Foundation of Government in America Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution Mr. Calella American Studies I (Honors)

Constitution KWL Log on to http://padlet.com/giuseppe_calella/6q48tqnemhyj and post some Ks and Ws Consider the following questions… What is a constitution? Purpose? Why are constitutions written? How should institutions of gov’t be organized? Why has the U.S. Constitution endured?

Articles of Confederation Republic & Confederation 1st constitution A loose association of states (retained most their sovereignty); Americans’ fear Ratification held up Passed Nov 1777 (during war) National legislature called the Congress No executive or judicial branches Congress had limited powers Slavery

Two Successes under the Articles of Confederation Land Ordinance of 1785 Northwest Ordinance of 1787

Primary Source Activity Go to my wiki page… Gcalella.pbworks.com Download the document under today’s lesson regarding George Washington’s evaluation of the Articles of Confederation Read and answer the discussion questions that follow

Weaknesses of the Confederation Weak central government No ability to collect taxes (war debt) No executive branch to enforce laws No judicial branch to interpret laws 13 separate states that lacked national unity (focus on local issues) Inflation from overprinting of $ Cannot address foreign affairs (threats?) Could not quash domestic uprisings…

Thomas Jefferson’s Comments on Shay’s Rebellion “I hold it, that a little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms are in the physical... It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government.” Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to James Madison, Jan., 1787 “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure.” Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to Wm. Stephens Smith, Nov., 1787 Discuss: How might Jefferson’s opinion have been affected by the fact that he was living in Paris at the time of Shay’s Rebellion?

Excerpt from Federalist No. 51, James Madison, Feb. 6, 1788 “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. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.” Discuss: In what ways can this famous passage from Federalist No. 51 be related to Shay’s Rebellion?

Shay’s Rebellion

Constitutional Convention Philadelphia meeting of delegates to discuss remedies for ailing Confederation (May 1787) George Washington made president of convention Delegates decided to scrap Articles and set up an entirely new government Washington kept the delegates focused on their task

Ratification Federalists v. Anti-Federalists Attributes of Federalists Attributes of Anti-Federalists Bill of Rights Delaware, Virginia, and New York The Federalist Papers

Constitutional Principles

Limited Government 1st and oldest written constitution in the world Designed to prevent tyranny experienced under British rule, which had an unwritten, open-ended constitution You limit the the government’s powers by stating its powers

Checks and Balances Prevents one branch from becoming more powerful than the others Branches have ways of checking and balancing the power of the others

Separation of Powers Government divided into 3 branches: legislative (Art. I), executive (Art. II), and judicial (Art. III) Each branch has specific powers but must work with others for government to function

Federalism Divides power between national and state government States needed to sacrifice some of their sovereignty for the sake of national unity

Popular Sovereignty Preamble of the Constitution expresses idea that source of power rests with the people Examples Vote for representatives Indirect vote for president Amendment process

Convention’s Compromises The Constitution is often referred to as a “bundle of compromises.” To what extent and in what ways is this description accurate? Work in pairs or 3s; use hyperlink on wiki Your Task: Answer above question in 1 paragraph Create your own graphic organizer or picture representation for each of the listed compromises