ap u.s. government ch.2 – revolution to constitution
TRANSCRIPT
AP U.S. GOVERNMENT
Ch.2 – Revolution to Constitution
STAMP ACT, 1765A DIRECT REVENUE TAX –
Cries of “no taxation without representation!”
First unified resistance – BOYCOTT!
REVOLUTION - CAUSES
QUARTERING ACT, 1765
Required colonists to house & feed British troops sent to American colonies (Boston) …ostensibly for protection from the Indians but …..
More local control wanted!Heavy debt from the French & Indian war led to British imposition of taxes on American colonists
Troops to Boston
BOSTONMASSACRE,1770
• 1ST VIOLENCE BETWEEN BRITISH & AMERICANS
• 5 COLONISTS KILLED
• CRISPUS ATTUCKS - first black to die in the American independence movement.
• Causes Parliament to repeal some taxes (glass, paper, paint, tea)
The British View of Boston Massacre… differences?
BOSTON TEA PARTY, 1773
•Passed by the British to punish colonists for the property lost in the Boston tea party•Viewed by colonists as unjustified denials of their constitutional liberties•United the colonies in their protest to these Acts
INTOLERABLE ACTS, 1774
Formed in Philly in response to these ActsPetitioned King George III for relief …….– But not yet
calling for independence!
Threatened COMPLETE boycott of all British goodsColonists began forming armies and collecting supplies …. at Concord.
1st CONTINENTAL CONGRESS,1775
“Listen my children and you shall hear,Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere….”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,1860
“Listen my children and you shall hear,Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere….”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,1860
• April 1775• Battle of Lexington – 8 Americans dead / the Minutemen• Battle of Concord – Many British killed on their return to Boston• WAR HAS BEGUN!
2ND CONTINENTAL CONGRESSMay 1775
Met in Philadelphia & began acting as first central government; more radical than the First
Formed the Continental Army
Selected George Washington as commander – why?
Sought aid from France - Franklin
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILLJune 1775
Americans claim moral victory since they held off 2 direct frontal attacks by BRWould have won but ran out of ammo on 3rd attackKing now declares the colonies in open rebellion!
Recent hyperspectral imaging of Jefferson’s rough draft by scientists at the Library of Congress confirms that he made an interesting word correction during his writing of the document. Jefferson had originally written the phrase “our fellow subjects”….but then changed it to “citizens.”
DUNLAP BROADSIDE
First printed copies of DOI
100-200 printed July 5, 1776
Sent out to 13 colonies to be read to the people/troops
July 19-Congress orders official copy on parchment; Most members signed Aug. 2
Now in National Archives
25 known surviving copies– 21 at universities, etc., 4
private– Last discovered 1989
John Trumbull, Signing of the Declaration of Independence
“We must indeed all hang together or we shall most assuredly hang separately.”Benjamin Franklin
Why is the Declaration a “polemic?”
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
4 Primary Parts:1st Paragraph: Preamble, an intro2nd Paragraph: Declaration of Natural Rights– “Unalienable rights” & Limited
Government (government only by “consent of the governed”)
– “All men are created equal” – meaning?
– Primary source is LockeNatural rights – life, liberty, property/pursuit of happinessGovernment by consent of the governedConcept of limited government – 2 major limits:
– Standing laws– Government cannot take away property
without consent
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
3rd Section: List of Grievances– Longest section– Grievances include?
Taxation without representation, unjust trials, quartering of British soldiers, abolition of colonial assembliesPurpose?
– TO JUSTIFY THE REVOLUTION!
Final Paragraph: Formal Resolution of Independence
“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”
Why is it deemed a “conservative” revolution?
ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION
Unicameral CongressOnly one branchOne vote per stateState sovereigntyRatification & amendment requires all 13 statesTook 4 years for approval!
No power to taxNo executive branchNo federal courtsNo power to regulate interstate commerceNo national currencyLACK OF A STRONG CENTRAL GOV’T.
ORGANIZATION:WEAKNESSES:
“A League of Friendship and Perpetual Union Among the 13 States”
Why a “Confederation?”
STATE GOVERNMENTS DOMINATED!
imposed tariffs on each otherrestricted access to each other’s portscreated their own currencyrefused to amend the Articlesrefused to recognize treaties made by the national government
SHAY’S REBELLION
MA Farmers returning from War couldn’t pay taxes (60% increase) -jailed or land confiscatedOver 1200 rebelled by closing 2 Springfield, MA courts & then attacking arsenalMA appeals to Congress for help -- no power to do soDaniel Shays & his men ultimately defeated by a privately raised militia in MASignificance: pointed out lack of authority & order & power of the Confederation Government
Liberty Run Mad!
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION
May 1787, PhiladelphiaSole purpose is to REVISE the Articles of ConfederationOnly state that didn’t send delegates?Franklin is oldest delegate (81)What was a “typical delegate?”Washington is President of the ConventionMeetings in private -- public not invited / why not?View of human nature: people are self-interested in acquiring wealth & power
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTIONUNDERLYING PRINCIPLES:
A major purpose of government is the preservation of property. Which philosopher?The nature of government should be balanced power – separate branches
Which philosopher?So long as no one group could seize the whole of gov’t at once, there would be no tyranny of the majority – where decisions made by a majority place its interests above those of an individual or minority group
CONFLICTS & COMPROMISES# 1 - CONFLICT OVER REPRESENTATION:
LARGE STATE PLAN:– a/k/a Virginia Plan– author: JAMES
MADISON Known as “Father of the Constitution” – why?
– Number of representatives each state is to have in Congress determined by population of the state
SMALL STATE PLAN:– a/k/a New
Jersey Plan– Number of
representatives each state is to have in Congress should be equal
THE COMPROMISE:
Congress is BICAMERAL (two houses)Lower House (House of Representatives) - membership is determined on the basis of population of the states (VA Plan)Upper House (Senate) - equal representation with two members from each state (NJ Plan)Known as The Connecticut Compromise (a/k/a The Great Compromise – authored by Roger Sherman)
HOUSE SENATE
# 2 - CONFLICT OVER POPULATIONCOUNT FOR HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES (SLAVES)
THE NORTH’S PLAN:Slaves should be counted as people only for purposes of taxation (determining how much tax a state owes to Congress)
THE SOUTH’S PLAN:Slaves should be counted as people only for purposes of representation in Congress (how many reps each State gets to send to Congress)
THREE-FIFTHS COMPROMISE:Does NOT mean that a slave = 3/5 of a human being… it’s a formulaActual Formula:– Total number of inhabitants of a state
(including women & children & men without property) PLUS 60% (3/5) of the state’s slave population DIVIDED by the total population of the U.S. = percentage of representatives that state gets in the U.S. House
– For example, if a state’s total population of free inhabitants plus 60% of its slaves was equal to 10% of the country’s total population, then that state would get 10% of the representatives in the House.
This formula was applied for determining both the representation percentage and taxation percentage for each state.
# 3 - CONFLICT OVER SLAVE TRADE:
THE NORTH’S PLAN:– preferred
Congress to do away with slave trade entirely
THE SOUTH’S PLAN:– wanted
Congress to agree not to interfere with slave trade at all
THE COMPROMISE:- Congress agrees not to interfere with the slave trade for 20 years- Agreed to in exchange for Southern support of “Commerce Compromise”
where states could not tax imports and export taxes were prohibited
# 4 -EXECUTIVEBRANCH CONFLICT:
A committee of executives elected by Congressvs.A single executive elected for life (proposed by Alexander Hamilton)
THE COMPROMISE:a single executiveelected for 4 year termselected indirectly by the electoral college method
RATIFICATIONConstitution completed by September 1787Needs to be ratified by only 9 states before it is effectiveWill be ratified by special conventions called in each of the states– Why only 9 states instead
of 13?– Which state ratifies first?– But, government under
the Constitution didn’t start until after 10th & 11th state ratified– WHY?
– Which states are the last 2 holdouts?
THE FEDERALISTS
Supported ConstitutionLed by Hamilton, Madison, Jay– The Federalist
Papers– 85 essays– Seeking NY
approval
Support idea of strong central government
Believed a Bill of Rights not necessary because…Paper declarations do not protect natural rightsStates already have Bill of RightsConstitution IS a bill of rights– it carefully
limits the government’s powers; if a specific power was not listed, then the government simply did not have it
THE ANTI-FEDERALISTS
Necessary & proper clause – too much power to CongressPresidential re-eligibilityLife tenures for federal judgesToo few reps in Legislature (only 65 reps in original Congress for 3 million people)Gov’t was too distant from the people – would establish an economic eliteInadequate system of separation of powers (Madison responds to this in Fed. # 47)
Opposed to ConstitutionLed by Patrick Henry, George MasonBelieve STATES should retain more powerObject to lack of individual freedomsFeared federal gov’t tyranny
Patrick Henry
George Mason
ADVANTAGES OF THE FEDERALISTS:
Problems created by Articles of ConfederationAnti-Federalists had nothing better to offerBetter organized than Anti-Federalists– Controlled many newspapers
Had “support” of national hero: George Washington
Promised to add a Bill of Rights with individual freedoms
Finally ratified in 1788
FIRST PRESIDENT
George WashingtonUnanimously elected by electoral collegeInaugurated in New York City, April 17891st VP is John AdamsJefferson -Sec. of StateHamilton - Sec. of Treasury– Hamilton’s
Financial Plan solves U.S. debt
U.S. Constitution is the oldest functioning constitution in the world and is known as a “Living Constitution” – Why?
Explain this cartoon.
– What principle?
– How is it reflected?
Marbury v. Madison
P John Adams, a Federalist, lost the election of 1800 to Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican, a man he had come to hate.
Adams wanted to put as many Federalists into office as he could before he, and his party, had to step down as P.
So, the day before Jefferson was to be sworn in, he appointed 58 new Federalist judges (the “midnight judges”).
Marbury was one of the justices appointed by Adams.
Adams signed the commissions (appointments) for all the new judges …. but they didn’t all get delivered to the new judges before Jefferson got sworn in as P.
When Jefferson took office, he ordered his Sec. of State, Madison, not to deliver any more of the commissions.
Marbury sued asking for the Supreme Court to force Madison to deliver his commission.
In the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress had given the Court the power to force the delivery of such commissions – but the Constitution did NOT give the Ct. this right.
So…. The Court has to determine if Congress had the right to grant this extra power to the Court and…. If they didn’t, did the Court have the power to declare the law passed by Congress as unconstitutional?
John Marshall is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court …. And also Jefferson’s 2nd cousin …. & they hate each other.
DECISION: Marshall rules that while Marbury was entitled to his commission, nothing can be done about it because Congress did not have the right to grant the Court power to force the delivery of his commission.
In the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress had attempted to ADD power to the Court – a power NOT given to the Court by the Constitution.
SO, for the first time, the Court held that a law passed by Congress was unconstitutional.
SIGNIFICANCE: First case to establish the power of judicial review. The Supreme Court reviews and determines whether or not a law is constitutional .
Judicial Review fromColbert’s point of view: