The US Constitution: Formation, debates, and ratification

  1. Intro:
  2. Problems with the Articles of Confederation (as discussed in the last lecture) led many, particularly the more influential members of society, to feel that there was a need for a stronger central authority
  3. Nation builders like James Madison and Alexander Hamilton called for increased national authority to help deal with these issues
  4. The concerns voiced by critics of the Articles found a sympathetic hearing among men who had developed a national consciousness during the Revolution
  5. At a meeting in Annapolis (September 1786), delegates called for a convention to amend the Articles of Confederation in order to avoid anarchy and monarchy.
  6. A New Constitution:
  7. Held in Philadelphia, May 1787- State House (Independence Hall)
  8. Very secretive. Window shut tight to prevent eaves droppers. No Press allowed
  9. Prominent wealthy and well-educated men took part in the Constitutional Convention.
  10. Delegates quickly agreed the Constitution would create a legislature, an executive, and a national judiciary.
  11. This was a usurpation of authority. In many ways, what ends up happening at the Constitutional Convention is a form of revolution; the delegates alter the system of government (look to Beard)
  12. The key to stable, effective republican government was finding a way to balance the competing claims of liberty and power. This was the biggest issue at the convention and one that would cause numerous issues that needed to be resolved
  13. The Constitution embodies federalism and a system of checks and balances.
  14. Strong central gov’t v. strong state gov’ts:
  15. Strong Central: Authority from the people; central/national/federal government should have more power
  16. Strong state: Authority derives from the state; States should remain stronger than nat’l gov’t.
  17. Compromise: Federalism refers to the relationship between the national government and the states (a division of power between the two).
  18. Federalism:
  19. Enumerated Powers (Federal):
  20. Foreign Affairs
  21. Providing national defense
  22. Regulating trade between states (INTERstate commerce)
  23. Coining money
  24. Implied Powers: Article 1, Section 8- necessary and proper clause, aka the elastic clause
  25. Congress can stretch the powers of federal gov’t whenever its necessary and proper
  26. Reserved Powers (States)
  27. Education
  28. Marriage Laws
  29. Regulating trade within the state (INTRAstate commerce)
  30. Separation of Powers:
  31. 3 Branches of government created to protect against an abuse of power
  32. Legislative Branch- makes laws
  33. Congress
  34. Executive Branch- enforces the laws
  35. President, VP, Cabinet
  36. Judicial Branch- interpret laws
  37. Courts
  38. Checks and Balances- in order to ensure that 1 branch doesn’t get too powerful, each branch “looks over the shoulder” of the others
  39. Large States v. Small States:
  40. Deals with representation in Congress- how is it going to be determined?
  41. Large States (VA PLAN)-James Madison
  42. Congress should be split into 2 houses (bicameral)
  43. Delegates assigned based on population
  44. Small States (NJ PLAN)- William Patterson
  45. 1 house for Congress (unicameral)
  46. Each state gets 1 vote
  47. Compromise: “The Great Compromise”
  48. Bicameral Legislature
  49. Senate (Upper House)- equal representation (2 per state)
  50. House of Representatives (lower House)- based on population
  51. Southern Plantation Owners v. Northern Businessmen:
  52. Tariff: Tax imposed on goods (imported or exported)
  53. Northerners wanted tariffs to protect their industries from foreign competition
  54. Southerners opposed b/c they felt it would hurt their trade
  55. Compromise: tax imports not exports (Protective Tariff)
  56. The Limits of Democracy:
  57. In some ways, the authors of the Constitution were just as fearful of democracy as they were of monarchy, and thus sought to limit the power of the masses.
  58. The Constitution left the determination of voter qualifications to the states.
  59. The new government was based on a limited democracy and the assumption that only prominent men would hold office.
  60. Federal judges would be appointed by the president.
  61. The president would be elected by an electoral college, or, in the case of a tie in that body, by the House of Representatives.
  62. the body that elects the President and Vice President of the United States every four years. Citizens of the United States do not directly elect the president or the vice president; instead they choose "electors", who usually pledge to vote for particular candidates. The number of electors in each state is equal to the number of members of Congress to which the state is entitled. Except for Maine and Nebraska, all states have chosen electors on a "winner-take-all" basis since the 1880s.
  63. Northern States v. Southern States:
  64. Dealing with how slaves should be counted in regards to population and taxes
  65. North: slaves should not be counted for population but should be when levying taxes
  66. South: slaves should be counted for population but should not be when levying taxes
  67. Compromise: “3/5 Compromise”
  68. Each slave counted 3/5 of a person for both taxation and representation
  69. Slavery and the Constitution:
  70. Slavery divided the delegates.
  71. The words “slave” and “slavery” did not appear in the Constitution, but it did provide for slavery.
  72. The South Carolinian delegates proved very influential in preserving slavery within the Constitution.
  73. The Constitution prevented Congress from prohibiting the slave trade until 1808.
  74. The fugitive slave clause made clear that the condition of bondage remained attached to a person even if he or she escaped to a free area, and it required all states to help police the institution of slavery.
  75. The federal government could not interfere with slavery in the states.
  76. Slave states had more power due to the three-fifths clause.
  77. Constitution:
  78. Delegates signed the final draft on September 17, 1787.
  79. The Constitution created a new framework for American development.
  80. After 4 months the convention created a constitution with an amendment process
  81. Needed 9 states to ratify- approve it
  82. Issue is no “Bill of Rights”
  83. Federalists:
  84. Federalists (those who supported ratification) believed checks and balances would protect American’s rights
  85. Believed a strong gov’t was needed
  86. Federalists tended to be men of substantial property, urban dwellers seeking prosperity
  87. Federalists dominated the press, which helped them carry the day.
  88. The Federalist was published to generate support for ratification.
  89. Hamilton argued that government was an expression of freedom, not its enemy.
  90. Madison had a new vision of the relationship between government and society in Federalist no. 10 and no. 51.
  91. Madison argued that the large size of the United States was a source of stability, not weakness.
  92. Madison helped to popularize the liberal idea that men are generally motivated by self-interest and that the good of society arises from the clash of these private interests.
  93. Anti-Federalists:
  94. Anti-Federalists, who opposed ratification, argued that the republic had to be small and warned that the Constitution would result in an oppressive government (fear of a strong central government).
  95. Liberty was the Anti-Federalists’ watchword.
  96. They argued for a Bill of Rights (KEY ISSUE FOR THEM!).
  97. Anti-Federalists drew support from small farmers in more isolated rural areas (e.g., New York’s Hudson Valley, western Massachusetts, the southern backcountry).
  98. Ratification:
  99. Madison won support for the Constitution by promising a bill of rights later.
  100. By mid-1788, the required nine states had ratified.
  101. Only Rhode Island and North Carolina voted against ratification, but they eventually joined the new government.
  102. Happened after passage of the Bill of Rights.
  103. Many of the underlying issues between Anti-Federalists and Federalists are still part of the larger ideological divide in American politics today.
  104. The Bill of Rights:
  105. Madison believed the Constitution would protect liberty without the addition of a bill of rights.
  106. Still, to satisfy the Constitution’s critics, Madison introduced a bill of rights to the first Congress.
  107. In a sense, the Bill of Rights defined the “unalienable rights” of the Declaration of Independence.
  108. Some rights, such as the prohibiting of excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishments, reflected English roots, while others, such as the recognition of religious freedom, were uniquely American.
  109. Among the most important rights were freedom of speech and of the press, vital building blocks of a democratic public sphere.
  110. Documents that influenced the Bill of Rights:
  111. Virginia Declaration of Rights (George Mason)
  112. Reiterated the notion that basic human rights should not be violated by governments
  113. Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
  114. By Thomas Jefferson
  115. Outlawed the established church- that is, the practice of government support for one favored church
  116. National Identity:
  117. The Constitution identifies three populations inhabiting the United States:
  118. Indians
  119. “Other persons,” which meant slaves
  120. “People,” who were the only ones entitled to American freedom
  121. American nationality combined aspects of both civic and ethnic nationalisms.
  122. Indigenous Peoples in the New Nation:
  123. Indigenous tribes had no representation in the new government.
  124. The treaty system was used with natives, and Congress forbade the transfer of native land without federal approval.
  125. The U.S. victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers led to the Treaty of Greenville in 1795.
  126. Under this treaty, twelve indigenous tribes ceded most of Ohio and Indiana to the United States.
  127. The treaty established the annuity system—yearly grants of federal money to indigenous tribes that led to continuing U.S. government influence in tribal affairs.
  128. Some prominent Americans believed that natives could assimilate into society.
  129. Assimilation meant transforming traditional native life.
  130. Africans-Americans in the New Republic:
  131. The status of citizenship for free blacks was left to individual states.
  132. America was seen as a melting pot of Europeans.
  133. Many white Americans excluded blacks from their conception of the American people.
  134. The Naturalization Act of 1790 limited naturalization (the process by which immigrants become citizens) to “free white persons.”
  135. Many, including such prominent figures like Jefferson, began to believe black Americans should not stay in America.
  136. Freeing the slaves without removing them from the country would endanger the nation’s freedom.
  137. Principles of Freedom:
  138. The Revolution widened the divide between free Americans and those who remained in slavery.
  139. Even though many Northern States began to implement manumission policies, these would impact later generations.
  140. In fact, despite the talk of freedom stemming from the Revolution, slavery in the United States continued to grow in volume and importance throughout the proceeding decades.
  141. “We the people” increasingly meant white Americans.
  142. However, a new nation was established…now it’s time for some politics!