How did the Framers Create the
Constitution?
Purpose

 Articles of Confederation were first attempt to
establish a national government
 Proved inadequate
 1887 Fifty-five “Framers” met in Philadelphia to
draft the Constitution
 Understand why AofC was inadequate
 Why was the Constitution created the way it was
 What issues were raised
What Were the Articles of Confederation, and
Why Did Some Founders Want to Change
Them?
Purpose

 Be able to describe the A of C
 Explain why some people thought the government
was not strong enough under them
 Evaluate, take, and defend positions on the strength
and weaknesses of the A of C, singificance of the NW
Ordinance, and Americans’ mistrust of a strong
national government
Articles of Confederation

 Colonists wondered how to manage economic and
political relationships among states
 How would they settle disputes between states
 Border disputes
 Who represents the colonies to the rest of the world?
 Union or confederation: sovereign states delegate
power to a central government for specific purposes
Problems the AofC
addressed

 Fear of strong central government
 Most colonists identified with their state
 Saw the need for a central government to win
Revolutionary War
 Also saw that Britain’s strong central government had
deprived them of their rights
 Solution was a “firm league of friendship”
 No authority over any person in any state
 Congress could not tax states or individuals directly
 Could not regulate trade among various states
Problems the AofC
addressed

 Fear that some states would dominate others in
central government
Problem
Solution
• Voting
• 1 vote per state, large majority
wins
• War expenses (by population?)
• Funds by improved land
• Territorial clams
• Some land ceded to central
government
Achievements of National
Government under A of C

 Won independence
 No executive or judicial branch but congress had
executive departments of finance, foreign relations,
and military affairs – later cabinet departments
 Could hear appeals from state courts
 Northwest ordinance of 1787 – north of Ohio, east of
Mississippi – later OH, MN, IL, WI, MI
 Laid out process by which territory becomes state
 No slavery
Weaknesses

 Congress had no power to tax – could only request
payment from states to support cost of central
government
 Congress could make agreements with foreign
nations but had no power to enforce them
 Could not regulate trade among states or other
powers
 Could not regulate behavior of citizens
 The Loyalists problem
Shays’ Rebellion

 1786 – several hundred farmers in western Mass
gathered under Daniel Shays – The Regulators
(wanted to regulate the power of the state gov.)
 Farmers mad because they had never been paid for
their service in War, lost homes and farms to
creditors]
 Tried to acquire arms from militia: failed
 Scared many people and illustrated the need for a
stronger central government.
How was the Philadelphia Convention
Organized?
Purpose

 Understand that in Philadelphia, 1787, a group of
delegates began writing the Constitution
 Understand the Virginia Plan
 Describe the organizing phase of the Philadelphia
Convention
 Explain the significance of the rules and agenda for
effective civil discussion
 Evaluate, take, and defend positions on determining what
interests should be represented in a constitutional
convention and the advantages/disadvantages of secrecy
in governmental deliberations
 There to amend the Articles of Confederation
Who was there?

 55 delegates : Now called the “Framers” of the
Constitution
 Appointed by their state legislatures
 Some states sent more than one, although each state only
got one vote on issues
 Average age: 42, 3/4ths Congressmen, Some wealthy, but
most were not
 8 played particularly significant roles: GW, James
Madison, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, James
Wilson, Gouverneur Morris, Edmund Randolph, Roger
Sherman
Notable Absences

 Thomas Jefferson: US minister to France, in Paris
 John Adams: US ambassador to Great Britain
 Patrick Henry (Revolutionary Leader): refused to
attend saying, “I smell a rat”
 Rhode Island refused to send a delegate: did not
want strong national government – thought it could
exercise veto power
What do you Think?

 What criteria would you use to select a group of
people to draft a constitution today?
 How many people would you select?
 What interests should be represented?
 Any that should not be represented?
Rules for the Convention

 After selecting GW president of convention,
delegates began making rules for meeting
 Delegates from at least 7 states had to be present in
order to do business
 If a delegate’s absence would leave a state without
representation, then he had to get permission to be
absent
 When rising to speak, a delegate had to address the
president. Others could not pass notes, hold
conversations, read a book, pamphlet, or paper
Rules for Convention
(continued)

 Not allowed to speak more than twice on same issue
 Committees could be appointed as necessary
 Any decision made by convention was subject to
reconsideration and change
 Conventions proceedings were to remain secret
 These rules established basis for civil discourse: a
reasoned discussion in which every member has the
opportunity to speak or question
4 Committees

 Over 4 months these rules guided debate – 4
committees appointed to suggest critical solutions
1. Problem of representation in Congress
2. A Committee of Detail to write a draft of the
constitution
3. Committee on Postponed Matters: how to elect the
national president
4. Committee on Style to prepare the final language
Critical Thinking:
Why the Secrecy?

 Opponents criticized the rule of secrecy
 Argued that secrecy alone was reason to reject the
Constitution: Isn’t it the public’s business?
 Senate and House committees on military
intelligence still held in secret
 Deliberations of juries, the Supreme Court, federal
courts of appeals – not ever open to public
Critical Thinking:
Why the Secrecy?

 What are advantages and disadvantages of
conducting some governmental matters in secret?
 In what ways can secret proceedings protect or
threaten individual rights?
 What proceedings, if any, do you believe should be
conducted in secret?
What was the Virginia Plan?

 Many people believed the A of C should be scrapped
 Madison had come up with a new plan – The
Virginia Plan
 Proposed a strong national government – could
make and enforce laws
 Each citizen would be governed by rules of national
and state government
 Both got authority from the people – What’s that
called again?
What was the Virginia Plan?

 Federal system: 2 governments, state and national
 Recommended the following:
 3 branches – legislative, executive, judicial
 2 houses in legislative branch
 Proportional representation – House and Senate
representation based on population
 Could regulate trade
 Could strike down state laws that it considered to be
violation of national interest
 Congress had power to call forth armed forces if necessary
to enforce laws made by congress
Why Was Representation A Major Issue at the
Philadelphia Convention?
Purpose

 Understand the issue of representation at the
Philadelphia Convention – whom did the national
government represent (state, people, both?)
 Be able to explain the difference between the
Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan
 Importance of the Great Compromise
 Understand the Three-Fifths Compromise
 Evaluate, take and defend positions on why major
issues debated at the Philadelphia convention are
still on the national agenda
Review: Virginia Plan

 Federal system: 2 governments, state and national
 Recommended the following:
 3 branches – legislative, executive, judicial
 2 houses in legislative branch
 Proportional representation – House and Senate
representation based on population
 Could regulate trade
 Could strike down state laws that it considered to be
violation of national interest
 Congress had power to call forth armed forces if necessary
to enforce laws made by congress
Disagreements about
Representation

 2 house system widely accepted
 It was the proportional representation that was controversial
 Madison believed states should not be represented as
states but rather each representative should serve a
district in the national government’
 Other delegates believed that the national government
derived from and represented the states, not the people]
 Smaller states wanted equal representation: at least one
house in legislature should be equal
 New Jersey rep William Paterson asked for time from
convention to draw up an alternative to Virginia Plan
New Jersey Plan

 Keep most of A of C ideas
 Executive Branch: made up of members of congress,
 Supreme court: appointed by the officials of executive
branch, could decide cases involving treaties, trade
among the states or with other nations and collection of
taxes
 Only one house in congress with following powers:
 Could levy import duties and stamp tax, also had power to
collect taxes
 Regulated trade, internal and external
 Laws and treaties above state laws
Failure

 New Jersey Plan was voted for by only Connecticut,
Delaware, New Jersey, and Alexander Hamilton
 Bicameral legislation still biggest issue
 Voted on bicameral and resulted in tie
 Convention looked to be becoming a complete
failure!
 Special committee made to develop a plan to save
the convention: 1 rep from each state
Critical Thinking

 What should be done to satisfy all the delegates from
varying states? How should the legislature be made
up?
Great Compromise

 Special committee came up with Great Compromise
 1. House of Representatives should be elected by the
people on basis of proportional representation
 2. There should be equal representation of each state in
Senate, with each state getting 2 Senators
 3. House of Reps makes bills for taxation and
government spending
 4. Senate should be limited to accepting or rejecting
these bills
 Some delegates saw this as a step away from a strong
national government and gave states too many rights
WDYT?

 Read the paragraph on pg 76.
 Do you agree with Madison that the Great
Compromise was not a true compromise but a
rejection of the principle of majority rule?
How Did the Delegates Distribute Powers
Between National and State Governments?
Purpose

 Relationship between state and national government is at
the core of the first debates about our government
 Should be able to describe the major powers and limits on
the national government, powers that are specific to
states, and prohibitions the Constitution placed on state
governments
 Issue of slavery, as well as other questions left unresolved
in Philadelphia
 Be able to evaluate, take, defend positions on how limited
government in the US protects individual rights and
promotes the common good
National Government
over State Government

 Article I, Section 4: Congress can make or change
regulations regarding times, places, and manner of state
elections
 Article I, Section 8: Congress can call militia into national
service to “execute laws of the Union”
 Article IV Section 3: Congress can create new states
 Article IV Section 4: national government has the
authority to guarantee each state is a Republican form of
Government
National Government
over State Government

 Article IV, Section 4: Requires national government
to protect states from invasion or domestic violence
 Article VI, Section 2: Supremacy Clause, any and all
laws and treaties approved by Congress are supreme
law of the land. State judges must follow
Constitution and/or federal laws and treaties if there
is a conflict with state laws
Limits on National
Government

 National government cannot suspend the writ of
habeas corpus – unless in case of rebellion or
invasion (Article I, Section 9)
 National government cannot pass ex post facto laws
or bills of attainder
 Ex post facto: changes legality of an act after it has
occurred
 Bills of attainder: declares a person guilty of a crime
and decrees punishment without trial
Limits on National
Government

 National government cannot suspend right to trial
by jury (Article III, Section 2)
 Constitution protects citizens from accusations of
treason with narrow definition, Congress cannot
modify this definition (Article III, Section 3)
 Others include: cannot impose religious tests,
impeachment clause protects right to trial, cannot
take money from treasury without appropriation
laws nor can it grant titles of nobility
Limits on State
government

 Article I, Section 10:







cannot coin money,
cannot pass laws with allow violation of contracts,
no ex post facto or bills of attainder,
cannot make treaties or declare war
No nobility!
No laying duties (taxes on imports/exports)
Cannot keep troops or ships of war in time of peace
Limits on State
Governments

 Article IV prohibits:
 Unfairly discriminating against citizens from other
states
 Refusing to return fugitives from justice to the states
from which they fled*
In what ways do these limitations on state and national
governments protect individual rights and promote
common good?
Issue of Slavery

 Many people thought it was purely a state issue
 Also wanted southern states to sign off on
Constitution
 Article IV, Section 2: “Fugitive Slave Clause”
 Issues of commerce – southern states didn’t want
national government to pass tariffs to make it harder
to import slaves
 Article I, Section 8: national government would not
interfere with the importation of slaves to the US
earlier than 1808
Issues not addressed in
Philadelphia

 Questions on citizenship: left to each state,
 Were African Americans in the north citizens?
 Voting rights a state issue: usually had to own land
 Could states secede?
What was the Anti-Federalist Position in the
Debate about Ratification?
Purpose

 What is the process of ratification?
 Federalists – supported proposed Constitution
 Anti-Federalists – opponents of Constitution
 Be able to explain why the Anti-Federalists opposed
ratification
 Explain the role of Anti-Feds in proposing a bill of
rights
 Evaluate, take, defend a position on the validity and
relevance of Anti-Feds arguments
Ratification process:

 Article VII: only 9 states needed to establish
Constitution between states
 Would be voted on by the people of each state at
special conventions, not in state legislatures
 This plan is an example of Social Contract Theory
Debate over Constitution

 After Philadelphia Convention, proposed
Constitution released to public – largely opposed in
New York, Mass, Penn, and Virginia
 Debate raged in form of pamphlets and publications
 Most used pseudonyms so that their arguments
would be read on merits rather than on the
reputations of the authors
 What would be different today if we were writing a
Constitution? Where would it be debated? Would
authors use Psuedonyms?
Key Anti-Federalist Opposition

 Both sides believe in republicanism – power with
legislature
 Anti-Feds believed only small communities of
citizens with similar interests and beliefs could
govern themselves – a large diverse state or nation
cannot sustain a republic
 A single government imposing uniform rule on
diverse and varied community
 Large distances keep constituents away from their
elected officials
 Civic virtue important
Specific Objections

 Congress has ultimate authority over states – state
legislatures and individual liberties could be taken
away
 President has unlimited power to grant pardons
 National courts more powerful than state/local
courts – could destroy them
Specific Objections

 Worried that system of checks and balances could be
used against peoples liberties
 Treaties made by president but ratified by Senate –
no connection to House which is only branch directly
answerable to the people
 Executive and legislative are more mixed than
separated – could conspire against state and local
governments
 Believed too few representatives – soon an elite
privileged group would dominate the national gov.
Bill of Rights

 Each state had a list of rights that the state
government could not infringe
 Philadelphia Convention had rejected a bill of rights
for Constitution
 Anti-Federalists rallied behind this in hopes to defeat
the Constitution
Bill of Rights

 National government is too far removed from the average
citizen to adequately protect their individual rights
 National governments power is too vague – could be
limitless
 Since rights are not explicitly protected – government is
free to violate them
 States have them – and they are weaker than the national
government
 Bill of rights is necessary to remind people of the
principles of government – basically why it exists