Dbq Ratification

At that time congress had no real power because of the Articles of Confederation the US had adopted in 1777. Congress had to rely on contributions from the existing states. Needing and knowing that a change was needed the delegates from different states met to form a new plan of action. One that would give congress more power, equal representation for each state, form a new structure of government and the way it would run to benefit the United States of America. This is why the convention of 1778 was announced, during this convention two different plans were presented. The two plans that were presented was the The Virginia Plan and The New Jersey Plan. The Virginia plan was drafted by James Madison. While he waited for a an appropriate number of delegates to gather at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. The Virginia plan gave all power to the government. The New Jersey Plan was a proposal to structure the United States Government which was presented by William Paterson also at the Constitutional Convention 1787. This plan limited the power of the congress instead of giving more power. These were two different plans and views.

David O. Stewart’s The Summer of 1787: the Men Who Wrote the Constitution provides an un-biased historical account on how the constitution came to be. The book begins in post-revolutionary war America under the failed Articles of Confederation to the constitutional convention and through the ratification process of the constitution. It provides the readers with an in depth look at the hard ball the founding fathers played to create a government that could deal with a violent rebellion, mass debt, and the states conflicting goals. The goal of The Summer of 1787 the Men Who Wrote the Constitution is to enlighten readers on how the constitution came to be by illustrating how the founding fathers personalities affected the process by providing a deeper look into these key figures personal life’s and how their experiences shaped their political views.

In 1787, the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution to establish a new, stronger government for the United States. During George Washington’s presidency in the 1790s, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson argued over the role of the government as dictated by the Constitution. As a result, a two party system consisting of the Hamiltonian Federalists and the Jeffersonian Republicans emerged. To some extent, James Madison and Thomas Jefferson reflected the policies and beliefs of the Federalist Hamilton.

In the years 1787 and 1788 right after the Constitutional Convention, many people argued over the context of the constitution. The ratification started when the Congress turned the Constitution over to the state legislatures. Because most of the framers had already decided to discard the Articles of Confederation when drafting the Constitution, the lack of people following the articles made the legislatures feel that an unanimous vote was unnecessary. The delegates agreed that approval from only 9 of the 13 states would be adequate to ratify the United States Constitution. However, the process to ratifying the constitution was difficult including groups of people and regions who supported or opposed the ratification.

The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, but there was a grapple for its ratification that went on until about two decades after the ratification. Members of Congress believed that the first government of the United States or the Articles of Confederation, needed to be adjusted while others did not want anything to change. After the Revolutionary War, the people did not want a strong central government, because it reminded them too much of what they were trying to escape from. Under the Articles, each state had their own laws, and the need for a new Constitution was desired by many. The Constitution of 1787 created huge debates, arguments and splits in the nation that lasted for several year after its ratification between people who

Following the Revolutionary War, America had just gained independance from Great Britain and needed to form a new government. The Articles of Confederation were established as an attempt to create a government that was unlike Britain’s. Unfortunately, the Articles of Confederation had several weaknesses. When in the process of repairing those weaknesses, the Federalists and the Anti-federalists formed. The Articles of Confederation were very weak as well as useless to America and because of this, the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists could not agree on a new type of government.

After a fiercely fought revolution, the newly independent American nation struggled to establish a concrete government amidst an influx of opposing ideologies. Loosely tied together by the Articles of Confederation, the thirteen sovereign states were far from united. As growing schisms in American society became apparent, an array of esteemed, prominent American men united in 1787 to form the basis of the United States government: the Constitution. Among the most eminent members of this convention were Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson. These men, held to an almost godly stature, defined the future of the nation; but were their intentions as honest as they seemed? Joseph J. Ellis’s groundbreaking Founding Brothers

A world without alcohol is hard to believe. Most of today 's society wouldn’t be able to wrap their head around it. In the United States prohibition was a nationwide ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages it remained in place from 1920 to 1933. When the 18th amendment was passed in the year 1919 America was asking for chaos. With everything that affected the United States during prohibition, it is because of the increase in crime, weak enforcement, lack of respect for the law, and economic suffrage that the 18th amendment was repealed.

Over the year’s federalism has taken on many forms within our federal system. The distribution of powers within these many forms of federal systems has had to adapt to each of these forms in order to keep up with the times. The federal system initially was set up to serve the 13 original colonies and was able to maintain their own powers given by the powers vested in each colonies individual constitutions. Federalism or the split of power between colonies and the federal or nation governing body was simply to form agreements among one another in regards to laws. The state governments possessed the powers given to them by their state constitutions which was known as reserved powers and concurrent powers were state and federal government

This development is more characterized by elitism than it is the case of pluralism in nature since many unfolding events or outcomes are more typical of the elite form of worldviews and actions. One of the major factors associated with this is that the associates to the constitutional convention comprised majorly of those of European decent, affluent associates of the “upper class.” This particular group of people sought a strong central administration that was meant to congeal their own power, influence, and interest in the best way they wanted it to become. Even though the convention was alleged to have been held with the view of modifying the articles of the confederation that had been guiding administration, other partakers thought otherwise. This is so because, Hamilton and Madison fought for an absolutely novel form of administration that they deemed more superior and suitable than the one that was in place those

During the Revolutionary era, the birth of the U.S. Constitution gave way to the political divide between the two polarizing philosophies of Federalists and Anti-Federalists. After the economic pitfalls and decentralization the Articles of Confederation had left behind, action was taken to ameliorate its failures. With the creation of the Federalist party in by founder Alexander Hamilton, its members advocated for a stronger national government and defended the validity of the Constitution’s ratification. Contrarily, the Constitution was met with skepticism on behalf of the Anti-Federalists, who believed it would undermine state sovereignty and infringe upon their human rights. The two parties hailed from different socioeconomic backgrounds,

The United States Constitution was created to define the powers and limitations of the government. It replaced the Articles of the Confederation, and was ratified by all 13 states in 1787 (American Government, n.d.). The ratification of the Constitution was not without opposition, and the government was split into two groups: federalists, and anti-federalists. The federalist group believed that a national governing body, ruled by the elite class was necessary. Antifederalists, on the other hand, believed that state governments should have more say, and that the government should be run by ordinary people (American Government, n.d.).

Jefferson and his fellow Americans experienced this firsthand under British Rule. As a result, the first governing document of the US created a federal government far too weak to function. To rectify this situation, the founding fathers created a new Constitution. However, there were disagreements between differing political parties that led to a compromise.

Each party present during the drafting of the Constitution had their own ideas about what it should accomplish. As a result, it was very difficult to formulate a document that appeased all groups and parties, who often voiced their opinions of how it should be written. The U.S. Constitution was the father of many worries concerning the rights of the people, the role of government, and the balance between the aristocrats and poor, the government and the people.

The Great Compromise which was founded at the Constitutional Convention wasn't formed without trouble. Many of the delegates that participated in the convention were wealthy landowners and lawyers, who owned many slaves. They failed to notice the diversity that excited within the nation. As they talked how to repair the Articles of Confederation, issues would arise that would create continuous debates amongst each other. One of the issues that would arise would be the nature of the new government. The plan proposed by Virginia otherwise known as the “large-state plan.” Which proposed “a bicameral legislature, in which the lower house would be elected proportionately and the upper house would be selected from a list of nominees sent from the state legislatures on the basis of equal representation for the states.”(add footnote) As the smaller states feared that this plan would lose a voice in the federal government if they continued with the Virginia plan, they opposed this plan and came up with one for themselves which would be known as the “small-state plan.” The small-state plan would propose “a unicameral Congress, with equal representation for each state, with all the powers of the Confederation Congress.”(add footnote)