In aspirations of revising the Articles, a group of nationalists met in Philadelphia and formed the constitutional convention. Headed by Madison, a political theorists, proposed a whole new form of government, presently known as The US Constitution. The Constitution was necessary for survival and establishing the undeniable need for balance. When comparing these two crucial documents, you recognize their similarities are structured in the foundation. Both the Articles and Constitution had the same goal in mind and illustrated independence.
Jefferson and the Jeffersonian Republicans believed that the authority of the federal government was based on a strict constitution. The Federalists believed in the opposite. Federalists believed that the constitution should be interpreted in a loose and broader way. The Federalists were able to make decisions that were not written word for word in the constitution. Jefferson states his disagreements with James Madison when he says, “Our country is too large to have all its affairs directed by a single government.” (Document A).
Brutus says in his essay that this power given to the federal government will take away all of the state government’s power to collect taxes and that the constitutions and treaties of the states will become null. Hamilton denies this by explaining that the structure of the proposed federal government will preserve the state constitutions. What Hamilton says about this seems to go against Article 6 of the Constitution, which says that the law of the Constitution will be supreme over the states. Brutus’ Essay V seems to say the same thing over and over again. Many of the things that he lists as problems to the nation are things that we love about our government today.
The major principles of the constitution were the idea of popular sovereignty, representative Government, Limited government, Personal and economic freedom, separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism. Unit 1 ends off into explaining the ideas of Federalism. Federalism is defined a power shared between national, state, and local governments. The unit goes into the specifics on federal division on power, the Enumerated Powers are powers listed specifically in the Constitution that are given to the federal government. And the Implied Powers are national powers not listed in the Constitution but that have expanded over time, also known as the Elastic Clause.
President Woodrow Wilson wrote “the he Constitution of the United States is not a mere lawyers’ document, it is a vehicle of life and its spirit is always the spirit of the age.” One must keep this fact in mind when comparing the Constitution and the Articles of Confederation. There was a vast difference in the “spirit of the age” when these documents were drafted. Coming on the heels of the Declaration of Independence and the war against England, and afraid of a dictatorship or a government that did not listen to its people, the Articles of Confederation (which will be referred to as AoC) were written it a way that gave more power to the states. The problem with this type of government was that it was too difficult to enact or enforce laws and the government could not collect enough taxes to support itself. I believe the Constitution did a better job of protecting liberties, specifically in the areas of the federal court system, representation of the people, and the levy of taxes.
The Federalists were usually characterized as loose constructionists, which meant they focused more on the intent of the constitution and its framers, and believed that changes were necessary for the development of the nation. Although Republicans and Federalists were characterized as having these particular views towards the enactment of the Constitution, when Jefferson and Madison served as Presidents during the beginning of the 19th century from 1800 to 1817, it was proven that even though they seemed to believe in their own views, in reality when time came, they started changing their beliefs and becoming both strict and loose constructionists for the good of the nation, which was strongly advocated by Henry Clay and his American System. The same would occur for the Federalists, so generally, each side did not accurately characterize itself during the early 19th century and proved each side had its similar interest when interpreting the Constitution. Before Jefferson became President in 1800, The Federalists dominated national politics for the first decade of America’s governmental history because of George Washington and John Adams favoring Federalist views. It was not until the
A. Students will analyze historical documents to determine principles that served as precedents for the United States Constitution. • define individual and group values o What is a value? Ideas which groups/individual believe strongly and guide their behavior. o List and define the values and principles of democracy Limited government-the govt is limited in their power Change or abolish government-if the govt is not doing their job we can change it Individual right and freedom-everyone has their rights and freedom Consent of government-the power comes from the people Majority/Minority Rule-majority makes decision Equality-everyone is equal o Why are the values
Thomas Paine, was an Englishman against British policy, and defended a democratic theory of government. Common Sense shows the advantage of independence, who put forward that Americans should create their own political system. Therefore, Common Sense gave a voice to many colonies who wished to break from the British government, it was useful not only to American, but also Africa and India. Most importantly, Common Sense present the natural rights, such as freedom of press, freedom of religion. As Paine argued that "There is something absurd in supposing a Continent to be perpetually governed by an island".
The controversy of the argument was on the basis that, “there was an inherent connection between the states and the preservation of individual liberty, which is the end of any legitimate government.” Their own argument have invariably created a national government instead of a federal government. This is because “the federal form, which regards the Union as a confederacy of sovereign states, instead of which, they have framed a national government, which regards the Union as a consolidation of the states.” Anti-federalists were against constructing a new constitution and they agreed that without valid amendments the constitution would give the government too much power. This power would then lead to confusion according to the (Centinel 1787) “ The new constitution instead of being panacea or cure of every grievance so delusively represented by its advocated will be found upon examination like Pandora’s box replete with every
Federalist No. 51 OVERVIEW The framework of the American government today--a representative government with a strong federal government--was laid out in a series of essays or treatises collectively called the Federalist Papers. The author of Federalist Paper 51 is not known. The author argues that the Constitution's federal system and separation of powers will protect the rights of the people. GUIDED READING As you read, consider the following questions: • Why is the author so concerned with the distribution of power between the parts of government?