Chapter Lecture Notes

8.1Introduction  James Madison wanted the states to unite and work together  Colonists worried about strong central/national government  First plan was called the Articles of Confederation, each state had 1 vote  Power of national government was limited because they couldn’t tax, only the states could approve taxes  They had ideas that couldn’t be funded so nothing got done

8.2 Early Quarrels and Accomplishments  Taxes were different between states  Boundary issues  Articles of Confederation couldn’t solve these problems…that’s a problem!

8.2 Developing Western Lands  Land Ordinance of 1785  6 square mile townships, divided into 36 sections, 640 acres each  1 school per township  Used in Northwest Territory (see map on page 146 in text)  How should they be governed? Should they be colonies or states?

8.2 The Northwest Ordinance  Solved the problem of how townships would be governed  When a territory had 5,00 free adult males, they could have a legislature or governing body  When the population reached 60,000, they could apply to become a state  Slavery was banned in the NW Territory  This system worked well

8.3 Shays’s Rebellion and the Need for Change  Money had no value because they had no gold or silver to back it up  States could print their own money  No common currency for the country

8.3 Massachusetts Farms Rebel  Shays, a farmer, couldn’t pay his taxes  Government said he had to sell h is land in order to pay his taxes  Shays and other farmers rebelled  Massachusetts state militia ended the rebellion  The federal government was fragile and had difficulty dealing with such uprisings

8.3 A Call for Convention  The Shays incident made leaders realize that the Articles of Confederation needed to be revised  Delegates from each state met in Philadelphia  James Madison had prepared for 1 year to redesign the Articles of Confederation

8.4 Opening the Constitutional Convention  George Washington elected President of the Convention  He wanted to be a farmer in Virginia, but they wouldn’t let him. The country needed his leadership again

8.4 The Delegates  55 delegates form 12 colonies met in Philadelphia  Rhode Island did not send a delegate  Many founding fathers weren’t there because they were out of the country or they didn’t want to support the idea of a strong national government  They feared the states would lose their power and rights to a strong national government  Delegates were wealthy and educated men

8.4 The Father of the Constitution  James Madison prepared in advance and made a draft for a new constitution

8.4 The Rule of Secrecy  Didn’t want to alarm the public unnecessarily  Same policy was used when writing the Declaration of Independence

8.4 Shared Beliefs and Clashing Views  They had common goals but different views  Agreed that power came from the people  Felt the government didn’t protect natural rights from the DOI  States already had states constitutions about voting and holding office  Madison wanted a strong central/national government to protect liberty and property

New Packet  Issue 1: How should states be represented in the new government?  Issue 2: How should slaves be counted?

8.5 Issue: How Should States be Represented in the New Government?  Decided to throw out the Articles of Confederation  Designed a new plan from scratch  Where did the government’s power come from?

8.5 Virginia Plan  Called for a strong federal government  3 branches (2 houses in the legislative branch)  Number of representatives based on state’s population  Virginia had the highest population  Madison and Randolph proposed it  High populated states liked it

8.5 New Jersey Plan  Called for 3 branches (1 house in the legislative branch)  States had equal representation  Patterson proposed it  Liked by smaller populated states

8.6 Resolution: The Great Compromise  New Jersey plan didn’t make enough changes

8.6 Tempers Rise  Smaller states didn’t trust larger states  Foreign countries waited for the US to fail

8.6 Compromise Reached  2 houses in the legislative branch  1 determined by a state’s population (HOR)  1 determined with 2 per state (Senate)  Sherman of Connecticut proposed this Great Compromise

8.7 Issue: How Should Slave be Counted?  How should slave be used in determining a state’s population?

8.7 People or Property?  9/10 of slaves lived in the South  North thought slaves were property and shouldn’t count in a state’s population  If slaves counted as people for population, then they should vote?

8.7 New Thinking on Slavery  Many reexamined their view of slavery  Many northern states passed laws ending slavery  South needed slaves for the farming- based economy  Some southern states passed laws making it easier to free slaves

8.8 Resolution: The Three-Fifths Compromise  Madison proposed this compromise to keep the convention moving  Slaves counted as 3/5 of a person when calculating a state’s population for representation in Congress

8.8 Another Slavery Issue  Southern states feared Congress would tax their cash crops and outlaw slave trade  South Carolina and Georgia refused to sign a constitution that threatened slave trade

8.8: More Compromises on Slavery  Congress could control trade except: no tax on imports and no interference of the slave trade for 20 years (till 1808)  Fugitive Slave clause  Slavery vs. liberty and equality?!

New Packet  Issue 1: How should be chief executive be elected?  Convention ends

8.9 Issue: How Should the Chief Executive be Elected?  Nervous about having too much power in one person like King George III

8.9 One Executive or Three?  Randolph wanted 3 members in the executive branch  Franklin did not want a 1 person executive branch  Congress agree with Franklin, but limited the term to 4 years and added a vice president

8.9 Choose the Chief Executive  Should Congress pick?  Should the people pick?  Should electors from each state pick?

8.10 Resolution: The Electoral College  Neither Congress or the people picks the President  The Electoral College elects for the people

8.10 Electoral College System  Each state has the same number of electors as the number of representatives it has in Congress (HOR + Senate)  Top vote getter is President and runner up is Vice President  Changed in 1800  Made to benefit uninformed people

8.10 Political Parties and Elections  The candidate who gets the majority of popular votes, gets all of the states’ electoral votes  A person can win more popular votes and not win the electoral vote  Gore vs. Bush 2000 Elections

The 2000 Election Electoral Map

8.11 The Convention Ends  Approval needed next

8.11 Signing the Constitution  Franklin felt the Constitution was good, but need improvement  13 states didn’t sign and left the convention  1 state didn’t sign because it didn’t protect people’s rights

8.12 The Constitution Goes to the States  Constitution printed in newspapers  Next the US debated the issue of the federal government’s and state’s government having more power

8.12 The Federalists  Wanted a big, strong, federal government  Madison, Hamilton, and Jay were Federalists  They wrote and printed their beliefs about a strong federal government in the Federalist Papers

8.12 The Anti- Federalists  Feared too much power at the federal level  Feared Congress would tax too much  Wanted more power at the state level