The Articles of Confederation CONSTITUTION. States and Constitutions. Articles of Confederation. State Constitutions Cont.. Westward settlement

Transcription

1 States and Constitutions The Articles of Confederation To the CONSTITUTION Colonies become States, Draft new Constitutions, By 1777 ten had constitutions. Battle between those who want well Defined Rules and Order (conservatives) and those who want to protect individual rights (liberals). State Constitutions were approved by a vote of the people or State legislatures. State Constitutions Cont.. Each State Constitution had a list/bill of rights State governments had three branches Legislative- created laws, most were Bicameral Executive- and elected governor Judicial- power over court systems Property requirements for office holding was the norm Articles of Confederation Weak Central government, limited power. Unicameral Legislature, used Committees No Executive No Judicial Each state had one vote 9/13 states were needed to pass laws Amendments had to be Unanimous Accomplishments Westward settlement Was the constitution during the winning of the Revolutionary War The country was not ready for a strong central government, and therefore needed a GLORIOUS FAILURE. But it did have successes: Passed the Land Ordinance of 1785 Passed the Northwest Ordinance of

2 Managing the Frontier in the Early Republic Land Ordinance of 1785 Northwest Ordinance of 1787 Indian Intercourse Act of 1790 Battle of Fallen Timber Battle of Tippecanoe The Frontier During the Revolution Patriots and Loyalists Tribal alliances Warfare in the Backcountry The Impact of the Peace of Paris (1783) The Complexity of Western Land Claims The question of western lands Americans and the right of conquest Ceding the western land Formation of the Northwest Territory The Land Ordinance of 1785 Surveying the land Selling the land Speculators and Squatters The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 Thomas Jefferson s plan of government The Northwest Ordinance Government and statehood slavery Indian land rights The Indian Intercourse Act of 1790 The status of Indian nations to promote civilization Northwest Ordinance Approved by Congress July 13, 1787 Area north of the Ohio River and East of the Mississippi River. Interim federal control while local governments were being developed Governor, Secretary and Three Judges, appointed by Congress 2

3 Northwest Ordinance Whenever a district reached a population of 5000 free males, it could elect a bicameral legislature and send a non-voting member to Congress. When the population reached 60,000 free inhabitants the district would be eligible for statehood. Guarantees of the Northwest Ordinance Freedom of religion Trial by jury Each would enter the union "on an equal footing with the original states." that revenue generated from the sale of a portion of each township in the state would go to fund public education the the first instance of federal aid for education in American history. Northwest Ordinance cont.. "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude" were to be allowed. that a good faith effort would be made to respect the Indians in the territory. Problems War debts were unpaid, problem with establishing good credit with other nations No power to tax Could not force Great Britain to leave the western lands. Shays Rebellion, dependence on state militias Social unrest: Shays Rebellion Shays's Rebellion, winter, 1786 Daniel Shays led a mob of farmers in Massachusetts to prevent bank foreclosures on farms. This showed vulnerability of state government and lack of ability to maintain order. The rebellion prompted Congress to call for representatives to be sent to Philadelphia to discuss constitutional revisions. Limitations/Problems No Chief Executive Nine of the thirteen states needed to approve laws 13 out of 13 states needed to approve Amendments No coordination of committees, no uniform domestic policy Rarely were all the delegates present, states voted in blocks, 5 Small versus 8 large. Never could get the 13 states to agree 3

4 Continued Continued No power to regulate interstate commerce No power to enforce treaties Led to disputes between states, could not regulate to protect American business, tariffs Could not force the British to leave American territory No power to enforce laws, LIMITED national court system state courts interpreted national laws Could only ask and request could not force states to follow the laws Timeline Prequel to the Constitution Dec Boston Tea Party Apr first battles of Revolutionary War, at Lexington and Concord, MA July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence adopted by Congress Nov. 15, 1777 Articles of Confederation adopted by Congress Mar. 1, 1781 Articles of Confederation ratified by states (cont d) Timeline (cont d) 1783 Revolutionary War ends with peace treaty The Aborted Annapolis Meeting An attempt to discuss changes to the Articles of Confederation. Attended by only 12 delegates from 5 states. Shay S REBELLION TRADE DIFFICULTIES Sept Hamilton proposes another convention, this time in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation May 1787 Philadelphia Convention commences work Sept. 17, 1787 Convention concludes its work with a proposed Constitution (cont d) Constitution Definition The fundamental and organic law of a nation or state, establishing the conception, character, and organization of its government, as well as prescribing the extent of its sovereign power and the manner of its exercise. Black s s Law Dictionary Sets the broad rules of the game. The rules are not neutral- some participants and policy options have advantages others don t. Constitutional Convention (1787) Hamilton asks for another convention to revise the Articles. This time at Philly. The CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION Stated Purpose: revise the Articles 12 of 13 states sent delegates Not a cross section of the country, but the elite. Real purpose: Secret meeting Write a new constitution Purpose of government is Limited government 4

5 A Convention of Demi-Gods? Franklin Madison Hamilton Washington William Patterson Edmund Randolf Issue of Representation Virginia Plan Edmund Randolph Framework for a new constitution Representation was to be based on the population of each state or the proportion of each state's revenue contribution New Jersey Plan William Patterson Each state should be equally represented regardless of population Connecticut Compromise (Great Compromise) Created a bicameral legislature The first chamber of Congress would be apportioned according to number of inhabitants in each state (House). In the second chamber, each state would have equal representation (Senate). Three-fifths Compromise Fundamental difference lies between slave and non-slave states Over 90 percent of the slaves lived in five states (Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia) Compromise result: five slaves would be counted as three persons. Supported by slave states to increase representation Supported by nonslave states that advocated principle of property representation Left slavery question unresolved until Civil War Other Compromises Electoral College House of Reps elected by the people, but the Senate appointed by State Legislators (the elite) interstate vs intrastate trade slave TRADE can t t be outlawed until 1808 etc Key principles of the Constitution Separation of powers - assignment of law making, law interpreting and law executing functions to different branches of government Checks and balances - the power of scrutiny and control of each branch over the other two branches of government Republicanism - not classical democracy, but based on representation, calibrated popular input Federalism - two levels of government, with central government supreme 5

6 Separation of Powers "Ambition should be matched with ambition" (Madison) Prevents power accumulation in one branch Checks and Balances States versus national government House versus Senate Executive versus legislature Courts versus executive and legislature Senate versus executive on treaties and appointments People through elections versus legislatures Preamble of the Constitution We the people of the United States, in order to... establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. We the people.... In adopting [the Constitution], the Framers envisioned a uniform national system, rejecting the notion that the Nation was a collection of States, and instead creating a direct link between the National Government and the people of the United States.... (cont d) 6

7 We the people.... (cont d) Federalism.... [The] Congress of the United States, therefore, is not a confederation of nations in which separate sovereigns are represented by appointed delegates, but is instead a body composed of representatives of the people. U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton, 514 U.S. 779 (1995) Federal government State governments The US Constitution The Basic Structure Preamble Article I: The Legislative Branch Article II: The Executive Branch Article III: The Judicial Branch Article IV: National Unity and Power Article V: Amendment Procedure Article VI: National Supremacy Article VII: Ratification Requirements Article I Legislative branch Two things you don t t want to see being made: Sausage Laws Article I Legislative branch Structure of the legislative branch Apportionment of Senators and Representatives among the states Qualifications for holding office Roles of House and Senate in impeachments Basic functioning of the two houses Role of Congress and president in making law: President s s power to veto, Congress s s power to override Article I Powers of Congress Enumeration of Congress s s powers (Art. I, sec. 8) 17 specific enumerated powers 1 catch-all: all: necessary and proper aka. Elastic Clause 7

8 Article I Limitations on federal legislative power Specific limitations on the federal legislative power (Art. I, sec. 9): No prohibiting importation of slaves before 1808 No suspension of habeas corpus No bills of attainder or ex post facto laws No granting titles of nobility Article I Limitations on state legislative power Limitations on state legislative power (Art. I, sec. 10) States may not: Enter into treaties Issue their own money Pass bills of attainder or ex post facto laws, or impair contracts Except with consent of Congress, impose duties on imports or exports, keep troops, or enter into an agreement with another state Article II Executive branch Election of President and Vice President, qualifications for office (Art. II, sec. 1) Revised by 12 th Amendment Successorship,, in case of President s s death or disability Revised by 25 th Amendment (cont d) Article II (cont d) Powers of the President (Art. II, sec. 2) Commander in chief Entering treaties and making appointments, with advice and consent of the Senate take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed (Art. II, sec. 3) Grounds for impeachment of President, VP, and other officials (Art. II, sec. 4) Article III Judicial branch Structure of the judicial branch Creates the Supreme Court, and authorizes Congress to create lower courts (Art. III, sec. 1) Establishes rules regarding judges: life tenure, no reducing salary Describes the types of cases that courts can hear and decide (Art. III, sec. 2) Assigns the Supreme Court original and appellate jurisdiction (Art. III, sec. 2) BUT NOT Judicial Review Defines the grounds for treason (Art. III, sec. 3) Article IV Relations among the states Relations among the states: States must give full faith and credit to judicial decisions and other official actions of other states (Art. IV, sec. 1) States must extradite accused persons to other states (Art. IV, sec. 2) Each state is guaranteed a a republican form of government (Art. IV, sec. 4) 8

9 Article V Amendment of the Constitution Amending the Constitution Amendments proposed by Congress or state conventions Ratification by ¾ of states Article VI Supremacy Supremacy: Constitution and federal law over-rule rule state law So now it written, but Need to get 9 of 13 to ratify???? What happened to 13 of 13 to change the A of C? Federalists: Anti-Federalists: Hamilton Patrick Henry Madison????? James Monroe Jay Melancton Smith Gouverneur Morris George Mason (Madison took much of Elbridge Gerry the Preamble from his George Clinton Massachusetts state Constitution Samuel Adams John Dickinson (wrote Richard Henry Lee the Articles of (introduced the idea of Confederation the Dec. of Independence) Ratifying the Constitution Ratifying the Constitution Federalists Large landowners, wealthy merchants, professionals Strong national government Feared excessive democracy Elites best fit to govern Anti-Federalists Small farmers, shopkeepers, laborers Strong state government Feared concentration of power in few hands Protection for individual liberties What of the protection of people s s liberties? Neglected to include provisions in draft of the Constitution State constitutions generally included such provisions. Protection of liberties the duty of the states? Roadblock to ratification Bill of Rights was promised Federalist No. 10: factions faction = a a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community [15] We can t t count on wise governors It is vain to say that enlightened statesmen will be able to adjust these clashing interests, and render them all subservient to the public good. Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm. [16] 9

10 Madison s s cure for factions Democracy Problem: Solution: Majority factions, which promote their own interests at the expense of the public good and the rights of other citizens A republican form of government, instead of pure democracy A large, populous nation, instead of a small one Pure democracy = a a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person [16] Madison s s view of pure democracy [Pure democracies] have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths. [16-17] 17] Republicanism Republic = a a government in which the scheme of representation takes place [17] The benefits of representation The effect of introducing representation is to refine and enlarge the public views, by passing them through the medium of a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country,, and whose patriotism and love of justice will be least likely to sacrifice it to temporary or partial considerations [17] Representation (cont d) Result of representative government: the public voice, pronounced by the representatives of the people, will be more consonant to the public good than if pronounced by the people themselves [17] 10

11 Majorities will be drawn to justice In the extended republic of the United States,... a coalition of a majority of the whole society could seldom take place on any other principles than those of justice and the general good..... [24] Federalist No. 51: checks and balances [T]he great security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department, consists in giving to those who administer each department the necessary constitutional means and personal motives to resist encroachments of the others. [22] We re not angels If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. [22] Plato: we need to become angels Until philosophers are kings,, or the kings and princes of this world have the spirit and power of philosophy, and political greatness and wisdom meet in one... cities will never have rest from their evils nor the human race, as I believe and then only will this our State have a possibility of life and behold the light of day. Plato, Republic 473 c.e. Timeline (cont d) Federalist Papers published June 21, 1788 ninth state (NH) ratifies the Constitution, making it effective Sept Bill of Rights proposed Dec Bill of Rights ratified 11

12 Bill of Rights First 10 Amendments Limits Congress (1 st Amendment) Limits Executive (2 nd -4 th Amendment) Limits Judiciary (5 th -8 th Amendment) Limits National Government (9 th -10 th Amendment) MEMORIZE THE 1 ST 10 FOR THE TEST Hierarchy of sources of law The people (i.e., ¾ of the states) U.S. Constitution Federal statutes and common law State constitutions Assessing the Constitution: Achievements Created unified nation capable of defending itself Facilitated the country s s economic development Outlawing separate state currencies Outlawed state tariffs Created a presidency that was first filled by Washington State statutes and common law Assessing the Constitution: The Constitution Today Constitution continues to give many groups/interests opportunities to voice their concerns Constitutional ambiguity Adaptability Successful governing arrangements Stain of slavery Could not resolve an intractable problem Strong solution would mean no ratification 12