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The Constitution of the United States of America

The Constitution of the United States of America. 1781 Continental Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation. T he Articles of Confederation. The colonies were already wary of the power of a centralized government(think England) Under the AOC Congress could: Declare war

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The Constitution of the United States of America

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  1. The Constitution of the United States of America 1781 Continental Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation

  2. The Articles of Confederation • The colonies were already wary of the power of a centralized government(think England) • Under the AOC Congress could: Declare war Provide mail service Enter into Treaties with other countries Coin/Print money

  3. The Articles of Confederation • The AOC could not: Collect taxes Regulate Trade Because the AOC Was so weak, it was Likely that another Country would take Over the country.

  4. Shays Rebellion • States began taxing other states goods and also began to heavily tax the citizens of their state. • Revolutionary War veteran, Daniel Shays, lead a group of farmers and attempted to seize guns at the Springfield Armory. • This act made the weakness of the current government obvious.

  5. Constitutional Convention • Continental Congress calls for a convention to take place in Philadelphia. • First meeting takes place on May 25, 1787. Every state but Rhode Island sent a delegate. • Discussions were kept secret so that there would be a free exchange of ideas. George Washington led the debates.

  6. The Ideas • Virginia Plan • James Madison proposes a federal govt. where the power is SHARED between the national and state governments • 3 BRANCHES / 1 Legislative 2 Executive 3 Judicial • Central Idea of the Plan. Checks and Balances which means no one branch has more power than the other • For example: the President can Veto a law passed by the Congress or the Supreme Court can declare it UNCONSTITUTIONAL.

  7. The Ideas • PROBLEM: the Va. Plan proposed representation based on population. So the smaller states would have less power. • Virginia • Connecticut

  8. The Ideas • The New Jersey Plan: an alternative to Madison’s plan that gave each state the same number of Representatives • The larger states rejected this plan and it looked as if there would be no document.

  9. The Ideas • The Great Compromise • Roger Sherman of Connecticut proposes a BICAMERAL system: a Legislature a TWO parts. • There would be a Senate • and a House of Representatives • Compromise accepted and the work contined.

  10. The Ideas • The 3/5’s compromise • Slaves would be counted as three fifths of a person as far as representation goes.

  11. The Ideas • Federalist vs Anti-Federalist • The Federalists believed that the “folks” could not handle the responsibility of voting directly for the President • Anti-Federalists believed each citizen should vote directly for the President • THE COMPROMISE is “The Electoral College”

  12. Ratification • The States had to “Ratify” or vote for the Constitution by a two-thirds margin or nine states. • North Carolina was number 12.

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