Creating A Constitution Constitution = a document stating the rules under which a government will operate Leaders of the new nation remembered what they had hated about British rule Americans sought to create a republic in which the states had more power than the central government Explain different levels of government…state and national As the Continental Congress began moving towards independence in 1776, leaders in the individual states began creating governments 11 of 13 states created new constitutions

Creating a Constitution Targets I can determine the strengths and weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. I can evaluate and debate why the Constitutional Convention decided to create an entirely new framework of government. I can describe what shaped the outcome of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 I can explain how compromises solved crises in the Constitutional Convention.

Constitutional Convention of 1787 Virginia Plan strong central government Three branches of government: Executive Legislative Judicial Legislature divided into two houses Representation based on population Small states objected to the plan because the more people a state had, the more seats it would have. (which means more VOTES)

Population of the 13 original states from the official census of 1790 Connecticut 237,946 Delaware 59,096 Georgia 82,548 Maryland 319,728 Massachusetts 378,787 New Hampshire 141,885 New Jersey 184,139 New York 340,120 North Carolina 393,751 Pennsylvania 434,373 Rhode Island 68,825 South Carolina 249,073 Virginia 691,737

Constitutional Convention of 1787 New Jersey Plan Single house (s) in Congress Equal representation for each state Expanded powers of Congress to raise money and regulate commerce

Constitutional Convention of 1787 The Great Compromise Two houses of Congress Lower house: House of Representatives Representation based on population Upper house: Senate Each state had two seats

Slave population-1790 census Connecticut 237,946 2,764 1% Delaware 59,096 8,887 15% Georgia 82,548 29,264 35% Maryland 319,728 103,036 32% Massachusetts 378,787 0 0% New Hampshire 141,885 158 <1% New Jersey 184,139 11,423 6% New York 340,120 21,324 6% North Carolina 393,751 100,572 25% Pennsylvania 434,373 3,737 <1% Rhode Island 68,825 948 1% South Carolina 249,073 107,094 43% Virginia 691,737 292,627 42% Slave owners did not want to pay taxes on their slaves (remember they were property…not a deduction on your taxes) They did want to count slaves when it meant that they could have more representatives in Congress though…if they have more votes they could protect or expand slavery...they don’t want to be out voted and have slavery outlawed These population questions and issues are going to play a huge in roll in the decisions that are made at the meeting

1790 Census Free African Americans = 1.5% Slave= 17.9% White population= 80%

Constitutional Convention of 1787 The Three-Fifths Compromise Southerners said that enslaved people should be counted in calculating how many representatives a state should have in Congress. Northerners objected because enslaved people were not allowed to vote As a compromise each enslaved person was counted as three fifths of a person (for taxes and representation)

Chart Who proposed the plan? What was included in the plan? Who supported the plan? Virginia Plan page 213-214 (read through The Great Compromise) New Jersey Plan page 214 Great Compromise page 214-215 (Terms of Compromise)

Virginia Plan Proposed by Edmund Randolph Wanted a new, stronger central government James Madison was the main author Called for 3 separate branches Legislative-congress Executive – enforce laws Judicial – interpret laws Congress would have 2 parts Lower house Upper house Representation based on population (more people a state had, the more seats it would get) Supported by big states (like Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts)

New Jersey Plan Introduced by William Paterson Single house of congress Equal representation for each state Expanded power of Congress to raise money and regulate trade Supported by smaller states

Great Compromise Roger Sherman worked out the compromise Created 2 house Congress Lower house called House of Representatives-based on population- supported by large states Upper house called Senate – each state has two seats (equal for all states)– supported by smaller states

US Debt 1791 $75,463,476.52 Lowest= 1834 $33,733.05 1850-1861 Stead decline Then Civil War-HUGE increase Debt by president http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_debt_by_U.S._presidential_terms Debt clock http://www.usdebtclock.org/ Good info http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/faq.html

US Debt Thousand (3 zeros) Million (6 zeros) Billion (9 zeros) Trillion (12 zeros) Quadrillion (15 zeros) Quintillion (18 zeros)

US Debt 1st time over billion 1862 1st time over trillion 1982

US Debt National Debt Clock

Who do we owe the $$$$ to? Here is a pie chart showing the makeup, or ownership, of the National Debt as of December 1998. The remaining 60% of the Debt is privately held by individuals, corporations, states, and foreign governments. As of November 2007, Japan ($580 billion), China ($390 billon) and the United Kingdom ($320 bilion) are the biggest foreign holders of our Debt. What is the difference between the Debt and the Deficit? A: The National Debt is the total amount of money owed by the government; the federal budget deficit is the yearly amount by which spending exceeds revenue. Add up all the deficits (and subtract those few budget surpluses we've had) for the past 200+ years and you'll get the current National Debt. Politicians love to crow "The deficit is down! The deficit is down!" like it's a great accomplishment. Don't be fooled. Reducing the deficit just means we're adding less to the Debt this year than we did last year. Big deal -- we're still adding to the Debt. When are we going to start seeing the Debt actually go down?