Ch. 8.3: Ratifying the Constitution EQ: Who were the Federalists and Anti-Federalists AND how did their beliefs on the US Constitution and national government differ? NOTE - Be sure to discuss details on the Bill of Rights in your answer!

For Your Information: Almost immediately, a battle began over the ratification of the Constitution among the various states Ratification = To sign or give formal consent, making a document officially valid Nine out of the 13 states had to agree to ratify the Constitution in order for it to become official

What were the Federalists? Federalism = belief that power should be shared between the central government and the states Federalists believed the national government should have more power than state or local governments They were in favor of the Constitution because it created a strong national government.

FEDERALISM Power is constitutionally divided between a central authority and states. DELEGATED Powers CONCURRENT Powers RESERVED Powers Powers given to the Federal Government Powers shared by both levels of government Powers kept by the states and people

Federalism Federal State Concurrent [Delegated] [Reserved] AMENDMENT X The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

Who were the leading Federalists? Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay Wrote The Federalist Papers, essays describing why people should support ratification of the U.S. Constitution

What reasons did the Federalists give to defend their views on the ratification? Believed strong national government would prevent a number of the problems found in the Articles of Confederation

Strong Central Government National Greatness (Working together) Federalist Positions Fears Platform “The Mob” Unstable Government Rebellions Civil War Humiliation Abroad Strong Central Government National Greatness (Working together) Commerce (business and trade)

What were the Anti-Federalists? Anti-Federalists were people opposed to U.S. Constitution Anti-Federalists envisioned small, state-ran country that didn’t depend on large federal government

Ratification (Approval) Federalists Antifederalists Supported Opposed

Q4: Who were the leading Anti-Federalists? Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, and George Mason Fought against ratification and refused to vote for the Constitution until a Bill of Rights was added Bill of Rights = A set of rules that defines fundamental liberties (a person’s individual rights) Patrick Henry Sam Adams George Mason

Antifederalist Positions Fears Suggestions Tyranny “Special Interests” Aristocracy Excessive Taxation Autocratic Government (absolute power) Term Limits (Rotation in Office) Bill of Rights States’ Rights Support Agrarianism (farming)

The Ratification Debate Federalists Antifederalists Reservationists Irreconcilables Ratify Constitution “as is” Ratify Constitution with Amendments (add the Bill of Rights) Don’t Ratify Constitution

What reasons did the Anti-Federalists give to defend their views on the Constitution? Believed Constitution gave federal government too much power Thought too much power in executive branch would lead to tyranny Tyranny = Cruel and oppressive government rule

To Summarize: FEDERALISTS ANTI-FEDERALISTS Supported removing some powers from the states and giving more powers to the national government Wanted important political powers to remain with the states Favored dividing powers among different branches of government Wanted the legislative branch to have more power than the executive Proposed a single person to lead the executive branch Feared that a strong executive might become a king or tyrant Wanted power shared between central government and the states Believed a bill of rights needed to be added to the Constitution to protect people’s rights

Three Reasons for Adding the Bill of Rights: 1) Most states would not sign for ratification of the Constitution without it 2) It protected natural rights and freedoms, which was a goal of the writers of the Constitution 3) People believed it helped limit the power of the national government

Ratification of the Constitution   Date State Votes Yes No 1 December 7, 1787 Delaware 30 2 December 12, 1787 Pennsylvania 46 23 3 December 18, 1787 New Jersey 38 4 January 2, 1788 Georgia 26 5 January 9, 1788 Connecticut 128 40 6 February 6, 1788 Massachusetts 187 168 7 April 28, 1788 Maryland 63 11 8 May 23, 1788 South Carolina 149 73 9 June 21, 1788 New Hampshire 57 47 10 June 25, 1788 Virginia 89 79 July 26, 1788 New York 27 12 November 21, 1789 North Carolina 194 77 13 May 29, 1790 Rhode Island 34 32

IT’S OFFICIAL! LET’S PARTY!

THE BILL OF RIGHTS (pages 266-268) 1ST Freedom of Speech, Press, Assembly, Religion, Petition 2ND Right to Bear Arms (own guns/weapons) 3RD No quartering troops in time of peace 4TH No unreasonable search and/or seizure without warrant or probable cause 5TH Rights of Accused Persons/No double jeopardy 6TH Right to Speedy and Public Trial / Right to Counsel 7TH Right to Trial By Jury in Civil Suits 8TH No Cruel and Unusual Punishments /Excessive Bails 9TH People retain obvious rights not listed in Constitution 10TH States retain rights not listed in Constitution

Summary Write a 10 sentence minimum summary answering the EQ. Remember the EQ was: Who were the Federalists and Anti-Federalists AND how did their beliefs on the US Constitution and national government differ NOTE - Be sure to discuss details on the Bill of Rights in your answer!