Transcript The Constitution

The Constitution
W I L S O N ( 1 0 TH E D I T I O N ) , C H A P T E R 2
D127
It’s too late to compromise…
Articles of Confederation
 In effect from 1781 to (1788ish)1789
 Each state retained its sovereignty and independence
 Each state had one vote in Congress
 9 of 13 votes were required to pass any law
 Delegates were not elected, appointed by state legislatures
More about Articles of Confederation
 Congress could make peace
 Congress could coin money
 Congress could appoint the key army officers
 But army was dependent on support of state militias
 Congress could organize the Post Office
 Pennsylvania and Virginia went to war
 Vermont threatened to succeed to Cananda
Major Article Failures
 No power to tax – Congress had to request funds
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from states
No power to regulate commerce. Making it very
difficult to create a national economy.
No national judicial system to settle claims disputes
between states
(Did have) the power to maintain an army and navy,
yet lacked the resources to do it
13 votes required to amend the Articles. This
essentially gave every state the veto power.
Shays Rebellion
 1786 – band of farmers in Massachusetts
 Protested their loss of land to creditors
 A series of attacks on courthouses to keep judges from
foreclosing on farms
 Neither national army or Massachusetts could raise a
militia to put down the rebellion
 Eventually, a privately funded force was organized
 The rebellion showed the weakness of the Articles and
convinced us to that a bold solution was needed.
** Key Turning Point that Articles Would Not Work
Big States or Little States… Representation
 New Jersey Plan – Equal Representation
 Virginia Plan – Representation based on Population
 Great Compromise – Connecticut Compromise
 Creates a Bicameral (2 House) legislature
Senate – Equal (2 per state, today = 100)
 House – Population (today=435)
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Ratification
 Required 9 of 13 states
 Technically illegal under the Articles
 Bill of Rights (Amendments 1 thru 10) ratified in
1791
Who were the founders?
 Variety of middle/upper class occupations
 Most founders were less wealthy than the loyalists –
most were in descent financial shape, but not rich
 Charles Beard – theorist that believes the framers
were motivated by economics/money – not widely
supported today, but you should be familiar with
him
James Madison the Architect
 Separation of Powers – each branch is given independent
powers
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Judicial – interpret the law
Legislative – make the law
Executive – enforce the law
 Checks and Balances – ensures that no branch abuses or
gets too much power
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See next slide for examples
 Limits on the Majority
 Fear in democracy, thus the House was only position elected by the
people
 Senate by state legislatures (until 17th Amendment), President by
Electoral College, Judges by president (confirmed by Senate)
 Federalism
 Political authority is divided between national and states
(10th Amendment)
Government Powers
 Enumerated Powers - national
 Print money, declare war, make treaties, conduct foreign
affairs, regulate commerce among states and foreign nations
 Reserved Powers - states
 Issue licenses, regulate economy w/in state, education, police,
voting rules/practice (age is set by 26th Amendment)
 Concurrent Powers - shared
 Collecting taxes, building roads, borrowing money, and court
systems
** National Government would be supreme and sovereign, but
certain authorities would be delegated and shared with states
Amendment Process
 Article V of the Constitution
 2/3 ------- ¾
Reviewing Ratification
 2/3 Proposal
 ¾ Ratification
Proposal Methods
1) 2/3 vote of both houses of Congress
2) 2/3 of state legislatures request a national convention
Ratification
1) ¾ of state legislatures
2) Special state conventions in ¾ of states
** Nearly all additional amendments focus on equity or
voting
 Informal Changes: Judicial Review – Marbury v.
Madison
The Checks and Balances
Congress
Can Check the Presidency in these ways:
 By refusing to pass a bill the presidents want
 By passing a law over the president’s veto
 By using the impeachment powers to remove the
president from office
 By refusing to approve a presidential appointment
(Senate only)
 By refusing to ratify a treaty the president has signed
(Senate only)
Checks and Balances
Congress
Can check the federal courts:
 By changing the number and jurisdiction of the
lower courts
 By using the impeachment powers to remove a judge
from office
 By refusing to approve a person nominated to be a
judge (Senate only)
Checks and Balances
The President:
 Can check Congress by vetoing a bill it has passed
 Can check the federal courts by nominating judges
The Courts:
 Can check Congress by declaring a law
unconstitutional
 Can check the president by declaring actions by him
or his subordinates to be unconstitutional or not
authorized by law
Useful Terms
 Demagogue - is a strategy for gaining political
power by appealing to the prejudices, emotions, fears
and expectations of the public—typically via
impassioned rhetoric and propaganda, and often
using nationalist, populist or religious themes
 Popular Sovereignty – power in the people
 All Unit 1 Vocabulary
Questions?
 Test layout – 30 to 40 Multiple Choice
 5 Choices per question