an excellent book on the original arguments about the relationship between forms of political economy and the long-term survival of a republic:
The Elusive Republic: Political Economy in Jeffersonian America (Published for the Omohundro Institute of Early American Hist) by Drew R. McCoy (1996)
http://www.amazon.com/Elusive-Republic-Political-Jeffersonian-Published/dp/0807846163/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311277719&sr=1-1A very interesting read, and I recommend it highly.
Edit: changed subject line wording.