“The story of the long friendship of Madison and Jefferson was embellished as the years went by in order to suit the Republican narrative—and, eventually, to give historians what they craved. As we have shown, however, the relationship, as close as it was, was not the symbiosis imagined. Jefferson was more dependent on Madison than Madison was on Jefferson. In a sense, Madison was Jefferson’s political crutch. He would put himself in Madison’s hands, let Madison decide the tenor of debate. A prime example is Jefferson’s willingness to give Madison the last word when it came to the conciliatory letter Jefferson wanted to present to John Adams just after the election of 1796. Jefferson wrote with emotion; Madison censored Jefferson’s emotion. This was how they worked best, and it was what Jefferson agreed to. To the extent that Jefferson found he was unable to contain himself when he took pen in hand, Madison stopped him before he made his next mistake. Jefferson miscalculated, or fell into error, because he wished to trust others. Madison had fewer illusions. For this reason, he did not need Jefferson in the same way—as insurance against overcommitment and disappointment.”