The World’s Ugly Duckling

  1. However, Britain still refused to repeal the Navigation Laws, and closed down its trading to the U.S. (proved useless to U.S. smuggling); it also sought to annex Vermont to Britain with help from the Allen brothers and continued to hold a chain of trading posts on U.S. soil.

1)One excuse used was that the soldiers had to make sure the U.S. honor its treaty and pay back debts to Loyalists.

2)The states failed to adhere to that part of the Treaty of Paris

  1. In 1784, Spain closed the Mississippi River to American commerce.
  2. It also claimed a large area near the Gulf of Mexico that was ceded to the U.S. by Britain.

1)At Natchez, on disputed soil, it also held a strategic fort.

  1. Both Spain and England, while encouraging Indian tribes to be restless, prevented the U.S. from controlling half of it territory.
  2. Even France demanded payment of U.S. debts to France.
  3. The pirates of the North African states, including the arrogant Dey of Algiers, ravaged U.S. ships in the area and enslaved Yankee sailors; America was too weak to stop them

A Horrid Specter of Anarchy

  1. States were refusing to pay taxes, and national debt was mounting as foreign credibility was slipping.
  2. Boundary disputes erupted into small battles while states taxed goods from other states.
  3. Shays’ Rebellion, which flared up in western Massachusetts in 1786, attacked tax collectors, etc… and caused all sorts of violence.

1)Shays was convicted but later pardoned.

2)The fear of such violence lived on, though, and paranoia existed.

  1. People were beginning to doubt republicanism and the Articles of the Confederation.
  2. However, many supporters believed that the Articles merely needed to be strengthened.
  3. Things began to look brighter, though, as prosperity was beginning to emerge, Congress was beginning to control commerce, and overseas shipping was regaining its place in the world.

A Convention of “Demigods”

  1. George Washington hosted a conference at his home in Mount Vernon, Virginia (1785)

1)Representatives from Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania agreed that the problems were serious enough to hold further discussions

  1. An Annapolis, Maryland(1796) convention was called, but only five states were represented.

1)After discussing ways to improve commercial relations among the states, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton persuaded the others that another convention should be held in Philadelphia

  1. On May 25, 1787, 55 delegates from 12 states (Rhode Island wasn’t there) met in Philadelphia to “revise the Articles only.”

1)Among them were people like Jefferson, Hamilton, Franklin, and Madison.

2)However, people like Jefferson, John and Sam Adams, Thomas Pain, Hancock, and Patrick Henry were not there (for various purposes).

  1. Patriots in Philadelphia – of the 55 white male delegates

1)Most were college-educated and relatively young (averaging in their early forties)

2)They were far wealthier than the average American of their day

3)They were well acquainted with issues of law and politics

4)They hoped to preserve the union, protect the American democracy from abroad and preserve it at home, and curb the unrestrained democracy rampant in various states (like rebellions, etc…).

  1. Delegates voted to conduct their meetings in secret

1)George Washington was unanimously elected chairperson

2)Benjamin Franklin, the elder statesman at age 81, provided a calming and unifying influence

3)The work in fashioning specific articles of the Constitution was directed by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris, and John Dickinson

4)John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Thomas Paine were on diplomatic business abroad

5)Samuel Adams and John Hancock were not chosen as delegates

6)Patrick Henry, who opposed any growth in federal power, refused to take part in the convention

Hammering out a Bundle of Compromises

  1. Nationalists quickly took control of the convention

1)Americans in the 1780s distrusted government and feared the abuse of powers

2)The delegates wanted to make sure that the new constitution would be based on a system of checks and balances

  1. Some people decided to totally scrap the Articles and create a new Constitution.
  2. Especially divisive was the issue of whether the larger states should have proportionately more representatives in Congress than the smaller states

1)Virginia’s large state plan called for Congressional representation based on state population, while New Jersey’s small state plan called for equal representation from all states (in terms of numbers, each state got the same number of reps.)

2)Afterwards, the “Great Compromise” was worked out so that Congress would have TWO houses, the House of Representatives, were reps were based on population, and the Senate, where each state got two reps.

  1. All tax bills would start in the House.
  1. Also, there would be a strong, independent executive branch with a president who would be military commander in chief and could veto legislation.

1)The delegates limited the president’s term of office to four years but set no limit to the number of terms to which a president could be reelected

2)Rather than having the people elect a president directly, delegates decided to assign each state a number of electors equal to the total of that state’s representatives and senators

  1. Electoral College – delegates feared too much democracy could lead to mob rule
  1. Also, slaves would count as 3/5 of a person in census counts.

1)Also, the Constitution enabled a state to shut off slave importation if it wanted after 1807.

  1. The Commercial Compromise allowed Congress to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, including tariffs on foreign imports, but it prohibited placing taxes on any exports

Safeguards for Conservatism

  1. The delegates at the Convention all believed in a system with checks and balances, and the more conservative people deliberately erected safeguards against excesses of mobs.
  2. Federal chief justices were appointed for life.
  3. However, the people still had power, and government was based on the people.
  4. By the end of the Convention, on Sept. 17, 1787, only 42 of the original 55 were still there to sign the Constitution

The Clash of Federalists and Anti-Federalists

  1. Knowing that state legislatures were certainly veto the new Constitution, the Founding Fathers sent copies of it out to state conventions, where it could be debated and voted upon.

1)The people could judge it themselves.

  1. The American people were shocked, because they had expected a patched up Articles of the Confederation and had received a whole new Constitution (the Convention had been VERY well concealed and kept secret).
  2. The federalists, who favored the proposed stronger government, were against the antifederalists, who were opposed.

1)The antifederalists were mostly the poor farmers, the illiterate, and states’ rights devotees; it was basically the poorer classes.

2)The federalists were more respectable and generally embraced the cultured and propertied groups, and many were former Loyalists.

  1. Antifederalists truthfully cried that it was drawn up by aristocratic elements and was therefore antidemocratic.
  2. They decried the dropping of annual elections of congressional reps and the erecting of what would become WashingtonD.C., and the creation of a standing army.

The Great Debate in the States

  1. Elections were run to elect people into the state conventions.
  2. Four small states quickly ratified the Constitution, and Pennsylvania was the first large state to act.
  3. In Massachusetts, a hard fought race between the supporters and detractors (including Samuel Adams, the “Engineer of Revolution” who now resisted change), and Massachusetts finally ratified it after a promise of a bill of rights to be added later.

1)Had this state not ratified, it would have brought the whole thing down.

  1. In June 1788, New Hampshire was the ninth state to vote yes for ratification of the Constitution

The Four Laggard States

  1. Virginia, knowing that it could not be an independent state (the Constitution was about to be ratified by the 9th state, New Hampshire, anyway), so it finally ratified by a vote of 89 to 79.

1)Anti-Federalists rallied behind George Mason and Patrick Henry, who viewed the Constitution, and a strong central government as threats to Americans’ hard-won liberty

2)Federalists, led by Washington, Mason, and John Marshall, managed to prevail by a close vote only after promising a bill of rights

  1. New York was swayed by The Federalist Papers, written by John Jay, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, and finally yielded after realizing that it could prosper apart from the union.
  2. North Carolina(1789) and Rhode Island(1790) finally ratified after intense pressure from the government.

A Conservative Triumph

  1. The minority had triumphed again, and the transition had been peaceful.
  2. Only about ¼ of the adult white males in the country (mainly those with land) had voted for the ratifying delegates.
  3. Conservationism was victorious, as the safeguards had been erected against mob-rule excesses.
  4. Revolutionaries against Britain had been upended by revolutionaries against the Articles.

1)It was a type of counterrevolution.

  1. Federalists believed that every branch of government effectively represented the people, unlike antifederalists who believed that only the legislative branch did so.
  2. In the United States, conservatives and radicals alike have championed the heritage of democratic revolution.

A New Ship on an Uncertain Ship

  1. In 1789, the new U.S. Constitution was launched, and population was doubling every twenty years.

1)America’s population was still 90% rural, with 5% west of the Appalachians.

2)Vermont became the 14th state in 1791, and Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio (states where trans-Appalachian overflow was concentrated) became states soon after.

3)Visitors looked down upon the crude, rough pioneers, and these western people were restive and dubiously loyal at best.

  1. In the twelve years after American independence, laws had been broken and a constitution had been completely scrapped and replaced with a new one, something that was not best of government
  2. America was also heavily in debt, and paper money was worthless, but meanwhile, restless monarchs watched to see if the U.S. could succeed in setting up a republic while facing such overwhelming odds.

Adding the Bill of Rights

  1. Anti-Federalists argued as follows:

1)Americans had fought the Revolutionary War to escape the tyranny of a central government in Britain

2)Only by adding a bill of rights could Americans be protected against a strong central government acting in a tyrannical manner

  1. Federalists argued:

1)Since members of Congress would be elected by the people, they did not need to be protected against themselves

2)It was better to assume that all rights were protected than to create a limited list of rights, since unscrupulous officials could than assert that unlisted rights could be violated at will

  1. Federalists finally promised to add a bill of rights to the Constitution as the first order of business of a newly elected Congress

The First Ten Amendments

  1. In 1789, the first Congress elected under the Constitution acted quickly to adopt a number of amendments listing the people’s rights
  2. Drafted largely by James Madison, the amendments were submitted to the states for ratification
  3. The ten that were adopted in 1791 have been known ever since as the U.S. Bill of Rights
  4. Rights guaranteed in each amendment:

1)First Amendment – Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition; separation of church and state

2)Second Amendment – Right to bear arms

3)Third Amendment – People cannot be required to quarter soldiers during peacetime

4)Fourth Amendment – Government may not carry out unreasonable searches and seizures of the people’s property

5)Fifth Amendment – No individual may be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; no defendant in a criminal case may be forced to give evidence against himself or herself or to stand trial twice for the same crime (double jeopardy)

6)Sixth Amendment – Anyone accused of a crime has the right to a speedy and public trial and the right to call and question witnesses

7)Seventh Amendment –In most civil cases (one person suing another in court), citizens have the right to trial by jury

8)Eighth Amendment – Persons accused or convicted of crimes are protected against excessive bail and fines and cruel and unusual punishment

9)Ninth Amendment – Any rights not specifically mentioned in the Constitution are also guaranteed against government infringement

10)Tenth Amendment – All powers not delegated to the federal government belong to the states or to the people

Washington’s Pro-Federalist Regime

  1. At 6’2”, 175 pounds, broad and sloping shoulders, a strongly pointed chin and pockmarks from Smallpox, George Washington was an imposing figure, which helped in his getting unanimously drafted as president by the Electoral College in 1789.
  2. His long journey from Mt.Vernon to New York (capital at the time) was a triumphant procession filled with cheering crowds and roaring festivities, and he took his oath of office on April 30, 1789, on a balcony overlooking Wall Street.
  3. Washington established a diverse cabinet (which was not necessary, Constitution-wise).

3)Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson

4)Secretary of the Treasury: Alexander Hamilton

5)Secretary of War: Henry Knox

Federal Court System

  1. The only federal court mentioned in the Constitution is the Supreme Court
  2. Congress was given the power to create other federal courts with lesser powers and to determine the number of justices making up the Supreme Court
  3. Judiciary Act of 1789 – established a Supreme Court with one chief justice and five associate justices

1)This act provided for a system of 13 district courts and three circuit courts of appeals

  1. The highest court was empowered to rule on the constitutionality of decisions made by state courts

Hamilton’s Financial Program

  1. Secretary of the Treasury presented Congress a comprehensive plan for putting U.S. finances on a firm and stable foundation
  2. Hamilton proposed:

1)Pay off the national debt at face value and have the federal government assume the war debts of the states

2)Protect the young nation’s “infant” industries and collect adequate revenues at the same time by imposing high tariffs on imported goods

3)Create a national bank for depositing government funds and for printing banknotes that would provide the basis for a stable U.S. currency

  1. Support for this program came chiefly form northern merchants, who would gain directly from high tariffs and a stabilized currency
  2. Southern Anti-Federalists viewed Hamilton’s program as benefiting only the rich at the expense of indebted farmers

Hamilton Revises the Corpse of Public Credit

  1. Born in the British West Indies, his loyalty to the U.S. was often questioned, even though he claimed he loved his adopted country more than his native country.
  2. He urged the federal government to assume its debts ($54 million) and try to pay them off at face value, PLUS interest, as well as assume the debts of the states ($21.5 million).

1)Massachusetts had a huge debt, but Virginia didn’t, so there needed some haggling. This was because Virginia felt it unfair that all debts were to be assumed, instead of just a set amount. Essentially, its rival states would be at the same level as it even though they had obtained larger debts.

2)Virginia would have the District of Columbia built on its land (therefore gaining prestige) in return for letting the government assume all the states’ debts.

  1. The “Funding at Par” would gain the support of the rich to the federal government, not the states.

Custom Duties and Excise Taxes

  1. With the national debt at a huge $75 million, Alexander Hamilton was strangely unworried.
  2. He used the debt as an asset: the more people the government owed money to, the more people who would care about what would happen to the U.S.
  3. To pay off some of the debt, Hamilton first proposed custom duties, and the first one, imposing a low tariff of about 8% of the value of dutiable imports, was passed in 1789.

1)Hamilton also wanted to protect America’s infant industries, though since the U.S. was still dominated by agricultural programs, little was done for that.

  1. In 1791, Hamilton secured an excise tax on a few domestic items, notably whiskey (7 cents per gallon).

Hamilton Battles Jefferson for a Bank

  1. Hamilton proposed for a national treasury, to be a private institution modeled after the Bank of England, to have the federal government as a major stockholder, to circulate cash to stimulate businesses, to store excess money, and to print money that was worth something, and was opposed by Jefferson.
  2. Hamilton’s Views:

1)What was not forbidden in the Constitution was permitted.

2)A bank was “necessary and proper” (from Constitution).

3)He evolved the Elastic Clause.

  1. Jefferson’s Views:

1)What was not permitted was forbidden.

2)A bank should be a state controlled item (9th Amendment).

3)The Constitution should be interpreted literally and strictly.

  1. End result: Hamilton won, and Washington reluctantly signed the bank measure into law; the Bank of the Untied States was created by Congress in 1791, and was chartered for 20 years

1)It was located in Philadelphia and was to have a capital of $10 million.

2)Stock was thrown open to public sale, and surprisingly, a milling crowd oversubscribed in two hours.

Mutinous Moonshiners in Pennsylvania

  1. In 1794, in western Pennsylvania, the Whiskey Rebellion flared up when fed up farmers revolted against Hamilton’s excise tax.

1)Around those parts, liquor and alcohol was often used as money.

  1. Washington cautiously sent an army of about 13,000 troops from various states to the revolt, but the soldiers found nothing upon arrival; the rebels had scattered.
  2. Washington’s new presidency now commanded new respect, but antifederalists criticized the government’s use of a giant to crush a gnat.

Embroilments with Britain