Word. Chapter 2 Historical Roots of American Government Leading Up to the Declaration ►The Magna Carta (1215) First document to limit the power of a king Guaranteed some rights– king could not punish someone without jury trial Leading Up to the Declaration ► John Locke’s 2nd Treatise on Government Natural Rights – men had rights given to them by God before governments were ever created. John Locke Leading Up to the Declaration ► Man’s natural rights are: LIFE LIBERTY PROPERTY Government’s purpose is to protect these, not take them away! Britain Messes with the Colonies ►The Stamp Act 1765 Required every published piece of paper to receive a British stamp of approval, and pay a tax with it Colonial Unity ►Stamp Act Congress (1765) 9 colonies joined together to protest England’s Stamp Act, and England repealed it Colonial Unity ►First Continental Congress (1774) Trying to repair relationship with Britain Sent a “Declaration of Rights and Grievances” to the king, boycotted trade with England Colonial Unity ►Second Continental Congress (1775) Trying to defeat Britain Convened in the middle of the Revolutionary War Colonial Unity ►Second Continental Congress (1775) Elected George Washington Commander-in-Chief of the Army The Declaration of Independence July 4th, 1776 Fundamentals of the Declaration ►Men have inalienable natural rights ►Governments exist by the consent of the governed ►Abusive governments can be replaced Foreign Perspectives A Look at Cuba’s ex- President, El Presidenté Fidel Castro. Now brother Raul rules… Our First Government ►The Articles of Confederation A huge mistake, but a good learning experience The Articles of Confederation ►Was not a strong national government ►Rather, it was a “firm league of friendship” between 13 independent states Problems with the Articles ►National Government could not: Collect Taxes Regulate Trade Between States Create a Court System Use Troops Without Permission from the States Problems with the Articles ►As a result: States never sent the government any money States boycotted each other’s goods and currency States made trade agreements with foreign countries Features of the Articles Government ►Legislative Branch (Congress) Unicameral (One House) States could send as many or as few Reps. as they wanted Each state gets 1 vote regardless of number of Reps. Any change to the Articles required approval of all 13 states Features of the Articles Government ►Executive Branch No national executive branch All executive and judicial powers were given to the states Hip Hughes Articles of Confederation The Constitutional Convention May 25th to September 17th, 1787 The Constitutional Convention ►Original Articles purpose was to revise the ►Read ►What only ended up happening was a secret meeting where the Founding Fathers created a brand new government Washington: Okay, any suggestions on how to fix this thing? Madison: Ain’t gonna happen, Georgie. Hamilton: Yeah, it’s time to smack it up, ballaz! Washington: You know, I really like the Articles, guys. Washington: j/k, dawgs. lol :) lol :) lol ;-> Ben Franklin: Holla! Creating the Constitution ►Who were the Framers (Writers)? 55 of the most brilliant minds in history Most were in their 30’s and 40’s Most famous names : George Washington, James Madison, Ben Franklin, Alexander Hamilton The Framers ►The Framers are really just men ►They fought with one another on every issue, and forming compromises to resolve the fights The Framers ►James Madison: the “Father of the Constitution,” ; did much of the writing “Jemmy” James Madison Who’s your Bubba?. Two Competing Ideas ►The Virginia Plan The “Big State Plan” 3 Branches – Legislative, Executive, Judicial, each with checks and balances against the others Bicameral legislature with representation based on population alone Two Competing Ideas ►The New Jersey Plan The “Small State Plan” Unicameral legislature with all states represented equally Executive would be three presidents, who chose the Judicial branch ►The Compromises Connecticut Compromise “The Great Compromise” Bicameral legislature, one house based on population, one on equality The Outstanding Henry Clay How the Great Compromise Works State Population # in House # in Senate California 37 million 53 2 Arizona 6 million 9 2 Wyoming 0.5 million 1 2 Compromises ►The 3/5ths Compromise Southern states wanted to count slaves as part of their populations to get more votes in Congress *Note* - slaves did NOT get 3/5ths of a vote! Compromises ►The Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise Southern states feared that slavery would be banned by more heavily populated Northern states in Congress Compromise prevented Congress from acting on the matter of slave trade for at least 20 years Sources of the Constitution ►Framers pulled from a number of places to get the final product: Ancient Greece’s Democracy and Rome’s Republic John Locke’s 2nd Treatise on Government Baron de Montesquieu’s ideas about separating the powers of government Great Britain’s government New Constitution British Government Bicameral Legislature (House and Senate) Bicameral Legislature (House of Lords and Commons) Strong Executive (President) Strong Executive (King) Supreme Court System Federal Government Royal Court System Federal Relationship w/ Colonies Articles of Confederation Unicameral Legislature No Executive No Court System Confederation of States Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists ►Federalists – favored ratification of the Constitution and a new federal government ►Anti-Federalists - opposed the new Constitution on almost all grounds Especially wanted to add a bill of rights Ratifying the Constitution ►Ratify – vote on and pass ►Constitution required that 9 of the 13 states needed to approve it to take effect. ►(show video) Did someone say “Rat”ify? Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists ►Famous Federalists: James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, George Washington (show video) ► The Federalist Papers (85 essays) ►Famous Anti-Federalists: Patrick Henry, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, Richard Henry Lee