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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Origins of American Government
Overture
Section-1
The Roots of American Democracy
Section-2
American Independence
Section-3
Articles of Confederation
Section-4
The Constitutional Convention
Section-5
Ratification and the Bill of Rights
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Section 1 at a Glance
The Roots of American Democracy
•
•
•
•
The English political heritage of representative government, limited
government, and individual rights influenced the development of
government in the United States.
From the start, the English colonies in North America experimented with forms of selfgovernment.
• The English colonists were influenced by ideas from various intellectual traditions, ranging
from republicanism to natural rights theory, Judeo-Christian ideals, and the work of
Enlightenment thinkers.
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Chapter 2
The Roots of American Democracy
Main Idea
American democracy was shaped by our English political heritage, colonial experiments in
self-government, and a range of intellectual influences.
Reading Focus
• Which American political ideas derived from an English political heritage?
• How did colonial governments give English colonists experience in self-rule?
• What intellectual influences shaped the development of American political philosophy?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
English Political Heritage
Colonial government would never be an exact copy of the British system. Colonial leaders adapted
old ideas, based on English traditions, to a new environment.
Representative Government
• Tradition began in 11th century.
• Evolved into bicameral, or two-chamber,
legislature
• Nobles comprised Upper House.
• Local representatives participated in
House of Commons.
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Limited Government
• Began in 1215 when King John signed
Magna Carta
• Moved from rule of man to rule of law
• Outlined individual rights which king could
not violate
• Included taxation and trial provisions
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
English Political Heritage {continued}
Individual Rights
• 1628: King Charles required to sign Petition of Right
• Required monarchs to obtain Parliamentary approval before levying new taxes, also could
not unlawfully imprison people or establish military rule during times of peace
• Extended conflict between Charles and Parliament erupted into civil war in 1642.
• Charles defeated, beheaded
• 1685: renewed conflicts and rebellion between the Crown and Parliament
• 1689: William and Mary chosen to rule, but had to govern according to statutes of
Parliament
• 1689: English Bill of Rights passed
• Free speech and protection from cruel and unusual punishment guaranteed
• Glorious Revolution established constitutional monarchy.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
How did limited government develop in England?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
How did limited government develop in England?
Answer(s): through the Glorious Revolution and the English Bill of Rights
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The English Colonies
English colonists began to settle parts of North America in the early 1600s, bringing English political
theories and methods of governance.
Experiments in Early Governance
•
•
•
•
•
Jamestown’s House of Burgesses, 1619
Mayflower Compact, 1620
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1639
Massachusetts Body of Liberties, 1641
Each charter guaranteed colonists the
“rights of Englishmen.”
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Types of English Colonies
• Three types established
• Proprietary, based on land grant to
individual or group
• Royal colonies, directly controlled by king
through appointed governor
• Charter colonies, operated under charters
agreed to by colony and king; had most
independence from the Crown
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Contrasting
How were charter colonies and royal colonies different?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Contrasting
How were charter colonies and royal colonies different?
Answer(s): charter colonies—largely self-governing; royal colonies—directly controlled by the
Crown through an appointed governor
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Intellectual Influences
• In addition to English traditions, ideas were key to transforming loyal English colonists first
into revolutionaries and then into founders of a new nation.
Republicanism
• Idea of representative government going back to Greece and Rome
• Highly values citizen participation, public good, civic virtue
• Influences included Aristotle, Machiavelli, de Montesquieu, others
Judeo-Christian Influences
• Religious heritage common to both Christianity and Judaism
• Law and individual rights of divine origin
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Intellectual Influences
Enlightenment Thinkers
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Enlightenment—Intellectual movement in 18th century Europe
Classical liberal concerns addressed in Enlightenment
Framers of U.S. Constitution believed in people’s natural rights to life, liberty, and property.
Social contract—People form a government to protect their rights
Philosophers John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau important contributors
Economic and civil liberties important as well
Other influences included Adam Smith, Voltaire, William Blackstone.
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Reading Check
Summarizing
What intellectual influences shaped the Framers’ views on republicanism?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What intellectual influences shaped the Framers’ views on republicanism?
Answer(s): Greece and Rome; Machiavelli’s Discourses on Livy; Montesquieu’s Spirit of the
Laws
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Section 2 at a Glance
American Independence
• After the French and Indian War, the colonists rebelled against British attempts to assert
control over the colonies and against new British taxes.
• In 1775 the Second Continental Congress called for the writing of a formal Declaration of
Independence.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
American Independence
Main Idea
The British imposed new policies on their American colonies, sparking rebellion and, in time,
the American Revolution.
Reading Focus
•
•
•
•
How did British colonial policies lead to American independence?
What were the aims of the Continental Congress?
Which ideas and events inspired the Declaration of Independence?
How did the first state governments reflect the conflict that led to the American
Revolution?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Colonies Become States
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Road to Independence
The road that led the American colonies to unite with one another and break with Great Britain
was long and fraught with conflict.
Early Attempts at Unity
• 1643: New England Confederation formed
to defend against threats from Native
Americans and Dutch colonies
• 1854-1763: French and Indian War spurred
new drive toward unity
• 1754: Great Britain urged signing of treaty
with Iroquois Confederation
• Ben Franklin proposed Albany Plan of
Union to control trade, raise armies, build
settlements, equip fleets
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Growing Tensions
• Mid-1700s: colonists used to handling
affairs without interference from British
• 1760: King George III began to tighten
control over colonies
• Most colonists viewed selves as loyal
subjects of British Crown
• Parliament began to think colonies had
become too independent
• Following French and Indian War,
Parliament placed new financial burdens
on colonists
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Chapter 2
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Changes in British Policies
British victorious in French and Indian War, but incurred massive debts
Parliament looked to colonies to offset cost of war, defense of colonies
Enforced trade restrictions benefiting Britain, including series of taxes
Colonists resented being taxed without their consent.
The Stamp Act Congress
• 1765: Stamp Act: Parliament’s first attempt to tax colonists directly
• Required tax stamp on paper goods such as legal documents and newspapers
• Angry colonists responded with protests; in 1765, delegates from 9 colonies sent strong
protest to king declaring power to tax should remain with colonial assemblies.
Colonial Protests
• 1766: Stamp Act repealed; colonies protested, organized resistance; Boston Massacre
• 1773: Boston Tea Party protested American tea trade given to one British company.
• 1774: New harsh laws, Intolerable Acts, ended all forms of self-rule in Massachusetts.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What forms of protest did the colonists use to oppose British policies?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What forms of protest did the colonists use to oppose British policies?
Answer(s): boycotts, rallies, pamphlets, letter-writing campaigns
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Continental Congress
Compromise
• Most colonists held out hope for
compromise to roll back taxes.
• Virginia and Massachusetts assemblies
called for meeting of colonies in
Philadelphia.
Second Continental Congress
• 1775: Second Continental Congress
organized Continental Army, named
George Washington as commander
• Revolutionary War began as colonists
sought independence from Britain
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First Continental Congress
• 1774: First Continental Congress passed
Declaration and Resolves demanding
repeal of Intolerable Acts.
• 1775: British rejected demands; British
troops clashed with colonial militia at
Lexington and Concord—the first armed
resistance by colonists.
Common Sense of Democracy
• 1776: The Common Sense pamphlet argued
case for break with England.
• Thomas Paine: independence was the only
“common sense” for colonists
• Saw history of world hanging on outcome
of colonies’ rebellion
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Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
According to Paine, why was independence “common sense”?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
According to Paine, why was independence “common sense”?
Answer(s): It was “common sense” to break away from the abuse of English rule.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Declaration of Independence
• Armed conflict continued for months before independence officially declared
• June 7, 1776: resolution proposed to Second Continental Congress to officially declare
independence from Great Britain; resolution passed July 2
• Committee appointed to write formal statement justifying resolution
• Thomas Jefferson wrote most of document, drawing on Virginia Declaration of Rights
adopted by Virginia House of Burgesses one month earlier
• Virginia declaration declared “all men are by nature equally free and independent and have
certain inherent rights” that cannot be denied.
• Echoed philosophy of John Locke that people have rights to “life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness”
• Also echoed idea of government as social contract based on consent of the people
• July 4, 1776: Declaration of Independence was adopted. Britain’s thirteen colonies ceased to
exist as new nation emerged.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
How did John Locke’s ideas inspire the Declaration of Independence?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
How did John Locke’s ideas inspire the Declaration of Independence?
Answer(s): Locke’s beliefs in natural rights and that a government must have the
consent of the people
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The State Constitutions
By 1780, each of the 13 newly independent states had adopted its own written constitution. Each
tested ideas about how to design a republican government that protected individual rights.
Self-Government
• All new state constitutions established
republican governments with strong
legislatures with elected representatives.
• Voting rights varied from state to state.
• Some states granted the right to vote to
adult male taxpayers, others had property
qualifications; only New Jersey allowed
women to vote.
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Separation of Powers
• Three branches of government: legislative,
executive, judicial
• States had real power to govern.
• Powers included conducting foreign
affairs, declaring war
• Most legislatures had two houses.
• Some elected governors and judges.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The State Constitutions {continued}
Limited Government
•
•
•
•
Strong legislative bodies reflected general mistrust of monarchy.
Colonists did not grant unlimited power to legislatures.
Annual elections, term limits, separation of powers established as checks
Kept powers of governors deliberately weak, limited term
Individual Rights
• Protecting people’s rights seen as way to protect from excesses of government
• 1780: Massachusetts constitution included bill of rights to protect individual liberties.
• Liberties included trial by jury, freedom of assembly, and speech.
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Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What ideas about government did state constitutions experiment with?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What ideas about government did state constitutions experiment with?
Answer(s): Self-government, limiting the power of the executive branch, separation of
powers, and individual rights
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Section 3 at a Glance
Articles of Confederation
• In 1777 the Second Continental Congress passed the first official plan for national
government, the Articles of Confederation.
• After the Revolutionary War, weaknesses in the Articles led to conflicts among the states,
sparking calls for a stronger national government.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Articles of Confederation
Main Idea
The states’ first attempt to build a national government, the Articles of Confederation, proved
too weak to last.
Reading Focus
• How was the first national government organized under the Articles of Confederation?
• What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
• What events convinced some American leaders that a stronger national government was
needed?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
States Become Nation
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
First National Government
Articles of Confederation
• June 1776: new model of government
crafted to build “firm league of
friendship” among states, retaining
“sovereignty, freedom and independence”
• June 12, 1777: Articles of Confederation
adopted
• Had to be ratified before going into force
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A Delay in Ratification
• Disputes over control of western lands
delayed the ratification process.
• Small states feared large states with claims
to western lands would overpower them.
• Articles were changed to allow
Confederation control over western lands.
• Articles finally ratified in 1781
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Chapter 2
First National Government {continued}
Powers of the National Government
State Powers
• Created weak national government; did
not provide for national court system
• One-house Congress: power to act on
matters of common interest; admit new
states; settle disputes; coin money; raise
army; declare war; conduct foreign policy
• States retained all powers not specifically
given to Congress
• Powers included: ability to collect taxes,
enforce national laws
• States required to contribute funds to
national government as they saw fit
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US Government: Principles in Practice
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Reading Check
Summarizing
How did national and state powers differ under the Articles?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
How did national and state powers differ under the Articles?
Answer(s): National powers were limited and specifically cited in the Articles of
Confederation. State powers were all the other powers that were not specifically cited.
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Weaknesses of the Articles
• Articles gave Congress key responsibilities, but placed limits that kept it from effectively
enforcing laws and policies
• Without executive branch, national government lacked means to carry out Congress’s laws
• Without national court system, Congress had to rely on state courts to apply national laws
• Mostly importantly, Articles denied Congress power to tax
• Difficult to raise funds to repay money borrowed during Revolution
• Lacked authority to regulate trade
• Congress had power to coin money, but not sole power to do so; created barrier to trade,
major obstacles to economic development
• Congress required to have 9 of 13 states to ratify laws, while only one state could raise
objections to block changes in Articles—weakened Congress’s ability to act swiftly and
decisively
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
Answer(s): It had no executive or judicial branch; the Confederation could not levy taxes,
enforce its laws, or regulate commerce between states; all states had to agree before the
Articles could be changed.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Pressures for Stronger Government
Its independence secured with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the United States faced a range of
challenges that the national government was ill-equipped to meet. The shortcomings of the
government created by the Articles of Confederation would lead to calls for a new plan of
government.
Northwest Ordinance
• 1787: Northwest Ordinance planned for
settling Northwest Territory
• Included areas now in Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and
Wisconsin—disputed western lands that
had delayed ratification of the Articles
• Created system for admitting new states,
banned slavery, included bill of rights
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Dangers and Unrest
• Most pressing problem: war debts
• 1783: Congress tried to approve tax on
imports but act never ratified and
government went broke
• Postwar depression struck
• States pursued own interests, flouting
national laws; like “13 sovereignties
pulling against each other”
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US Government: Principles in Practice
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Pressures for Stronger Government {continued}
Shay’s Rebellion
• September 1786: rebellion of Massachusetts farmers facing prospect of losing land
• Revolutionary War Captain Daniel Shays led attacks on courthouses to prevent judges from
foreclosing on farms.
• Shay’s Rebellion swelled to nearly 2,500 by 1787.
• Massachusetts legislature asked Congress for help; Congress had no money or forces
• Shay’s Rebellion showed how feeble the Confederation Congress was and hastened moves
to revise the Articles.
Calls to Revise the Articles
• March 1785: Washington invites representatives from Virginia and Maryland to his home
at Mount Vernon to discuss resolving trade dispute.
• Led to meeting to discuss regulating commerce between all the states
• February 1787: James Madison persuades the Confederation Congress to endorse
meeting for “purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.”
• May 1787: meeting to strengthen Articles held in Philadelphia
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Identifying Cause and Effect
What events caused leaders to want to revise the Articles of Confederation?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Identifying Cause and Effect
What events caused leaders to want to revise the Articles of Confederation?
Answer(s): Shays’s Rebellion; interstate trade disputes; inability to levy taxes and pay war
debts
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Section 4 at a Glance
The Constitutional Convention
• At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, delegates debated competing plans—the
Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan—for how the new government should be organized.
• To finalize the Constitution, delegates compromised on key issues.
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The Constitutional Convention
Main Idea
Delegates at the Constitutional Convention compromised on key issues to create a plan for a
strong national government.
Reading Focus
• Why did the Constitutional Convention draft a new plan for government?
• How did the rival plans for the new government differ?
• What other conflicts required the Framers to compromise?
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Chapter 2
Crafting a More Perfect Union
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Chapter 2
Drafting a New Constitution
The Convention Meets
• May 25, 1787: convention gets underway
with representatives of 12 of the 13 states
• Rhode Island, fearing weaker state
powers, sent no delegation.
• Delegates worked to draft the framework
for a new government.
• Meetings were held in strict secrecy
without press or public.
Framers of the Constitution
• 55 delegates, known as Framers of the
Constitution
• One-third had served in the Continental
Army.
• 8 had signed Declaration of Independence
• George Washington, president of
convention
• James Madison a major influence
Delegates gathered in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation, but ended up with an
entirely new plan for government.
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Reading Check
Drawing Conclusions
Why did the delegates want to keep the proceedings quiet?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Drawing Conclusions
Why did the delegates want to keep the proceedings quiet?
Answer(s): so delegates would be able to speak their minds freely
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Rival Plans
The Virginia Plan
• One of two rival plans for creating a new form of government which emerged at the
convention
• Based on the ideas of James Madison, The Virginia Plan called for a central government
divided into three branches—legislative, executive, judicial—each branch with power to
check the others.
• Called for strong national government with power to make laws, levy taxes, control
interstate commerce, override state laws
• Called for bicameral legislature with membership based on state’s population; lower house
members elected directly by the people; upper house members selected by state
legislatures
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Rival Plans
The New Jersey Plan
• Delegates from small states concerned that Virginia Plan gave too much power to large
states
• The New Jersey Plan called for a strong central government made up of three branches, but
was designed to stick closer to the Articles of Confederation.
• Called for unicameral legislature
• Each state would have one vote, with equal representation regardless of its population.
• Despite support from small states, the plan was ultimately rejected at the Convention.
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Reading Check
Contrasting
How did the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan differ?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Contrasting
How did the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan differ?
Answer(s): Representation in both houses in the Virginia Plan’s legislature was based on
population, whereas each state received one vote in the New Jersey Plan’s unicameral
legislature.
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Conflict and Compromise
For weeks after the rejection of the New Jersey Plan, the Convention was deadlocked. Tempers
flared, and at times it seemed the Convention would fall apart. In the end, a series of compromises
saved the Convention.
The Great Compromise
• June 30, 1787: Roger Sherman presented
The Connecticut Compromise (The Great
Compromise).
• Elements of both plans
• Bicameral legislature: lower house number
based on state’s population, upper house
with two members each
• Lower house elected directly by the people;
upper house selected by state legislatures
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Compromise Over Slavery
• Key points: whether slaves should be
counted as part of state’s population;
whether importation of enslaved people
should be allowed to continue
• Counting slaves would greatly increase
population and power of southern states
• Three-Fifths Compromise: three-fifths of
enslaved people would be counted to
determine a state’s population.
• Compromise on slave trade allowed it to
continue protected for the next 20 years
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Conflict and Compromise {continued}
Presidential Election
• Some wanted president elected directly by the people; others by the state legislatures or
the national legislature
• Compromise: state electors
• Number of state electors equal to number of representatives in both houses of Congress;
chosen by popular vote
• If no candidate received majority vote, House of Representatives would choose president
Finalizing the Constitution
• Debated issues, settled disputes, made key decisions during summer of 1787
• Benjamin Franklin said document was as close to perfect as possible, to overlook parts they
did not like and “act heartily and unanimously” in signing Constitution
• Some delegates refused to sign because it did not include a bill of rights.
• 39 delegates from 12 states signed Constitution
• Convention adjourned September 17, 1787
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Reading Check
Summarizing
What compromises made the Constitution possible?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Summarizing
What compromises made the Constitution possible?
Answer(s): Compromises included the Three-fifths Compromise, the Great Compromise,
compromises over the Atlantic slave trade, and the election of the president.
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Section 5 at a Glance
Ratification and the Bill of Rights
• Ratification of the Constitution involved a heated debate between those who supported the
Constitution and those who opposed it.
• Antifederalists opposed the Constitution because it lacked a bill of rights.
• The Federalist Papers outlined the key ideas of the Federalists, who supported the
Constitution.
• The struggle for ratification took place in every state.
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Ratification and the Bill of Rights
Main Idea
Before the Constitution could take effect, a heated debate between those in favor of the
Constitution and those who opposed it took place in all the states.
Reading Focus
• What were the main points of the disagreement between the Antifederalists and the
Federalists?
• What were the main arguments made by the authors of the Federalist Papers?
• Why was the Bill of Rights important to the ratification of the Constitution?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Fight for Ratification
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Antifederalists versus Federalists
• Constitutional Convention adjourned September 17, 1787
• Drastic changes in plan for government surprised some, angered others
• New national government would
— Greatly reduce powers of state legislatures
— Completely restructure Congress
• Framers outlined process for ratifying Constitution
— Voters in each state to elect representatives to state ratifying convention
— To become law, Constitution had to be ratified by 9 of 13 states
• Two factions
— Federalists supported Constitution
— Antifederalists opposed Constitution
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Antifederalists versus Federalists
The Antifederalists
• Recognized need for stronger national government but thought Constitution betrayed
ideals of American Revolution
• Saw document as assault on state sovereignty, republicanism, liberty of the people
• Believed national government would become too powerful
• Strongest criticism—Constitution lacked bill of rights guaranteeing civil liberties
The Federalists
• Enthusiastic supporters of powerful, vigorous national government
• Feared central government that was too strong, but feared weak government more
• Believed sufficiently powerful national government would strengthen fragile union,
promote public good
• Government would be empowered to defend against foreign enemies, regulate trade, and
put down internal disturbances.
• Believed separation of powers in Constitution put limits on government power
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Contrasting
Over what issues did Antifederalists and Federalists disagree?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Contrasting
Over what issues did Antifederalists and Federalists disagree?
Answer(s): strength of federal government; restructuring of Congress; power of executive
branch; necessity of bill of rights
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Federalist Papers
Writing Team
• Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John
Jay
• Wrote under pen name, Publius—one of
founders of Roman Republic
• Authored 85 essays total
Best Commentary
Defended Constitution
Rebuttal Essays
• Papers 10 and 51 argued Constitution
would balance influence of different
factions
• Others explained how principles of
government would limit national authority,
preserve liberty
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• Circulated throughout the states
• Classic statement of American
political theory
• Collectively called the Federalist
Papers
• Antifederalists published own essays
• Protecting liberty a chief concern
• “Certain unalienable and fundamental
rights…ought to be explicitly ascertained
and fixed.”
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
Why were the Federalist Papers written?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
Why were the Federalist Papers written?
Answer(s): to win public support for ratification of the Constitution
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
The Fight for Ratification
Because they did not trust government, the Antifederalists wanted the basic rights of the people
spelled out in the Constitution. The struggle over the Bill of Rights became a key focus in the fight
over ratification.
Winning Over the States
•
•
•
•
Federalists better prepared
Targeted small states
Delaware first to ratify, December 7, 1787
Ratification harder in larger, more
powerful states
• Promise of adding bill of rights key to
winning many states
• Eventually all 13 states ratified
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Bill of Rights
• First Congress made bill of rights one of
government’s first priorities
• Ideas for these rights had been voiced in
Declaration of Independence, elsewhere
• December 1791: 10 amendments,
traditionally called the Bill of Rights,
ratified
• Protected freedom of speech, press,
religion, due process, right to fair trial,
trial by jury
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
How did the promise to add a bill of rights to the Constitution influence the ratification
process?
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Reading Check
Making Inferences
How did the promise to add a bill of rights to the Constitution influence the ratification
process?
Answer(s): Some states would not agree to ratification without the promise of a bill of rights.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
Landmark Supreme Court Cases Schenck v. United States (1919)
Why It Matters:
Are the rights outlined in the Bill of Rights guaranteed absolutely? The Supreme Court’s
decision in Schenck v. United States considered what limits, if any, could be set on free speech
without violating the individual freedoms outlined in the First Amendment.
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US Government: Principles in Practice
Chapter 2
We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution
Individual Rights and the U.S. Constitution
The Framers of the Constitution believed that individual rights had to be protected from
government interference. To ensure the adoption of the Constitution, they promised to add a
bill of rights that would safeguard individual rights.
•
•
•
•
Who may hold rights?
What are common categories of rights?
What kinds of rights does the Bill of Rights protect?
What are the meaning and importance of the Ninth and Tenth Amendments?
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