AP US Gov and PolMiller
In this module, you will learn About the structure of the Articles of
Confederation government Inherent weaknesses of the AoC Events leading up to the Constitutional
Convention Major political themes and concepts of the
Constitution Major compromises achieved to finalize the
document The ratification process of the document
From the beginning of the Revolution until 1789 successive Continental Congresses ran US affairs
The document that outlined the structure and powers of the Continental Congress was the Articles of Confederation
Often forgotten in popular history – probably due to its ultimate failure and dismissal
In broad terms, the AoC created a government with a Unicameral (single chamber) national
Congress where all states had the same amount of representation
Very weak executive which only served for a 1 year term
No national court structure to speak of No mechanism for resolving conflicts between
the states
As a result, the AoC Congress and executive could not Effectively tax the states, had to ask states for
funds Raise its own armed forces, had to borrow
state militias Regulate commerce effectively Provide any type of assistance to the states or
administer any social programs of any kind Negotiate with foreign powers in a unified,
national manner
Seemed like the system could work at first
When states had a common enemy (the British), differences were set aside and states cooperated to win the war
Most successful moment after that was the passage of the Northwest Ordinance which divvied up the territory of the states that would later become Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, etc.
Political, economic, and social chaos ruled during the period after the Revolution States often ignored the national Congress’s
call for money or soldiers The Congress often could not function
because not enough members were present to conduct official business
Rival states were openly attempting to subvert each other via currency manipulation and random, overbearing taxation
Particularly annoyed by the economic problems of the system, Hamilton attempts to rally his political allies
Wants to have a meeting in Annapolis to proposed amendments to the AoC
Totally flabbergasted when barely anyone shows up and again no official business gets done
It’s now obvious to him that states think the AoC is a joke and are unwilling to commit more political energy to the government
Previous iterations of the national Congress had promised bonuses of land and money to veterans of the Revolutions
Years continued to pass while nothing was given to these American heroes
Eventually Massachusetts veterans under the command of Daniel Shays start a rebellion in western Massachusetts, begin burning civic buildings and marching en masse to the state capitol
Massachusetts sends messages to Congress, neighboring states to send militia to assist but no soldiers are sent
Finally, Massachusetts business elites form a mercenary group to crush the rebellion
Many other political elites (Washington, Franklin, Hamilton) now realize the AoC is doomed and the confederation must become a federation
Hamilton calls for another national Constitutional Convention in Philly in 1787
Many political heavyweights answer the call but many others are conspicuously absent Jefferson in France John Adams in England Hancock in Massachusetts Sam Adams in Massachusetts Patrick Henry refused to attend
Due to the open spot in the Virginia delegation because of the absence of Jefferson, James Madison is sent instead
Madison is Jefferson’s protégé Arrives with details of what will be known
later as the Virginia Plan Also serves as Secretary for the
Convention – essentially served as the starting point for the entire discourse at the Convention and recorded all of the details
Called for unicameral Congress with proportional representation based on state population
Obviously larger states like New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Virginia loved it
But smaller states felt threatened by it – felt that such a government would relegate them to lesser status
Counterproposal of small states Called for essentially a continuation of
the Congress structure derived from the AoC – equal representation for each state
Larger states felt totally marginalized by this plan – surely their larger population meant they should have more impact on national affairs
A state that could relate to both sides was Connecticut Small land mass Medium sized population
Solution was a bicameral legislature reminiscent of the English parliament
Lower chamber (House of Reps) would be determined by state population
Upper chamber (Senate) would feature state equality
So significant in American politics it was deemed the “Great Compromise”
All state delegations were confused about how to treat the new national executive
Some preferred the super-weakling in the AoC model
Hamilton actually proposed a constitutional monarch but quickly had to retract his idea
Eventually, Great Compromise featured a moderately strong executive with mostly military, foreign relations, and appointment powers that served four year terms
Electors, NOT popular votes, would choose the president
Delegates had an even harder time trying to figure out what the powers of the national court system would be
Knew that it had to exist, however, and knew that it had to be accountable to both the new Congress and president
Eventually, Supreme Court justices themselves flesh out the powers of the court but at first they were nebulous
The Constitutional Convention was one of America’s first chances to end slavery but it doesn’t happen
Instead, South flexes its political, economic muscles and forces the North to agree to the absurd Three-Fifths Compromise
Slaves, although totally disenfranchised, were to somehow count for “three-fifths of a person” in terms of census counts that affected House of Reps seats Presidential electors
States do, however, agree to end importation of slaves by year 1808
But it is still clear that as long as United States is an agricultural society, the political power of the South can strong-arm the North into agreeing with policies that unduly favor the South
Next, delegates complete the document Give new national government power to
resolve interstate problems Set the process for amending the new
constitution Add the very controversial Supremacy Clause And set the rules for ratification
9 out of 13 states were required to complete the ratification process
State delegation would return home with a copy of the Constitution and discuss it in state conventions or state congresses
Many states were outraged at first – Hamilton had sold the Philly Convention as a meeting to amend the AoC, not scrap it altogether
Sensing the need to persuade the voting elites of large states, Hamilton, Madison and Jay (sort of) began writing the Federalist Papers
Political treatises and essays published in major city newspapers between the time of the drafting of the Constitution and its ratification
Here Hamilton and Madison expound on and highlight the main themes of the new proposed government The benefits of the federal republic The essence and application of separation of
powers The virtues of checks and balances The need for a stronger executive
Immediately, a response forms to the concept of federalism but is not previously given a name so it takes the poorly worded form of “anti-federalism”
Anti-federalist Papers begin circulating to counter the Federalist Papers
Popular themes included A lack of civil liberties and rights guaranteed
in writing The possible tyranny of a stronger executive
run amok
As the deadline for ratification loomed, a few large states were still up in the air
More and more people agreed with the Anti-federalists that some form of guaranteed written civil liberties and rights should be included in the document
Jefferson hears of the debate and mails Madison from France
Madison deliberates and then compiles the first ten amendments to the Constitution – the Bill of Rights
With the Bill of Rights included, the last few states ratify (except Rhode Island who refused to even participate)
By 1789 First president of Constitutional government
George Washington takes office First new US Congress begins official business
The Age of the Federal Government had begun