The Constitutional
Convention
pols100/U.S. Government
The Constitutional Convention met during the Summer of 1787. It consisted of
delegates chosen by the several state governments. Its meetings were officially
secret, in order that the members could speak freely, but news was constantly
leaking out. Like any such gathering, it
was dominated by a few strong
personalities. George Washington was
chosen as President of the Convention,
because of the profound faith that
Americans had in his character. James
Madison, Alexander Hamilton, James
Wilson and few others dominated the
discussions.
Consensus and
Conflict
The Constitutional Convention succeeded
in large part because the Founding
Fathers (as they are called, because they
laid the foundation for our form of
government) all agreed on a number of
basic issues. It took three months to
conclude, because they had strong disagreements on other basic issues.
They agreed about the following:
1. that the new form of government should be democratic;
2. that it should be a representative democracy, which is to say that the
government should consist of representatives chosen directly or indirectly
by the people;
3. that it should contain protections for the liberty
and property of its citizens, and
4. that the Federal Government should be stronger
than the states.
There were strong disagreements on a only a few issues,
but the chief disagreement was over the Representation of
States in Congress. Were States to be represented
equally, or would they be represented according to size?
The Virginia Plan
Most delegates arrived at the Convention with a clear idea
of what was wrong with the Articles, but no clear idea how to fix it. An exception
was a delegate from Virginia, James Madison. Madison had spent the winter
before the convention doing his homework. He studied the history of
democracies, ancient and modern, and tried to understand why some many had
failed. When he arrived at the Convention, he had with him a detailed proposal for
a new form of Government. This proposal was known as the Virginia Plan or
the Randolph Plan (because it was introduced by Governor Randolph). With
some significant changes, it became the basis for the Convention's final product.
This is why Madison is called the Father of the Constitution. More than any other
person, he is responsible for the form of our government. Oh, and by the way:
Madison was short. I like that in a man.
The Structure of the Virginia Plan
What is striking about the Virginia Plan is that it is different in almost every detail
from the Articles of Confederation.
Bicameral Congress. Under the Virginia Plan, Congress would consist of an
upper and a lower house. These two groups of representatives would meet
separately, and both would have to agree before any bill became a law.
Proportional Representation of States in Both Houses. In both
houses, each state would be represented according to its population. If one state
had ten times as many people as another, it would get ten times as many
representatives in both houses. This means that the bigger states, and the more
populous areas would dominate the Federal Government.
Direct Election of the Lower House. The lower house would be directly
elected by the people of each state. This would give the people a greater interest
and attachment to the Federal Government.
The Distribution of
Powers
As in the structure, the
Virginia Plan radically
altered the distribution of
powers between the States
and the Federal Government.
National Supremacy.
The Constitution and all
constitutional acts of the
Federal Government would
be supreme over the states.
This means that sovereignty
would shift from the states to
the Federal Government.
A share of the Executive
and Judicial Powers
would now belong to the
Federal Government. While
the State Governments would
still enforce state laws, the
Federal Government would
enforce Federal Law.
An Executive Branch would be added to the Government (a President);
and
A Judicial Branch (a system of Federal Courts).
The Tax Power. The Federal Government would have the power to lay taxes
and raise a revenue. It would no longer be dependent on the States.
The Commerce Power. The Federal government would have the sole power
to tax commerce between the states and between the United States and other
nations.
The Virginia Plan was a radical proposal. It would change nearly every significant
feature of the form of government then in place. Madison believed that such a
radical revision was necessary in order to make the United States work, but it took
some time for everyone to see that he was right. Some delegates thought that
Madison's proposal was too radical, and that the Convention had no legal right to
make such a proposal. The existing Federal Congress had only authorized them to
propose changes in the Articles, not to recommend an entirely new constitution.
These critics then proposed their own plan, known as the New Jersey Plan.
The New Jersey Plan
The New Jersey Plan was proposed by William Patterson, a delegate from New
Jersey. It is also known as the Patterson Plan. It was designed to remedy the
defects of the Articles of Confederation, while maintaining the basic structure of
that constitution.
Structure
Just like the Articles, the New Jersey plan centered the federal government in a
Unicameral Congress. This Congress would be responsible for negotiations
with foreign powers, for making war and peace, and for the settlement of the
territories.
Equal Representation of states. In this Congress, each state would get
one vote, regardless of its size or wealth.
Indirection Election of Congress.
The delegates representing each
state would not be chosen directly by the citizens of that state, but indirectly, by
the state legislatures.
You will notice that these structural features these structural features are identical
with the Articles of Confederation. This was a honest attempt to fix the Articles of
Confederation. However, you notice that the distribution of powers is identical to
the Virginia Plan. There's compromise for you!
The Distribution of Powers
As in the structure, the Virginia Plan radically altered the distribution of powers
between the States and the Federal Government.
National Supremacy. The Constitution and all constitutional acts of the
Federal Government would be supreme over the states. This means that
sovereignty would shift from the states to the Federal Government.
A share of the Executive and Judicial Powers would now belong to the
Federal Government. While the State Governments would still enforce state laws,
the Federal Government would enforce Federal Law. An Executive Branch
would be added to the Government (a President); and
A Judicial Branch (a system of Federal Courts).
The Tax Power. The Federal Government would have the power to lay taxes
and raise a revenue. It would no longer be dependent on the States.
The Commerce Power. The Federal government would have the sole power
to tax commerce between the states and between the United States and other
nations.
So: the Virginia Plan had a completely different structure than the Articles. The
New Jersey plan splits the difference: the same structure as the Articles, but the
same distribution of powers as the Virginia Plan. Those were the forms of
government under consideration in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787. As it
turns out, none of them would work. To get the Constitution that did work, it was
necessary to modify Madison's Virginia Plan.
The Connecticut Compromise
The Constitutional Convention produced three distinct plans of government: three
shared the same basic distribution of powers but differed significantly in their
structures. This is because the members of the convention all agreed on where
they ought to go, but disagreed on how to get there. I believe there there was, in
fact, only one real problem at the Convention: that of state representation.
In the course of debate, the delegates came to realize that neither the Virginia Plan
nor the New Jersey Plan could work. To see why I will explore the effects of both
schemes of state representation. I will invent the states and their populations, in
order to make the example very simple.
Representation under the Virginia Plan
State
Population
North Diasota 10,000
South Diasota 50,000
Marmorfornia 90,000
Upper
House of
Bicameral
Congress
Lower
House of
Bicameral
Congress
1
5
9
10
50
90
Explanation of Chart. I have invented three states, named after some of my
esteemed NSU colleagues, and I have made up populations for them. Then I
assign seats in two houses under the Virginia Plan. You will note that the
representation is strictly proportional in both houses. South Diasota has five
times as many people as North Diasota, and five times as many seats in both
houses.
What's Wrong with the Virginia Plan?
Answer: it is too democratic. It gives too much power to the majority, which in my
imaginary scheme live in Marmorfornia. This state would dominate the Federal
Congress and produce whatever legislation pleased its citizens. It could afford to
ignore the interests of the other two states.
Imagine for example that the Virginia Plan were in effect today. Who would
control Congress? Answer: California, Texas, Florida, and New York. Would
Congress ever give a rat's assets for the people of South Dakota? Hardly. Given a
large nation, with a widely distributed population and diverse regional interests,
the Virginia Plan was unacceptable. What then about the New Jersey Plan?
Representation under the New Jersey Plan
State
North Diasota
South Diasota
Marmorfornia
Population
10,000
50,000
90,000
Congress
2
2
2
What's Wrong with the New Jersey Plan?
Answer: the New Jersey Plan is not democratic enough. Under this plan, 60,000
people in two states control 6 seats in Congress. If they vote together, they can
outvote the two representatives controlled by the remaining 90,000, which is to
say the majority. When a minority can outvote a majority, that is minority rule.
Minority rule is undemocratic.
Moreover, under the New Jersey Plan, this Federal Congress would have real
power. It could tax the majority more heavily than the minority, and regulate
commerce to advantage of the smaller states. Even if this were fair, it would never
be tolerated by the large states which, sooner or later, would withdraw from the
union. No force would be available to keep them in.
The Solution
If neither plan would work, what is the solution? The delegation from Connecticut
proposed a compromise, that is a deal where both sides would give up something.
The proponents of the Virginia Plan had to give up proportional representation in
both houses, and the other side gave up the idea of a unicameral congress. This
solution to the problem is referred to as the Connecticut Compromise. The
result was a Bicameral Congress with:
Equal Representation in the Upper House; and
Proportional Representation in the Lower House.
State Representation under the Connecticut
Compromise
State
Population Senate
North Diasota 10,000
South Diasota 50,000
Marmorfornia 90,000
2
2
2
House of
Representatives
10
50
90
This solved the problem of state representation. In the upper house, which would
be called the Senate, all the states had equal representation. Any bill that harmed
the interest of the smaller states could be defeated whenever they agreed to vote
together. In the lower house, which would be called the House of Representatives,
no measure that was opposed by most of the people in the Union. Thus the system
was both democratic and safe for the smaller states and regions of the country.