Creating the Constitution

1. Creating the Constitution

2. The Articles of Confederation • During the Revolution, the new United States needed a functioning government • Modeled after colonial governments • States would retain sovereignty • Founders were fearful of concentrated power due to past experience with the British

3. A Limited Government Articles established a “firm league of friendship” among the states Bills were passed on nine of thirteen votes Amending the Articles took unanimous consent of the states

4. Structure of Government Unicameral (single house) legislative body Each state had one vote regardless of population size Congress given sole authority to govern the country An executive committee oversaw government when Congress was not in session Congress would establish temporary courts to hear disputes among the states

5. Powers Granted to Government under the Articles of Confederation • Declare war and make peace • Make treaties with foreign countries • Establish an army and navy • Appoint high-ranking military officials • Requisition, print, and borrow money • Establish weights and measures • Hear disputes among the states related to trade or boundaries

6. Powers Denied to Government • No power to raise funds for an army or navy • No power to tax, impose tariffs, or collect duties • No executive branch to enforce laws • No power to control trade among the states • No power to force states to honor obligations • No power to regulate the value of currency

7. Accomplishments of the Articles of Confederation Administered the seven-year war effort Negotiated the Treaty of Paris with Britain in 1783 Established the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 Map of the land settled in the Northwest Ordinance of 1787

8. Problems Facing the New Nation Trade with foreign nations Financing the nation Foreign relations Interstate relations A 1783 cartoon satirizing relations between Britain and America

9. Problems Facing the New Nation: You Decide • Trade with foreign nations • Financing the nation • Foreign relations • Interstate relations

10. Problems with Trade • U.S. no longer the favorite trading partner of Great Britain • U.S. exports to British ports had to be on British ships • Many U.S.-produced goods were barred from British ports • Britain sent vast amounts of cheap goods to U.S. • Potential Remedy • Establish a tariff on British goods • Weakness in Articles of Confederation preventing this solution

11. Problems Financing the Nation • Post-war debt owed to U.S. citizens and foreign nations • Printing of Continental Dollars caused inflation • Economic depression due to loss of trade, decreased value of the dollar, and increased state taxes • Potential Remedies • Pass a tax law to raise revenue to pay debt • Force states to stop printing paper money • Weakness in Articles of Confederation preventing these solutions

12. Problems in Foreign Relations • British passed Navigation Acts to destroy American shipping industry • Spain restricted access to Mississippi River and New Orleans • British troops occupied portions of the NW Territory • Barbary Pirates freely preyed on U.S. shipping • Potential Remedies • Raise an army to force foreign governments to comply with treaty • Raise a navy to protect American merchant ships • Weakness in Articles of Confederation preventing these solutions

13. Problems with Interstate Relations • States placed trade restrictions on neighboring states • State legislatures were not meeting their financial obligations to the nation or treaty obligations to British citizens • States didn’t honor court decisions regarding territory disputes • Potential Remedies • Pass laws to control interstate trade • Force states to comply with financial and treaty obligations • Weakness in Articles of Confederation preventing these solutions

14. 1781–1789: The Critical Period • Postwar breakdown in social and economic systems made problems worse • Lack of power made the national government ineffective • The creators of the Articles had emphasized state sovereignty, not national unity 1786 American coat of arms

15. Trouble in Massachusetts Debt problems hit Massachusetts farmers Economic depression and lack of remedy from state legislatures increases frustration Boston in 1787

16. Shays’s Rebellion Daniel Shays led a band of farmers to stop farm foreclosures Rebellion quickly broken up but became a wake-up call to many leaders Caricatures of Daniel Shays and Job Shattuck, leaders of the rebellion

17. A Need for Change • Many felt the problems were local and required local solutions • Several leaders saw problems were national in scope • They met at Annapolis to discuss problems of interstate trade • Pushed for a convention to address the weaknesses of the Articles • Congress agreed to call a convention with a mandate to “revise” the Articles

18. The Constitution’s Origins • Ancient Greece and Rome • The theories of the Enlightenment • Evolution of English government • The colonial experience

19. Historical Influences on the Constitution Classical learning of the Greeks and Romans • The Greeks • Value of citizenship • Role of the people in government • Divided functions of government • The Romans • Laws based on equity and justice

20. The Enlightenment • Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau • Political ideas • The people are sovereign • Government is a contract between the people and the government • People possess natural rights of life, liberty and property • If government abuses its power, the people can take it back Rousseau Locke Montesquieu

21. English Influences English Bill of Rights (1689) Petition of Right (1628) Magna Carta (1215)

22. English barons meet with King John at Runnymede No taxation without consent Respect property rights Follow due process in legal matters No unjust punishment Abide by the rule of law The Magna Carta—1215 King John places his seal on Magna Carta

23. Origins of Parliament Similar provisions as found in Magna Carta Also includes No quartering of troops in people’s homes No martial law in peace time Petition of Right—1628 King Charles I

24. The English Bill of Rights • William and Mary became the monarchs of England under the English Bill of Rights • Agreed to respect the rights of citizens and rule by the laws of Parliament • Supremacy of Parliament • The king could not suspend laws without Parliament’s consent • Citizens had the right to petition the government • Members of Parliament were to be elected by the people • Sessions of Parliament were to be held frequently • Parliament would regulate the army in times of peace

25. Colonial Influences • 1619: Virginia establishes the first representative Government • 1630: Mayflower Compact sets down the principle of majority rule and voluntarily agreeing to be governed • 1639: Fundamental Orders of Connecticut establishes that political agreements are written down • Colonial charters limited the power of the government to preserve people’s rights • Cases like that of John Peter Zenger established precedents for freedom and liberty The Mayflower Compact

26. The Declaration of Independence • The people are sovereign • Government is a contract between the people and the government • People possess natural rights of life, liberty and property • If government abuses its power, the people can take it back

27. The Philadelphia Convention Delegates at the Federal Convention—1787

28. The Delegates • Delegates who attended • Qualifications and experience • Occupations George Washington Benjamin Franklin James Madison

29. The Delegates (continued) • Collective beliefs and philosophies of the delegates • Importance of those who weren’t there Not in attendance Thomas Jefferson Patrick Henry Samuel Adams

30. The Convention Begins • Delayed beginning • Proceedings conducted in secret • Delegates decide to discuss all matters of government, not just revisions to the Articles Philadelphia in 1787

31. The Virginia Plan • Proposed a strong national government • Three active branches of government • Legislative • Executive • Judicial • Two-house Congress with proportional representation Edmund Randolph Gouverneur Morris

32. Central Questions • What powers should the government have? • How much power should the government be given? • Equal representation seen as undemocratic • Proportional representation thought to favor only large states

33. The New Jersey Plan • Single-house legislature • Equal representation • Plural executive elected by Congress • Supreme Court chosen by executive • Acts by Congress and treaties superior to state law William Paterson

34. The Debate Rages On • Battle over representation and apportionment continues • Other matters debated and decided Illustration of Benjamin Franklin speaking at the convention

35. The Great Compromise • The House would have proportional representation • The Senate would have equal representation The hall of the House of Representatives The Senate building

36. Compromises between Northern and Southern States • Three-fifths of slave populations would be included in determining House representation • The South agreed to allow Congress to have the power to pass tariffs • The North agreed not to interfere with slave importation for 20 years • Compromises avoided makingslavery an issue for debate • Framers ended up merelypostponing a national calamity

37. Limits on Democracy • Delegates wanted to limit democracy • Plan to indirectly elect the president • Federal judiciary made an appellate court • Power to declare any law unconstitutional not stated, but implied The Philadelphia state house around the time of the Constitutional Convention

38. Major Features and Innovations • Separation of powers • Checks and balances • Limits on direct democracy

39. Major Features and Innovations (continued) • Supremacy clause • Federalism

40. Major Features and Innovations (continued) • Amendments • Ratification process

41. Signing the Constitution

42. Review Questions • Why was the Constitutional Convention called? • Why did the delegates decide not to amend the Articles of Confederation? • What was the basic organization for government proposed in the Virginia Plan? • Why was the New Jersey plan rejected by the majority of the delegates? • Why did the delegates spend so much time and energy on the apportionment for representation in the Congress? • What were the delegates’ general views on democracy for the people, and how were they reflected in some of the provisions of the Constitution?

43. The Struggle for Ratification • Congress agrees to send the Constitution to the states • Ratification procedure called for direct input from the people and not the state legislatures or Congress • Two distinct views emerged: • The Federalists • The Anti-Federalists

44. Federalists • Who were the Federalists? • Central government essential • Believed the Constitution addressed all the shortcomings of the Articles • Provisions in place to check government’s power Alexander Hamilton James Madison John Jay

45. Anti-Federalists • Who were the Anti-Federalists? • Central government had too much power • The “distant” government would neglect their needs • The Constitution favored the wealthy and commercial classes • No protection of individual liberties Richard Henry Lee Patrick Henry Samuel Adams

46. The Federalists’ “Hard Sell” • Argued that the Constitution adequately addressed the country’s problems • The Federalist Papers provided sound, reasoned arguments • Portrayed the Constitution as the best—and only—plan available

47. Early Battles for Ratification • Delaware, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut • Battles in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts Cartoon satirizing events in Connecticut at the time of the state’s ratification convention

48. The Ratification Battle in Virginia • Famous figures on both sides of the debate • Maryland, South Carolina ratify by the time the Virginia convention opens • New Hampshire ratifieswhile the convention is going on • Virginia ratifies the Constitution by a slim margin soon afterward Pro-Constitution cartoon

49. The Final States Ratify • New York • North Carolina ratifies in November of 1789 • Rhode Island ratifies in May of 1790

50. Creation of a Bill of Rights • Initially, the Constitution had no bill of rights • Briefly mentioned during the federal convention but rejected • During the ratification conventions, it became clear a bill of rights was desired • Federalists agreed to include a bill of rights • Bill of Rights drafted and approved in the first Congress in 1789 • Approved by the people through the amendment process in 1791