1. Creating A Constitution
TAV Chapter 3
Creating A Constitution

2. Articles of Confederation
Weak central Govt.
No power to tax
No power to regulate commerce
No power to coin money
Could not force states to abide by treaties
Cannot declare war unless all states agree

3. Articles of Confederation Cntd.
One vote per state Unanimous vote to change articles 9/13 to pass a measure

4. Northwest Ordinance 1787
Land north of the Ohio River and east of the Miss. River
Governor, Secretary and 3 Judges
5,000 adult men owning 50+ acres they could elect a Terr. Legislature
60,000 Pop. they could petition to become a state

5. Northwest Terr. Contd. Freedom of religion Trial by jury
No slavery or servitude
Was not exactly followed

6. Shays’ Rebellion
1786, farmers in W. Mass. Try to shut down courthouses that are collecting taxes.
The recession and the added taxes were causing farmers to lose their land.
1,200 farmers took part in the uprising that was eventually stopped by the US Army.
4 farmers were killed

7. Chapter 3 Section 2
A New Constitution

8. Constitutional Convention
May 1787, 55 delegates from every state but Rhode Island convened at the Pennsylvania Statehouse in Philadelphia.
They planned on making changes to the Articles of Conf.
Scrap the Articles and start over
George Washington presided over the Conv.

9. James Madison, The Father of the Constitution, kept a written record of the proceedings.
Held in secret

10. The Virginia Plan Written by Madison, & presented by Edmund Randolph
2 house legislature
Voters would elect the members of the 1st house & the 1st house would pick the members of the 2nd
# of members would be based on population
Judicial branch

11. New Jersey Plan Called for: Executive Branch Judicial Branch
Power to tax
One-house legislature with one vote per state

12. Deadlock at the Convention
July 2, 1787, a vote was taken to see how the delegate felt about the plans
The delegates were split

13. The Great Compromise
Parts of each plan were use to help the delegates come to an agreement.

14. The Great Compromise

15. The 3/5 Compromise
To resolve the issue of counting slaves as population
The slave population of each state would be multiplied by 3/5 to count toward the Pop.

16. The Separation of Powers
Divided into three branches
Each branch has the power to check the others
EX.
The Executive can veto legislative acts
The legislature can override the executive veto with a 2/3 vote

17. The New Congress House of Representatives Senators
Chosen every 2 years
Senators
Chosen by members of the House of Representatives
Later changed to popular vote
Serve for 6 years
Only 1/3 of the Senate would be up for re-election every 2 years

18. Powers of Congress Coin money Deal w/ other nations Declare war
Raise an Army
Provide for a Navy
Regulate commerce

19. The Executive Branch-President
Elected to a 4 year term
Originally, could be re-elected as many times as the people wanted
The Commander-in-chief of the armed forces
Voters chose the electors to vote on the President

20. The Electoral College System
The electoral votes are equal to each state’s number of representatives
The winner of the most Electoral College votes becomes the President
In the event of a tie…
The House of Representatives would vote on the President
Each state would get 1 vote

21. Judicial Branch - Courts
Appointed by the President
The U.S. Supreme Court Justices are appointed for life

22. Ratifying the Constitution
Chapter 3 Section 3
Ratifying the Constitution

23. The Constitutional Quandary
In 1787, not everyone liked the new constitution
The country was divided into two groups
The Federalists
The Anti-Federalists

24. The Federalists Wanted a strong federal Govt.
Supported by Washington, Madison, & Alexander Hamilton
The Federalist Papers were 85 essays outlining reasons for a strong Fed. Govt.
They called for a “republican empire”
Meaning Govt. by the people

25. The Anti-Federalists People who were against the Constitution
Led by Patrick Henry
They felt that a constitution would betray the ideals of the American Revolution
The breaking away from a strong central Govt.
Saw the President as a king

26. Ratification There were more Anti-Feds. than Feds.
The Federalists used the following:
Played on feelings that the Articles of Conf. needed reform
Made the Anti-Feds look negative
They were well organized
George Washington
Their Ace in the hole

27. Voting For Ratification
Voting on ratification of the Const. began in Dec. of 1787
FINALLY…
In May 1790, Rhode Island accepted the U.S. Constitution

28. The Bill of Rights The first ten amendments of the U.S. Const.
Accepted in Dec. 1791

29. The Arguments Against the Bill of Rights
Federalists were against the Bill of Rts.
It is not needed B/c. a Govt. of, for, & by the people should be all the protection we would ever need
People would not sign away their own freedoms. Therefore, they will not sign away other people’s freedoms

30. The Arguments For the Bill of Rights
The position of the Anti-Federalists
They did not trust the Govt.
They wanted a list of protections from this new strong central Govt.
That way there was no question as to what the Govt. could or could not do