A Confederation of States - MR. CHUNG U.S. History ...sgachung.weebly.com/uploads/3/7/7/7/37771531/05_u.s...confederation of 13 states rather than a strong and centralized nation

Chapter 5:1

o Explain early state governments and how they reflected republican ideals.

o Describe the structure and powers of the nation under the Articles of Confederation.

o List the main weakness of the Articles of Confederation.

o (Act 10:34) Then Peter opened his

mouth, and said, Of a truth I

perceive that God is no respecter of

persons:

Chapter 5:1 A Confederation of States

• When declaring independence in 1776 the Congress invited each new state to create a constitution to establish a government.

• Although these documents varied, they all called for republics, or governments in which the people elect their representatives.

• But the Patriots disagreed over the proper design for those republics.

A Confederation of States

• Some Patriots, such as Thomas Paine,

sought changes that would promote

democracy by putting over more power

in the hands of the people.

• But more conservative Patriots

distrusted the ability of the common

people.

• They hoped instead to preserve the

status quo.

A Confederation of States • More democratic patriots wanted to

create state governments with strong legislatures and weak governors or no governors at all.

• Seeking greater rights for the people, these leaders preferred a unicameral legislature, a single house, whose members were elected by the people.

• Pennsylvania and Georgia were states that adopted this system of government.

A Confederation of States • Most colonies however adopted a

bicameral legislature and a strong

governor.

• Bicameral legislature is a lawmaking

body with two houses, a Senate and a

House of Representatives.

• These constitutions counterbalanced

the power of common votes in the

house with the power of wealthy, well-

educated gentlemen in the Senate.

Democratic Gains: • Power has been dramatically expanded to the

common people.

• Voters chose the members of both houses of the new legislatures, rather than just the members of the lower house.

• Nearly all states also enlarged their legislatures creating smaller districts and a greater number of representatives made representatives more accountable to their constituents or voters.

• Nearly all states also had voters that elected their governor.

• Something only two-colonies had previously done.

Equality For All? • Democratic patriots wanted equal

political rights for almost all free men,

even those who had little or no

property.

• In fact, the Pennsylvania’s state

constitution opened voting to all men

over the age of 21 who paid any taxes.

• Conservatives preserved the colonial

property requirements to vote.

Equality For All? o Adams warned that allowing poor men

to vote would “confound and destroy all distinctions prostrate all ranks to the common level.”

o Valuing distinctions, he opposed political equality as foolish and unworkable.

o But even in the conservative states most free men qualified to vote because owning farms was so widespread.

o Both theory and practice excluded women and slaves from voting.

Discussion:

What do you think of the position of some of the

founding Fathers who did not want the right to

vote for everyone and only for the educated class?

Freedom of Religion • Because the American Revolution

promoted greater religious liberty,

most states also guaranteed freedom

of religion in their constitutions.

• Before this time, states collected taxes

to support religious establishments.

• The freedom to choose among several

faiths had been controversial.

Freedom of Religion • After the Revolution, however, religious

liberty and pluralism was common.

• In 1786, Virginia passed the Virginia

Statute for Religious Freedom, which

was drafted by Thomas Jefferson.

• Massachusetts and Connecticut were

exceptions keeping their state funded

churches.

• The primary spirit of the letter is clear – the United States government will assure religious freedom, giving “to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” George Washington wrote those words in a 1790 letter to the congregation of a synagogue (Jewish) in Newport, Rhode Island. He was hoping to reassure the congregation that the budding government of the United States would allow free expression to all religions. Since then, Jews in America have flourished. CNN.Com.

Congress Creates Articles of Confederation.

• Drafted in 1777, a confederation is

a league or alliance of states that

agree to work together.

• Under the leadership of John

Dickinson of Pennsylvania, the

Congress designed the loose

confederation of 13 states rather

than a strong and centralized

nation.


• The new federal or national government consisted of a congress of delegates chosen by state legislatures rather than by voters.

• Although states could choose to send as many as seven delegates, each state no matter how large or small had a single vote.


• The power to make, implement, and enforce laws were all placed with the congress.

• The national government included no President or executive branch.

• Instead executive power was spread among several committees of congressmen.

Powers of the National Congress:

• Declare and conduct war and to negotiate peace.

• To regulate foreign affairs and to administer relations with Indian nations.

• The Congress had no power to raise money through taxes.

• It relied on contributions from the states, which were unreliable.

• On some minor issues, a majority of seven states could pass a law.


o But on the major issues, including declaring war and making treaties, two thirds of the state (nine) had to approve.

o Amending the Articles was almost impossible because all 13 states had to approve any change.

o In 1781 all states ratified the articles of confederation.


o One of the most important accomplishments of the national congress under the Articles of Confederation was the creation of plans for both settling and governing a vast territory that they had authority over.

o The territory called the Northwest Territory, lay north of the Ohio River and west of Pennsylvania to the Mississippi River.

o By selling this land to speculators and farmers, the Congress hoped to raise revenue and extend America’s republican society westward.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

• Provided a government for this territory based on the ideas championed by Jefferson.

• Congress would appoint a territorial government led by a governor, secretary, and three judges.

• The citizens would enjoy freedom of religion, trial by jury, and the rights of common law, including habeas corpus.

• Once a territory had 5,000 men, they could establish an elected assembly but the governor retained an absolute veto over its laws.


• When the population of a territory reached 60,000, the people could request admission to the Union as a state or equal terms with the original 13 states provided the new state adopted a republican constitution.

• The Northwest territory later formed the Midwestern states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota.


• The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 also barred slavery from its territory which meant that the five new states to enter the union would be free states rather than slave states.

• By adopting the ordinance, Congress discarded the British model of keeping colonies in permanent subordination

• The Congress designed the territories to attract American settlers and to assure their acceptance to federal rule.

• In the wake of the Revolution, few Americans would settle where they could not enjoy basic freedoms, including the right to elect those who would set their taxes.


• But Freedom and opportunity for Americans came at the expense of the region’s 100,000 Indians who were expected to give up their lands and relocate elsewhere.

• During the mid 1780s, Indians resisted and the Federal Government did not have the means to defeat them.

• The National Army was reduced to 350 men.

WEAKNESS OF THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION:

• Under the Articles, the Federal Congress could not establish a common currency, nor could it regulate interstate commerce or levy taxes.

• For financial support, the Congress relied solely on contributions from the state, which were unreliable.

• And Congress could not compel state to pay their share


• In Western Massachusetts in 1786 farmers took up arms to shut down the courts to block any foreclosure hearings.

• Foreclosures is when someone is not able to maintain payments on a property they borrowed money to purchase, and lose their property to the lender or bank who gave them money to purchase the property.

• Farmers did not want to lose their property or go to prison, but they could not pay the higher taxes imposed by the Massachusetts government.


• One of their leaders was Daniel Shays, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.

• In 1787 he led about 1,000 farmers to seize weapons from the Springfield Armory and again attempted to shut down the courts.

• But the elected leaders of Massachusetts insisted that the new Republic could not survive if people violently interfered with the courts.

• In eastern Massachusetts, the state raised an army, that marched west to suppress what became known as Shay’s Rebellion.

• Shays rebellion caused Americans to agree for a need of a strong central government.


o Congress could not levy or collect

taxes

o Congress was powerless to

regulate interstate commerce and

foreign trade.

o Each state had only one vote in

Congress, regardless of its size.

o A two-thirds majority (9 out of 13

states) was required to pass laws.


o Articles could only be amended

without the consent of all states.

o No separate executive branch to

enforce acts of congress.

o No system of Federal Courts.

Chapter 5:2

o We will examine the reasons leaders called for the Constitutional Convention.

o Describe the compromises made in order to reach agreement on the constitution.

o Know the principles of the Constitution and their significance.

Rom_13:10 Love worketh no ill to his

neighbour: therefore love is the

fulfilling of the law.

Drafting the Constitution

• Many Americans now agreed

that they needed a stronger

Federal Government to preserve

the union.

• Congress called for a convention

meeting in Philadelphia in 1787

for the sole purpose of revising

the articles of confederation.

Constitutional Convention

Most Americans agreed that the Articles of Confederation was flawed and needed two major changes.

(1) Almost everyone wanted congress to have the power to regulate interstate and international commerce

(2) Most Americans also supported granting Congress the power to tax the people.


• The delegates began arriving to Philadelphia around May.

• Met throughout the summer in Independence Hall in a humid hot summer where the windows were all closed so the delegates can freely express themselves.

• Delegates included Alexander Hamilton of New York, James Madison of Virginia, and the eldest delegate, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania.


• These delegates were not

typical Americans.

• They were all white males,

many were wealthy, and more

than half of them were lawyers.

• Many of the delegates had

helped to write their state

constitutions, and seven had

been state governors.


• Twenty-one had fought in the

American Revolution and eight

had signed the Declaration of

Independence.

• Jefferson remarked that it was

“an assembly of demi-gods.”

• The delegates unanimously

elected George Washington as

president of the convention.

Hamilton and Madison

• Alexander Hamilton: was very conservative in his principles.

• He disliked democracy and he praised the British constitution including its king and house of Lords as “The best model the world has ever produced.”

• He insisted that a balanced government should have elements of aristocracy and monarchy as well as of republicanism.

• Hamilton believed that such a government would have real power to command its citizens and impress foreign empires.


• James Madison believed that only a

strong nation could rescue the state

from their own democratic excess.

• Although a critic of democracy,

Madison favored republicanism

rather than a constitution modeled

after the British system.


• His challenge was to design a

government that was both strong and

republican.

• Rejecting the old notion that a

republic needed to be small and

localized, he insisted that a large

republic with diverse interests would

best preserve the common good.


• Madison reasoned that the numerous interests would “check” one another.

• Madison hoped that the nation’s most learned men, rather than the many local political leaders he saw in the state legislatures would govern the new national republic.

• In addition to providing the basic blueprint of the constitution, Madison kept the notes that are the best record of the convention.

RIVAL PLANS OF GOVERNMENT: Virginia Plan

• Proposed by Madison

• Securing the power to tax and to regulate commerce.

• Proposed creating a government that divided power among three branches.

• The legislative, executive, and judicial branches.

• The plan proposed a bicameral legislature with a House of Representatives and the Senate.

• In both houses, the states with larger populations would have more members.

RIVAL PLANS OF GOVERNMENT

o Madison’s plan also included veto power for national congress over state law just as parliament has done with the colonial laws.

o Strong presidency.

o The president would enjoy a relatively long term in office of seven years but could not be elected a second time.

o The President would command the armed forces and manage foreign relations.

o He would appoint all executive and judicial officers, subject only to approval by the senate.

RIVAL PLANS OF GOVERNMENT: New Jersey Plan

• Advocated modest changes of the Articles of Confederation.

• Proposed by William Paterson of New Jersey.

• Gave congress the powers to regulate commerce and to tax but it kept the three chief principles of the articles of confederation.

• It retained a unicameral legislature representing the states as equals no matter how large or small.

RIVAL PLANS OF GOVERNMENT

• It preserved an executive committee

rather than adopting a singular

President.

• The states remained sovereign except

for those few powers specifically

granted to the national government.

• Would remain a loose confederation

Compromise

• The Great Compromise led by Roger Sherman of Connecticut, the delegates reached a compromise between the Virginia and New Jersey plans known as the Connecticut or the Great Compromise.

• John Dickinson of Delaware played a key role for this compromise.

Compromise

• The Senate would equally represent every state, regardless of size, by allowing two senators per state.

• The House of Representatives would represent population, granting more power to the larger states.

• Madison abandoned his cherished national veto over state laws.

Compromise

• Instead the compromise simply forbade States from enacting the sort of laws that offended many during the 1780s.

• For instance, the states could no longer issue their own money or provide debtor relief at creditor’s expense.

Compromise

• This compromise led to a system

known as federalism.

• Federalism divided government

power between the federal and

state governments.

The Slave Issue

• Slave owning states feared that

the domination of the northern

states would threaten the slave

system they felt was essential for

the Southern economy.

• South Carolina and Georgia

threatened to walk out unless the

constitution protected slavery.

The Slave Issue

• Madison was torn, on one hand he wanted a powerful nation and he despised slavery as “the most oppressive dominion ever exercised man over man.”

• On the other hand, he owned slaves, and he knew that Southern voters would reject a constitution that threatened slavery.

• So he sided with protecting slavery to help the constitution be ratified.

The Slave Issue: The Three-Fifths Compromise

• The Constitution forbade Congress from blocking the importation of slaves for twenty years.

• Georgia and South Carolina would import another 100,000 slaves by 1808.

• Compromise known as three-fifths compromise counted each slave as three-fifths of a person to be added to a state’s free population in allocating representatives to the House of Representatives and the electoral-college votes.

The Slave Issue: The Three-Fifths Compromise

• The three-fifths clause gave the southern states more seats in Congress.

• More power in presidential elections than they would have enjoyed had only free people have been counted as the northern delegates preferred.

• The Constitution committed all states to return fugitive slaves to their owners.

• Northerners were required to help enforce the slave system as the price of the union.

Discussion:

What is your reaction to the three-fifths

compromise? Should the slave issue been

addressed and solved during this time or was it

wise to not deal with it and let it be dealt with in

later time which resulted in the bloodiest war in

American History.

Chapter 5:3

We will analyze the arguments for

and against ratification of the

Constitution.

We will study how the Constitution

was ratified

We will study the principles of the

Constitution.

o Isa_1:18 Come now, and let us

reason together, saith the LORD:

though your sins be as scarlet, they

shall be as white as snow; though

they be red like crimson, they shall

be as wool.

Bill of Rights

• Most state constitutions had adopted bills of rights to protect civil liberties from the power of government.

• But the federal delegates declined to include a bill of rights in their constitution.

• A South Carolina delegate, Charles C. Pinckney explained “such bills generally begin with declaring that all men are by nature born free.”

Bill of Rights

• Such declaration would come “with a very bad grace when a large part of our property consists in men who are actually born slaves.”

• Unlike the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution did not proclaim that all men were born free and equal in their rights.

No One Left Happy

• In September 17, the Constitution convention concluded with 42 delegates still present.

• Many disliked the compromises but passed for the greater good.

• Ben Franklin appealed to all to unite in support of the “federal experiment.”

• 39 delegates signed the document, now it went to the states for ratification.

Ratifying the Constitution:

• The original purpose of the constitutional convention was to amend the Articles of Confederation. Ratification is the official approval.

• To improve odds of ratification the delegates changed the rules.

• They determined that approval of 9 states would suffice rather than all 13 from the Articles of Confederation.

Ratifying the Constitution:

• Instead of state legislatures,

delegates ruled that special

elected conventions would

decide to ratify or deny the

Constitution.

• This was to insure a better

chance that it would be passed.

Two Sides: Federalists

• Favored strong government.

• They favored ratification.

• This group included Washington, Hamilton.

• They stressed the weakness of the Articles.

• They argued that only a new government based on the proposed Constitution could overcome the difficulties facing the new nation.

Two Sides: Antifederalists:

• Feared a strong government and were critics of the Constitution.

• They felt that it was a retreat from the liberty won by the Revolution.

• Antifederalists especially disliked the lack of a bill of rights that would provide basic liberties, protecting the people from the powers of the government.

Two Sides

• They thought that the Constitution greatly increased the powers of the central government and provided a more elitist government by concentrating power in relatively few hands at a great distance from most voters.

• The antifederalists believed that liberty could not survive unless the federal government remained weak, which meant that most power would belong to the democratic state government.

Two Sides

• Antifederalists included

Patriots such as Samuel

Adams, John Hancock, and

Patrick Henry.

• They were for states rights

and weak national

government.

Discussion:

What political side would you most likely agree

with, Federalists or Antifederalists? Explain why

you chose that side.

Federalists Gain Support.

• Most farmers felt threatened by Constitution as aristocratic.

• However, the Constitution had the support of two of the most popular and trusted men in America, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin.

• Their support allayed the fears of many rural Americans.

• Some frontier farmers also endorsed the Constitution because they hoped that a stronger nation would defeat the Native Americans and take control of the British forts along the Great Lakes.

Federalist Papers Outline Key Ideas:

• The Federalists’ case for ratification of the constitution appeared in The Federalist, a series of 85 essays that came to be called the Federalist Papers.

• Three leading Federalists, Madison, Hamilton, and John Jay wrote the essays which were published in New York newspapers in 1787 and 1788.


• The essays argued that the

separation of powers in three

branches of government would

prevent the concentration of power

dreaded by the Antifederalists.

• The authors were also eager for the

United States to have a strong

central government, as supported by

Madison in The Federalist, No. 10.


• Federalist leaders feared that the

United States would dissolve

without a strong government.

• They argued in The Federalist, No.

51, that the checks and balances

in the Constitution prevented any

of the three branches from

gaining too much power.


• The authors insisted that the real

threat to liberty came from the

state legislatures, which lacked

sufficient checks and balances.

• Hamilton wrote of the importance

of a judicial branch in The

Federalist, no. 78.

Triumph

o In Massachusetts, the Federalists faced defeat until they made two key concessions to sway the moderate antifederalists, led by Governor John Hancock.

o (1) The Federalists appealed to Hancock’s vanity.

o They hinted that he could become the nation’s first Vice President by switching sides.

o (2) To make that switch easier, they promised to support key amendments to the Constitution.

o They would add a bill of rights but only after ratification and not the condition of.

Triumph

• The promise of a bill of rights

helped the Federalists win most

of the remaining states.

• The Constitution was ratified on

May 29, 1790 when Rhode

Island was the last state to vote it

in.

Triumph

• There was heated debate on

ratification, Patrick Henry of

Virginia was passionately

opposed to the Constitution and

favored State rights.

• Alexander Hamilton threatened

New York State that New York City

would be independent if the state

did not ratify the Constitution.

Triumph

• With the ratification of 11 states, the Congress of the Confederation made plans for the establishment of the new government and chose New York City as the temporary capital.

• The new congress convened there on March 4, 1789, in Federal Hall.

• It is here where they were to elect the nation’s first President and Vice President.

Triumph

• If the Federalists deserve credit

for the Constitution, the

Antifederalists deserve credit for

the federal Bill of Rights, the first

ten amendments to the

Constitution.

• Only the forceful resistance of the

Antifederalists obliged the

Federalists to add a bill of rights.

Triumph

• Madison drafted the Bill of Rights, basing it on the earlier Virginia Bill of Rights.

• Madison limited the amendments to guarantees of individual rights, leaving the federal framework the same.

• He also avoided any sweeping preamble that declared all men equal in their creation and rights.

Triumph

• That omission enabled slave owners to persist in denying rights to their slaves.

• The protected rights included freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition (First);

• Right to bear Arms (Second)

• Protection from unreasonable searches and seizures (Fourth),

• Right to not incriminate oneself (Fifth)

• Right to a speedy and public trial (sixth).

• Protection against cruel and unusual punishment (eighth).

• “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” First Amendment.

• Joh_18:36 Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.

• (2Ch 19:11) And, behold, Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the LORD; and Zebadiah the son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, for all the king's matters: also the Levites shall be officers before you. Deal courageously, and the LORD shall be with the good.

• 2 Chronicles 26:17-26.

Triumph

• Madison feared that any finite list

of rights would later be abused to

deny any left unmentioned.

• So the Ninth Amendment left

open subsequent development of

additional rights.

Principles of the Constitution

• Popular Sovereignty: All government powers/political authority comes from the people.

• Limited Government: Popular sovereignty ensures that a government’s power is restricted, or limited.

• In a limited government, the constitution specifically states what powers the government has.

• The principle of limited government also refers to the rule of law.

• Government leaders are not supposed to be above the law.


• Separation of Powers: The Constitution mandated the separation of powers within the federal government.

• The Constitution defined distinct legislative executive, and judicial branches with different responsibilities to prevent misuse of power by any of the three branches.

Separation of Powers continued:

• The Constitution assigns certain specific powers to each of the three branches of the federal government. The legislative branch (Congress) enacts laws.

• The executive branch (president) carries out the laws negotiate treaties, and commands the armed forces.

• The judicial branch interprets the Constitution and applies the law.

• The constitution establishes a Supreme Court and authorized Congress to establish other courts as needed.

Federalism:

• Division of power between the states and the nation.

• States no longer could print their own money or provide debtor relief at creditor’s expense.

• These delegated powers belonged exclusively to the Federal Government.

• Federalism also reserves some powers to the state governments.

• For example, states regulate all elections.

• Both Federal and state government hold overlapping concurrent powers, among them parallel court systems.


• Checks and Balances: Limits the power of government by creating a system designed to prevent one branch from seizing too much power.

• Congress has power to enact laws.

• President can veto a law.

• However, a two-thirds majority of both houses can overturn the veto.

• The president nominates judges but the Senate must approve them.

Discussion:

o What do you think is more important, a strong

national government or a weak national

government where the States can have greater

power to rule their own territory.

o What amendment of the Bill of Rights is most

important to you and why? (Note you can find

the Bill of Rights in your textbook).

Influenced By The Enlightenment:

• John Locke wrote that government was meant for the good of the people and if the government did not fulfill this good, then the people, based on their popular will can remove that government and replace it with a new one.

• Montesquieu wrote on the importance of the separation of powers which we see in the American government.


o Representative Government: Writers of the Constitution had misgivings on the democratic rule of the majority.

o Many saw democracy as something that would lead to mob rule.

o Instead of creating a direct democracy in which all citizens vote on every matter the writers created an indirect democracy in which voters elect representatives to be their voice in government.


o At that time the people only voted for the House of Representatives and the state legislature appointed members of the senate.

o The electoral college or group of persons chosen from each state, would indirectly elect the President.

o Each state legislature would determine whether to choose those electors or let the citizens elect them.

o In addition, the indirectly elected President and Senators would choose the least democratic branch of all: the judiciary.

o By giving the federal judges life terms, delegates meant to insulate them from democratic politics.

Constitution Endures

• There are two views on interpreting the Constitution.

• Original intent of the founders.

• The other view is the living breathing document where the Constitution adapts with the changes in society throughout the years.

• For example, overturning slavery, giving women right to vote, etc.


• The Constitution has survived and thrived in part because it provides a process for change in its content.

• The Constitution makes amendment possible but difficult.

• Two thirds of both houses of Congress must approve an amendment, which becomes law only when ratified by three fourths of the states.

• Since the Bill of Rights only 17 Amendments have been added to the Constitution.


• And the Constitution guarantees to the people the right of self-government, providing that representatives elected by the popular vote shall enact and administer the laws. Freedom of religious faith was also granted, every man being permitted to worship God according to the dictates of his conscience. Republicanism and Protestantism became the fundamental principles of the nation. These principles are the secret of its power and prosperity. The oppressed and downtrodden throughout Christendom have turned to this land with interest and hope. Millions have sought its shores, and the United States has risen to a place among the most powerful nations of the earth. {GC 441.1}

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A Confederation of States - MR. CHUNG U.S. History ...sgachung.weebly.com/uploads/3/7/7/7/37771531/05_u.s...confederation of 13 states rather than a strong and centralized nation