position that the federal Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional . The resolutions argued that the states had the right and the duty to declare as unconstitutional those acts of Congress that were not authorized by the Constitution . In doing so , they argued for states ' rights and strict constructionism of the Constitution . The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798 were written secretly by Vice President Thomas Jefferson and James Madison respectively . </P>
the kentucky resolutions dealt with the issue of
the kentucky resolutions dealt with the issue of
states ' rights strict constructionism of the Constitution
states ' rights strict constructionism of the Constitution