3.2 Constitutional Convention

http://www.shmoop.com/video/constitutional-conventionVideo

How does compromise function in the development of the government?

Essential Question

Constitutional ConventionWho?

When?

Where?

What?

Why?

55 delegates from states

Summer 1787

Philadelphia, Penn.

Political meeting

To revise the Articles of Confederation

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Debating Issues at the Convention

• To create a new constitution, the delegates must resolve a series of issues. • Issue #1: How should states be

represented in the new government? • Issue #2: Should slaves be counted for

representation?• Issue #3: How should the national

executive be elected?

Issue #1 How should states be represented?

Debate:

Should states have equal representation?Should rep. be based on population?

Representation: Speaking or acting on behalf of someonepeople vote for others to make decisions for

them Debate:

Should states have equal representation?Should rep. be based on population?

RepresentationVirginia Plan

Larger states

Bicameral legislature 2 houses

# of reps based on populationBigger states get

more votesStrong national

executive

New Jersey PlanSmaller states

Unicameral legislature1 house

Each state has one vote

Weak executive

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Great CompromiseDesigner: Roger ShermanBicameral legislature - Congress

House of Representatives: PopulationSenate: 2 reps. from each state

* Large states have advantage in the House & smaller states are protected in Senate

Representation

Issue #2: Should slaves count in the population?

SlavesNorth wanted slaves counted for taxation

but not representationhad fewer slaves than Southern statesdidn’t want slaves to count toward

representation: less votesdid want slaves to count toward taxes:

more taxes

Note: Every 30,000 people get one vote in Congress

SlavesSouth wanted slaves counted for

representation but not taxationhad more slaves than Northern statesdid want slaves to count toward

representation: more votesdidn’t want slaves to count toward taxes: less

taxes

Slaves

3/5’s CompromiseEach slave counts as 3/5 of a person

So 500 slaves = 300 votes for population

Slaves counted for population and taxationMade a mockery of the statement that "all men

are created equal"Why??? Seemed the only way to keep the

convention moving forward

Issue #3: How should the chief executive be elected?

Who would head the new government's executive branch? James Wilson proposed a single person serve as chief

executiveWilson explained that good gov. depends on timely

& responsible leadershipmost likely to be found in a single person

Opposition to a single leaderBrought to mind memories of King George IIIEdmund Randolph: 3-member executive

3 people from different parts of the countryBenjamin Franklin: "The first man put at the helm

will be a good one," said Franklin, thinking of George Washington. "Nobody knows what sort may come afterwards."

Electing the Chief Executive

Compromise:Single executive, or presidentLimited the term to 4 years

Why? Keep him from becoming a monarch

A vice president was also to be elected to fill that term if the president died in office

Electing the Chief Executive

How to choose James Madison: Congress should appoint him

Gouverneur Morris objected: The president "must not be made a flunky of the Congress"

Gouverneur Morris: People should elect himJames Madison objected: Would vote for

someone from their own state and not be fair to small states

Others suggested that the president be elected by a specially chosen group of "electors" from each state

CompromiseNeither Congress nor the people should

choose the president and vice presidentElectoral College

Electing the Chief Executive

Electoral CollegeElectors cast the votes

Each state’s senators and representativesLeft the method of choosing electors up to each

stateBefore 1820, state legislatures chose electorsToday, the people choose electors when they

voteOriginally, electors voted for two candidates

without saying which one they preferred for president or vice president most votes became pres.& runner-up became

vice pres.caused great confusion in the election of 1800

and was later changed

Resolution: The Electoral College

Video

• Framers were concerned voters would not know enough about candidates outside their own state to choose a president wisely• Within a few years, political parties were nominating

candidates and educating voters in every state about them• The Electoral College still affects presidential elections

• In most states, the candidate who gets the most votes gets all of that state's electoral votes

• A candidate can win a majority in the Electoral College without winning a majority of the votes cast across the country

Compare and ContrastArticles of Confederation

1. Loose confederation of states2. 1 vote in Congress for each state

(unicameral legislature)

3. 2/3 vote necessary in Congress for all important measures

4. Laws were carried out by congressional committees

5. No congressional power over any commerce

6. No congressional power to levy or collect taxes

7. No federal court system8. Unanimous vote needed by states

to amend the Articles9. No authority to make individuals

and states to comply with federal laws

Constitution1. Firm union of people and states2. 2 votes in Senate for each state

plus a House with representation by population (bicameral legislature)

3. Simple majority needed in Congress on most manners but subject to presidential veto

4. Laws were executed by a powerful president

5. Congress regulates foreign and domestic commerce

6. Extensive congressional power to levy and collect taxes

7. Intricate system of federal courts headed by a US Supreme Court

8. Amendment was available through a variety of mechanisms

9. Ample power to enforce laws concerning states and individuals

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Ratification

Ratification of the Constitution

ratify - approvetook 9 of 13 states adopted a two-thirds

ratification rule Ratification would be done

through specially elected constitutional conventions in each state

Federalist Papers Writers: James

Madison, Alexander Hamilton & John Jay

Urged ratification

Problems:Rhode Island and North Carolina

refused to ratify • Congress had to threaten them

with a high tariff to get them to ratify.

• US was on its second constitution in a dozen years with little domestic and foreign confidence in the American government

• Some compromises were built in the Constitution to promote ratification.

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Ratification

Ratification of the ConstitutionThomas Jefferson – strict interpretist

national gov should exercise no powers that are not specifically granted in the Constitution

all unspoken powers are reserved for the state governments

Alexander Hamilton – loose interpretist cited elastic clause of the

Constitution Congress may pass any laws

“necessary and proper” to carry out its granted powers 26

Constitution makes no mention of how candidates would be chosen to run for President, yet parties have been nominating candidates since the 1796 election.

Political parties resulted from ideological clash between Jefferson and Hamilton: interpretation of Constitution financial policy foreign policy

Federalists

led by Hamiltonstrong central govpositive relations with

Englandfavored upper class

Democrat-Republicans

led by Jeffersonstrong state

governmentpositive relations with

Francefavored common man

Ratification of the Constitution

Video: Convention in 10 min

QW #1Write an introductory paragraph to the prompt: How

does compromise function in the development of the government?Introduce the time period, relevant background,

and a thesis statement.

After the American Revolution _________. (what gov was created, how did it work?) In response, leaders ___________________. (what did they do?) However, ____________________. (connect to the idea of compromise) Compromise is _______________ (state how it relates to democracy), as demonstrated in the compromises of the convention: _______________, _____________, and _____________.

QW #1 - SamplePrompt: How does compromise function in the development of the government?

After the American Revolution ended, the new leaders of the United States of America were faced with the challenge of creating a new nation. In response to problems created by the Articles of Confederation, the Constitutional Convention began in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1787. It was here that the founding fathers discussed problems, solutions, and reached compromises. Compromise is an essential component of a democracy, as people with differing ideas come together to participate in government for the good of the nation, as demonstrated in the compromises of the convention: the Great Compromise, the Three-fifths Compromise, and the creation of the Electoral College.