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THE CONSTITUTION
Download Assignment File For more information about the Assignment File, see Lesson 1.
The challenge that faced the delegates at the Constitutional Convention was to establish a strong national government without making the states weak. With the new governmental system that emerged, Americans would be citizens of both the national government and the government of their own particular state. Some of the power would be held by the federal government, so it could make some laws to be applied to the whole country. Other powers would be kept by each of the state governments, to make laws that would apply to the people in that state.
There was also a great deal of debate and discussion about the decision making power of the northern states versus the southern states. These two parts of the country had very different geographies, types of crops, and economies. While the North ran small farms, factories, fishing and trapping operations, the South grew cotton, tobacco, and used slaves on large plantations. Each side feared that a federal government would pass laws regulating shipping and trading that would have negative effects on it. More importantly was the issue of slavery. There were many slaves in the South, and southern states wanted to include them in the population count so they could have more representation in the new government. At the same time, the southern states didn’t want to count the slaves in the population when it came to determining federal taxes. In opposition, the northern states argued that slaves shouldn’t be counted in determining the number of representatives in the new federal government, because the slaves were treated as property, not as people. At the same time, the North wanted to include slaves in the population count so that more taxes could be collected from the southern states. A strange compromise was reached: it was decided that five slaves would be counted as three people in deciding how many representatives each state could have, and how much tax would be demanded from a each state. A slave was not constitutionally considered to be equal to one whole person until 1865!
The basic framework proposed by James Madison was finally adopted in principle. It provided for a strong national government with three branches (similar to the system under which the individual states were currently operating). These branches are the Legislative, the Executive, and the Judicial Branches. You will be learning more about each of these in turn later.
It was also decided that the Legislative Branch would be a two-house legislature, or Congress. The two houses of Congress would be the House of Representatives and the Senate. In order for a law to pass, both the Senate and the House of Representatives would have to approve it. The House of Representatives would be elected based upon the state’s population, so a larger state would have more Representatives. In the Senate, however, each state would have two Senators regardless of population, so the small states would be represented. This plan, along with the issue of how to count slaves, became known as the Great Compromise. Each side gave up part of what it wanted in order to reach an agreement that would benefit both.
In addition to the Legislative Branch, which would make the laws, the Executive Branch was established to enforce the law, and make sure it was carried out properly. In addition, a Judicial Branch was established to act as the interpreter of federal law and the Constitution. The convention finally drew to a close with 38 delegates signing the Constitution on September 17, 1787.
Next, the new Constitution had to be ratified or accepted by at least nine states. Immediately, strong opposition arose to this Constitution. Its supporters, which included Alexander Hamilton and James Madison and many others, were known as Federalists because they supported a strong federal, or national, government.
Anti-Federalists, such as Patrick Henry, felt that a strong central government would endanger the people’s liberties. According to them, a federal government that met so far away from local communities could not truly be called government by consent of the people. The Anti-Federalists believed that representatives of the government should meet in a location close to the people they were protecting and serving. They were concerned that the people themselves would not be properly protected from the federal government. The statement in the Constitution that caused the Anti-Federalists the most difficulty was, “Congress shall have the power to make laws necessary and proper to carry out its stated powers.” They felt that a strong national government might eventually swallow up the state governments.
Thomas Jefferson, who was in Europe during the Constitutional Convention and therefore didn’t attend, agreed with many concerned people, particularly the Anti-Federalists, that a Bill of Rights, which would detail specific rights or liberties for the American people, should be added to the Constitution. Many argued that the Constitution should not be ratified without it, but eventually it was agreed that the Bill of Rights could be added later. The Constitution was finally ratified in mid-1788, and the Bill of Rights was added in 1791.
1. Choose one of these assignments to complete, writing 500-750 words. - Learn about one or two Federalists and one or two Anti-Federalists. Discuss these men’s particular viewpoints and concerns. What role did each of them play in helping America gain independence? What role did they each play in the establishing of the new government? What were their arguments and concerns about a strong central government versus strong state governments?
- Compose a discussion between at least one Federalist and one Anti-Federalist. Using correct punctuation for dialogue, engage these men in a conversation which makes their opinions and ideas clear to each other and to your reader.
- If you had lived during the time when the Constitution was being written, would you have been a Federalist or an Anti-Federalist? Explain your answer and include specific examples to back up your opinion.
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