That wasn't until many years later.

This. Simple as. It’s a common bad-faith debating technique called ‘saying whatever random-ass thing makes the stupid people listening think I am right’.

I realize the sarcasm, but this was a major point of contention for decades after the passing of the founding fathers, even without power grabs. Technically, every political move is a power grab, but still. There was previously more sincerity to the line of thought