‎	‏Randolph opposed any motion that he believed could lead to a more corrupt government.  With this in mind,‭ ‬he did not approve of the keeping of a standing army.  He considered it a drain on government resources,‭ ‬and thought that an army made up of mercenaries would never be as effective as a properly trained and supplied militia.  This is similar to Randolph's disbelief in wars of aggression.  A standing army is not necessary if there are no invasions to be made,‭ ‬and a militia will suffice in the event that you are invaded yourself. Randolph also famously opposed Federal corruption with his famous statement quoting Edmund Burke,‭ ‬that‭ “‬All policy is very suspicious...that sacrifices the interest of any part of a community to the ideal good of the whole‭” (‬Richmond Enquirer,‭ ‬June‭ ‬4,‭ ‬1824‭)‬.  Randolph did not believe that the government had the power to give rights to some at the expense of others,‭ ‬or that the majority had the right to usurp the rights of the minority.  If we allow the Federal government to make exceptions,‭ ‬those exceptions can easily become rules.
‎	‏In matters of economics,‭ ‬Randolph followed a similar method of thought.  He wanted free trade,‭ ‬with little to no interference from the government.  To this end,‭ ‬he believed that an agrarian society was best,‭ ‬because it allowed each man to be self-sufficient and supply for his family and subordinates without the need for assistance from the government or other outside forces.  In fact,‭ ‬he believed that help from the government would only serve to create a lazy populous.  He opposed the federal bank at every turn.  He opposed protective tariffs whenever they were proposed,‭ ‬because they interfered with the rights of the people to trade with whomever they pleased,‭ ‬including outside countries such as England.  He felt that trade with England was important,‭ ‬because while the United States remained a mostly agrarian land,‭ ‬England had given over to industrialization and manufacture.  Because of this,‭ ‬Randolph thought that the United States and England could have a mutually beneficial relationship,‭ ‬exchanging crops like tobacco for manufactured items.  A protective tariff,‭ ‬even one supposedly temporary in order to encourage a local market,‭ ‬could easily turn permanent,‭ ‬and therefore ruinous to such trade as Randolph imagined.
‎	‏Randolph's stance on the social issues of the day are the most problematic to the modern student,‭ ‬although they are in line with the position he always held,‭ ‬and by some accounts must have proven just as problematic for Randolph himself.  The Congressman faced an enormous problem in the issue of slavery.  A slave-holding Virginian himself,‭ ‬Randolph already held a stake in the argument.  Frustrated by abolitionists who demanded immediate emancipation for all slaves,‭ ‬Randolph asked questions that had been asked in England decades before—where will they go‭?  ‬Will they be a draw on society‭?  ‬Can two races even exist side by side without conflict or ownership by one side‭? ‬