Federalist No. 30 is an essay by Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...

, the thirtieth of the Federalist Papers

Federalist Papers

The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles or essays promoting the ratification of the United States Constitution. Seventy-seven of the essays were published serially in The Independent Journal and The New York Packet between October 1787 and August 1788...

. It was published on December 28, 1787 under the pseudonym

Pseudonym

A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...

 Publius, the name under which all the Federalist Papers were published. This is the first of seven essays by Hamilton on the then-controversial issue of taxation. It is titled, "Concerning the General Power of Taxation."

Brief Precis

Hamilton details that taxes are extremely important to our government. The power to collect taxes deemed necessary is crucial for the government, and few deny that. Hamilton then details the differences between internal and external taxes. He argues that the federal government needs a power of taxation equal to its necessities, both present and future. External taxes alone cannot provide enough revenue for a government as extensive as the one proposed, especially in a time of war.

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