© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787 Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX To Revise or Write a new form of Government? This is the question! Revise: 1.We wanted a weak central government. States should have the power. 2.IF a new national government is formed, they might tax us. 3.We want our states to be able to remain in charge of their own laws. 4.The Western territories have been successful under the guidance of the Articles of Confederation. 5.Don’t want the national government to be too powerful. 6.A new government would cost too much money to form. 7.State power is what people are used to. Form a New Government: 1.A new government could be set up to tax the people to raise money for our war debt. 2.We need a judicial system to enforce laws and punish lawbreakers. 3.If all laws are the same among the states, trade would be easier, and fewer conflicts would happen. 4.The old government is not settling issues that need settled. 5.We need a system to elect our representatives. 6.National Government should control the states in insure cooperation to work together as a nation. 7.The old government is not working it's too weak. 8.Find a way to pay soldiers 9.We need a strong national. Too much state power.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX The following slides correspond to parts II, III, and IV of your Character Viewpoint Analysis. Each slide has some information about the creation of the three branches of government. There are also basic arguments to help you generate ideas for the Constitutional Convention.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <The Legislative Branch of government is the body of elected representatives that makes laws.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II A(1). One or two houses?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX one house (unicameral) one law-making body that meets as one group <efficient and not as time-consuming <easier to pass laws = No $ to support 2 Houses

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX two houses (bicameral) one law-making body that meets as two groups <allows for more people in the government <one group can “check” the other = The more people you have the more ideas and views

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II A(2). What should be the basis of representation?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX equal representation- each state has the same number of representatives New Jersey Plan <favored by smaller states <small states would have power equal to large states

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX representation based on population- the number of representatives is based on a state’s population Virginia Plan <larger states would get more power, but they also have more people <favored by larger states

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II B(1). Should slaves be counted as population?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Southern view Northern view Yes. This means Southern states would increase their population and thus would have more representatives in the legislature. No. Northerners do not want the Southern states to have more representatives.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II B(2). Should slaves be counted for taxation purposes?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Southern view Northern view No. They do not want to pay a property tax on their slaves. Yes. If the South considers slaves property, then they should pay taxes on their slaves as they would other taxable property.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II C. Who should regulate commerce (trade)?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Northern view Southern view The states should. They feared the national government would begin taxing their export crops and trying to interfere with the slave trade. The national government should have the power to tax and use money to benefit the whole country.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Arguments: To control commerce and slave trade; or NOT? YES: 1.All laws would be the same in all states and trade would be easier to regulate. 2.There is too much taxing among the states, it makes trading confusing. 3.If the national government controlled trade, we would have a chance to end the slave trade. 4.We need only one law to govern trade in our country. It eliminates confusion. 5.By controlling trade, taxes could be used to pay the war debts. 6.The control of trade would lessen the arguments between the states. No: 1.Slavery is important to the Southern economy. If the national government controls trade, it might abolish slavery. 2.Each state should have the right to set up its own trade practices. 3.The US government might tax crops we are selling to foreign countries. This would cause our buyers to go elsewhere for the same goods. 4.We don’t want the National Government to be too powerful.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II D. Who should choose the legislature?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <the people- representatives are supposed to represent the people <the state legislatures- members of state governments know about government, so they would choose wisely <electors- knowledgeable representatives from each state choose the government

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <You may also have any combination of the mentioned possibilities. <In the case of two houses, one house could elect the other. Note- Many of the members of the Constitutional Convention questioned the ability of the average person to make intelligent decisions, hence the options for government officials choosing the government.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II E. How many years should a term of office be?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX advantagesadvantages short term (1-4 years) disadvantagesdisadvantages <more people in government <easier to remove incompetent people <more people in government <easier to remove incompetent people <less continuity, experience <takes time to get work done <less continuity, experience <takes time to get work done

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX long term (more than 4 years) advantagesadvantages disadvantagesdisadvantages <lawmakers gain experience <time to see programs through <not as much turnover in the government <lawmakers gain experience <time to see programs through <not as much turnover in the government <stuck with incompetent people longer <people in government can get too powerful <stuck with incompetent people longer <people in government can get too powerful

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX II F. How many terms of office can be served?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX one term advantagesadvantages <more people in government <no one gets too powerful <incompetent people removed <more people in government <no one gets too powerful <incompetent people removed disadvantagesdisadvantages <competent people are removed <officials not held accountable to the vote of the people <competent people are removed <officials not held accountable to the vote of the people

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX more than one term advantagesadvantages <continuity <good people stay in government <always held accountable to the vote of the people <continuity <good people stay in government <always held accountable to the vote of the people disadvantagesdisadvantages <incompetent people can remain <a few can become too powerful <incompetent people can remain <a few can become too powerful

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <The Executive Branch of government consists of the head of government, Cabinet, and appointees. Their job is to see that laws are executed, or carried out.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX III A. How many executives?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX one executive One executive means you have one head of government (who we call a president) who performs the outlined duties of the executive. <What would be some advantages of one executive? <What would be some disadvantages of only one executive?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX more than one executive More than one executive means you have two or more individuals who perform the outlined duties of the executive. <What would be some advantages of more than one executive? <What would be some disadvantages of more than one executive?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX III B. How should the executive be selected? The following options are similar to the legislative branch, but the situation is different. Remember that the Legislative branch has many people while the Executive branch has only a few.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <the people- executive are supposed to lead the people <the state legislatures- members of state governments know about government, so they would choose wisely <electors- knowledgeable representatives from each state chooses the government

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <You may have any combination of the previous ideas. <the national legislature (what we call Congress) should elect the executive

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX III C. Powers of the executive The following is a partial list of possible powers with explanations.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Veto: Veto power over laws passed by Congress Absolute Veto Power No veto power Veto power with possible 2/3 or ¾ override by Congress Appoint National Officials: Power to appoint No power to appoint Power to appoint with Senate Approval Power over Military forces YES or NO Think to yourself what could be the advantages or disadvantages to having this power Declare War –Yes or No? Why is this important? Enforce(Execute laws) Yes or No Leave that power to the state governors. Treaties: * Make treaties Absolute power to make treaties Make treaties with 2/3 Senate approval.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <veto- forbid laws from being passed <make appointments- appoint people to certain government positions <negotiate treaties- make agreements with other countries <commander-in-chief of the military- the supreme commander of all military operations <declare war

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Some things to think about when deciding executive powers: <Should any power be absolute, meaning that the executive has a power and must answer to no one? <Should there be some kind of check on these powers?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX III D. How many years should a term of office be?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX advantagesadvantages short term (1-4 years) disadvantagesdisadvantages <more people in government <easier to remove incompetent people <more people in government <easier to remove incompetent people <less continuity, experience <takes time to get work done <less continuity, experience <takes time to get work done

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX long term (more than 4 years) advantagesadvantages disadvantagesdisadvantages <executives gain experience <time to see program through <not as much turn-over in the government <executives gain experience <time to see program through <not as much turn-over in the government <stuck with incompetent people longer <people in government can get too powerful <stuck with incompetent people longer <people in government can get too powerful

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX III E. How many terms of office can be served?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX one term advantagesadvantages <more people in government <no one gets too powerful <incompetent people removed <more people in government <no one gets too powerful <incompetent people removed disadvantagesdisadvantages <competent people removed <officials not held accountable to the vote of the people <competent people removed <officials not held accountable to the vote of the people

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX more than one term advantagesadvantages <continuity <good people stay in government <always held accountable to the vote of the people <continuity <good people stay in government <always held accountable to the vote of the people disadvantagesdisadvantages <incompetent people can remain <a few can become too powerful <incompetent people can remain <a few can become too powerful

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <The Judicial Branch of government consists of the Supreme Court and lower courts. The Supreme Court interprets (decides if laws are fair) matters concerning the Constitution. Lower courts rule in civil and criminal cases.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX IV A. What type of national court system should be created?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <Most delegates favored a Supreme Court. <However, there was disagreement on whether there should be inferior national courts, or if inferior courts should be handled within each state. <National power versus state power was again an issue.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX IV B. How should justices be selected?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <There are many options on this issue such as the executive appointing justices, national legislature voting, state legislatures voting, executive nominating and legislature choosing, etc. <Decide if you want one of these ideas, a different idea, or a combination of these ideas.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX IV C. How many years should a term of office be?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <Most delegates felt that Supreme Court justices should serve a life term. <Why might we want justices to serve for so long but not want other government officials in power for such a length of time?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX IV D. How long should the justices serve?

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX <If the decision is for justices to serve for life, then it is not necessary to debate the number of terms. <If the decision is to have justices serve a certain number of years, then delegates need to decide how many terms.

© 2004 Plano ISD, Plano, TX Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787 Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787