Article of Confederation 1781 1787 the firm league

Article of Confederation 1781 -1787 (the firm league of friendship) • 1 national legislature • 1 state=1 vote • No courts or president • Authority rests with the states

Powers of the Art of Confed War and Peace Send/receive ambassadors Make treaties Borrow money Set up monetary system Build navy Raise army by asking states Standards of weights/measures Settle disputes among states (if asked) • Sell western lands • • •

Weaknesses of Art of Confed • • One vote per state (not on pop. ) No taxes Can’t regulate commerce No executive No national courts Need all states for amendment 9/13 to pass a law Land disputes (NY v. PA, Vermont>Canada)

Annapolis Meeting 1786 • Organized to fix the commercial problems of the Articles of confederation • 5 states with 12 delegates show up. • Try again next year.

Shay’s Rebellion 1786 -87 • Revolutionary war soldiers/farmers upset with foreclosure of farms, so shut down the courts. • State militia won’t stop • Federal army can’t stop • Private army raised to stop them. • Shows need for strong federal gov.

1787 Philadelphia convention (Constitutional Convention) • 12 states show up (no Rhode Island, it likes its own paper money) • 55 delegates (8 signed the Dec of Ind, 7 had been governors, 34 lawyers, 39 had served in Congress of the Confederation)

Constitutional Convention • 55 delegates. 8 signed Dec. of Ind. 7 had been governors. 34 lawyers. 39 served in Congress of Confederation.

But, Who is There? • • • NO Jefferson abroad John Adams abroad Sam Adams ill Patrick Henry refused • Yes • Washington (whew, that was close) • Madison (you can’t tell since he is a short guy) • Franklin (getting pretty old) • Hamilton (he is an elitist)

Philosophy in action • Human Nature-Thomas Hobbs Leviathan 1651. • Man needs strong government to overcome his natural state of war. Men love power and money. • Political Conflict comes from faction (Madison), particularly over property.

More Philosophy • Object of Government-Protect private property • Nature of Government-(Montesquieu) Limited gov. by checks and balances. This help gov protect people’s property, rather than take it.

Constitution= ? ? ? ? ?

Constitution=Compromise • 9 of 13 needed to ratify • 5 states can block the Constitution, so must have agreement on most things. • There are strong differences between the 13 states that will make this difficult

Representation • Virginia plan=representation based on population • New Jersey Plan=states get equal votes (like Articles of Confed). • Connecticut Compromise (the GREAT Compromise)= 2 house (bicameral) legislature. House of Reps for Virginia and the Senate for New Jersey

Slavery • Can slaves vote? Slavery legal in all states but Massachusetts. • Slaves make up large portions of southern states and would impact House of Reps. • 3/5 th compromise.

Voting Rights • Who gets to vote? • Left to states to decide. If you can vote in a state election, you can vote in a federal election.

Economic issues • Problems were states using tariffs, states had own paper money, Congress had trouble raising money. • Taxes=Congress could tax, but no DIRECT taxes. • Congress could regulate the value of money, and has to pay the debts left over from the war.

Continued • Congress allowed to regulate Commerce, but: • No export taxes • Could not regulate the slave trade for 20 years.

Picking the President? • Can’t trust the people to vote (look at Shay’s Rebellion) • Can’t trust the Congress to choose, it would encourage corruption • Electoral College created where people choose the people who will choose the President. (thinkchoose the smartest person in town to make the choice for you) • Also look at if Pres should be a committee? How many terms? But no worries, George Washington is the MAN!!!!!!!

Constitution and the People (People may not be trusted) • People only vote for House of Reps • Democracy not mentioned • Difficult to amend the Constitution • Checks and balances makes it difficult for things to be done

Madisonian Model for Constitution • Worry about faction (usually from wealth) • Place gov. (as much as possible) beyond direct control of majority (only House of Rep elected by the people) • Separation of powers (to limit self-interest of men) • Checks and balances is key to stopping factions from gaining too much power.

Ratification of Constitution • Constitution Day-Sept 17, 1787. Then sent to states. • Delaware first to ratify on Dec 7, 1787. • States/people debate whether to pass the Constitution

Federalists (Nationalists) • Alexander Hamilton • James Madison • John Jay • Write the federalist papers (84 of them) to encourage passage of the Constitution.

Antifederalists (States rights) • Many varied arguments against passage of Constitution. Robert Yates George Mason Patrick Henry

• In Groups of 4 or less EXPLAIN the arguments of the anti-federalists. 8 points.

Arguments Against Constitution • Gives elites all the power • Misses many individual liberties/NO BILL OF RIGHTS!!!!!! (states all have them) • Weakens power of the states • Some oppose the solid economy and single currency (creditors/debtors)

More Arguments • Rhode Island likes its paper money • More powerful federal gov. can more easily limit the people • Federal courts can overturn state courts • Congress may tax heavily • President can lead a large army • No mention of God in Constitution • Some view the whole process as illegal. Not sent to establish Constitution, just fix the articles.

The Formal Amendment Process

A different Visual for Amending (formal)

Informal Process • Judicial Interpretation-1803 Marbury v. Madison allows for Judicial review. Ex. Plessy v. Ferguson changes with Brown v. Board of Ed • Changing Political Practice- Political parties, electoral college, military strength changes the Presidency

Informal Continued • Technology- media, bureaucracy, social security • Increasing Demands on Policy Makers- US role as a superpower changes President’s responsibilities • Elastic Clause (Necessary and Proper Clause)allows for expansion of Congressional Power

Informal (last bit) • More common than formal. Easier to do than formal. • Can target institutions that may be more receptive. Ex. Civil Rights or environmentalists may target the courts. This is 9 justices rather than the whole formal process.