Constitution

1
Constitution
2
Articles Of Confederation

• Unicameral legislature where each state had one
  vote.
• Could Could not
• Make laws - Tax
• Control military - Enforce laws
• Organize treaties - Regulate trade
• 
  Establish national
• 
  courts
• - Control money supply
• Federal system Power is divided between
  national and state governments.

3
The End of the AOC

• The Articles proved to be too weak for the
  country.
• Shays rebellion A group of farmers in
  Massachusetts were in debt because of heavy state
  taxes. 1200 rebelled but were defeated.

4
Constitutional Convention

• May 25, 1787 55 delegates from 12 states met in
  Philadelphia.
• The purpose of the meeting was to revise the
  Articles of Confederation.
• The delegates agreed on four things
• 1. Throw out the articles.
• 2. Each state had one vote regardless on the
  amount of delegates.
• 3. Keep it secret for 25 years.
• 4. George Washington would be in charge.

5
Plans of Government
Virginia James Madison 1. Bicameral legislature based on population. 2. Strong Executive Branch 3. National Court System
New Jersey William Patterson 1. Unicameral legislature with equal representation. 2. Strong Executive Branch 3. National Court system
Connecticut Roger Sherman 1. Bicameral legislature Upper house equal and lower house based on population. 2. Strong Executive Branch 3. National Court system
6
Constitutional Compromises
Compromise Details
Great Bicameral legislature Upper Equal (Senate) Lower Based on population (House of Rep)
Three-Fifths One slave equals three-fifths of a person for the purposes of taxation and representation.
Slave trade Congress can control all aspects of foreign and interstate trade, but they can not stop the slave trade until it is re-addressed in twenty years.
Executive The Executive branch will be lead by one individual called President and will be elected every four years by the Electoral College.
7
Ratification

• Nine out of 13 states had to ratify the
  Constitution.
• It was signed by the delegates on September 17,
  1787.
• Federalists supported the Constitution. They
  wrote a series of essays called the Federalist
  papers that were published in newspapers across
  the country. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton,
  and John Jay were the writers defending the
  Constitution.
• Anti-federalists were those that opposed the
  Constitution. That felt that too much power was
  given to the National government. They wanted a
  bill of rights.
• June 21, 1788 New Hampshire became the ninth
  state to ratify the Constitution. Rhode Island
  was the 13th state to ratify it in 1790.

8
Constitution

• Supreme law of the land.
• Provides the framework for government in the
  United States.
• All powers of each branch of government are in
  the Constitution.

9
Constitution breakdown

• 1. Preamble
• 2. Seven Articles
• I. Legislative Branch
• II. Executive Branch
• III. Judicial Branch
• IV. Relations among states
• V. Amending process
• VI. National Supremacy
• VII. Ratification process
• 3. Twenty-seven amendments

10
Checks and Balances

• The powers of the government are divided into
  three branches
• Legislative Congress (House of Reps. And
  Senate) Make laws
• Executive President. Enforce laws.
• Judicial Supreme Court. Interpret laws.
• The system of checks and balances keeps one
  branch of government from becoming too powerful.

11
Four basic principles

• The Constitution was designed on four basic
  principles
• Popular Sovereignty
• Limited Government
• Federalism
• Separation of powers

12
Popular Sovereignty

• The right of the people to rule themselves
  (vote).
• Voters elect representatives and through the
  Electoral College, they elect a president.
• The president and representatives are there to
  serve the people.

13
Limited government

• A danger is that the majority may deny rights to
  the minority.
• The Constitution protects the rights of all
  Americans.
• The Bill of Rights was added later to secure the
  rights of the people.

14
Separation of Powers

• Montesquieu believed that executive, legislative,
  and judicial powers should be separated.
• The constitution separates powers and
  incorporates a system of checks and balances.

15
Federalism

• National government shares power with the states.
• This gives Americans freedom to provide for their
  own needs.
• The main reason is sectional differences.

16
Federalism Continued

• Types of Power
• Enumerated Powers given to the national
  government. Can be expressed or implied (Elastic
  clause).
• Reserved Powers given to the state governments.
• Concurrent Powers shared between national and
  state.

17
Amending Process

• Process to formally change the Constitution.
• An amendment must be proposed and ratified.
• An amendment can be proposed by a 2/3 vote from
  both houses of Congress or by a national
  convention called by 2/3 of the state
  legislatures. The national convention has never
  occurred.
• An amendment can be ratified by the approval of ¾
  of the state legislatures or by special ratifying
  conventions that pass in ¾ of the states. The
  ratifying convention has occurred only once.

18
Interpretation

• Loose interpretation Congress can make any law
  that the constitution does not specifically
  forbid.
• Strict interpretation Congress can only make
  laws that the constitution gives them direct
  authority over.
• The Supreme Court interprets the constitution and
  can declare laws unconstitutional.