What the Americans objected to in Hobbes were the ways in which he drained the substance from the natural-law tradition. Reason was merely a tool that served human desires; ideas of what is good for human beings were completely subjective. There were no moral rules apart from the will of an overwhelmingly powerful sovereign who could lay down the law and keep the peace.
In contrast, Hamilton claimed: “Good and wise men in all ages” have taught that God had “created an eternal and immutable law, which is, indispensably, obligatory upon all mankind, prior to any human institution whatever.” The reason Hobbes believed such an “absurd and impious doctrine,” Hamilton concluded, is “that he disbelieved the existence of an intelligent superintending principle, who is the governor, and will be the final judge of the universe.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/03/america-christian-founders-natural-law/
I agree with Hobbes. Madison is wrong.
