| 1) The First Founding: Interests and Conflicts |
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A) British Taxes and Colonial Interests |
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The British increased taxation on the colonies as an answer to their financial problems following prolonged war with France. |
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Taxes divided the colonial elite and drove their calls for revolution. |
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The demands of the masses for rights and power drove ordinary peoples' calls for revolution. |
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British tea exports threatened colonial merchants, leading to the Boston Tea Party. |
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The Tea party set into motion a chain of events leading to the Continental Congresses and the Declaration of Independence. |
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B) The Declaration of Independence |
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Written by Thomas Jefferson and adopted by the 2nd Continental Congress |
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Asserts unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness |
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Identified specific grievances with King of England, justifying separation to world |
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C) The Articles of Confederation (1781-1787) |
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First written U.S. Constitution, a Confederation of independent states |
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Limited powers of central government |
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No independent judiciary or executive branch |
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Each state had one vote in Congress, and Congress had little power, unable to raise revenue or regulate commerce. |
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| 2) The Second Founding: From Compromise to Constitution |
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A) Shay's Rebellion, winter, 1786 |
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Daniel Shays led armed Massachusetts farmers to prevent bank foreclosures. |
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This showed vulnerability of state government and lack of ability to maintain order. |
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The rebellion prompted Congress to call for representatives to be sent to Philadelphia to discuss constitutional revisions. |
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B) The Constitutional Convention, May 1787 |
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Delegates were from the wealthy, educated class. |
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Marriage of self-interest and philosophical principles motivated the delegates. |
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Great Compromise settled issue of representation between large and small states, finding middle ground between Virginia and New Jersey Plans. |
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3/5 Compromise postponed slavery issue, counting slaves as 3/5 of a person for representation and guaranteeing slavery would continue (until ended by the Civil War.) |
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| 3) The Constitution |
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The framers of the Constitution married interest and principle by creating a government that is capable of defending national interests, promoting commerce, and protecting property. |
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To secure popular consent for the government, the Constitution provides for the direct popular election of representatives and includes the Bill of Rights. |
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To prevent the government from abusing its power, the Constitution incorporates systems of separation of powers and federalism to insure checks and balances. |
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The Bill of Rights was debated and added soon after ratification. |
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A) Legislative Branch |
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Bicameral legislature, composed of House and Senate |
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House is the most democratic and thus most directly responsible to the people. |
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Senate guards against 'excessive democracy' with members appointed for longer terms. |
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Powers include collecting taxes, borrowing money, regulating commerce, declaring war, and maintaining armed forces. |
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Elastic clause and enumerated powers were a source of strength for national government. |
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B) Executive Branch |
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Independent, energetic executive |
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Power to appoint ambassadors and negotiate treaties, veto power |
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Indirect election through electoral college |
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C) Judicial Branch |
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Supreme Court resolves conflicts that might emerge between state and federal governments. |
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Jurisdiction over controversies between citizens of different states |
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Lifetime appointment to guard against popular influence |
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No explicit mention of judicial review |
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| 4) The Fight for Ratification |
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9 of 13 states needed to ratify |
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Federalists versus Antifederalists |
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Disagreed about representation, degree of threats posed by majority rule, and appropriate amount of national governmental power |
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A) Antifederalist arguments against the Constitution |
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Government is too strong, state sovereignty destroyed, Congress and Presidency are too strong, demanded bill of rights to stop tyranny of the national majority |
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B) Federalist arguments in favor of the Constitution |
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National government needs to be this strong and energetic, this government will be very limited and appropriately representative, promised a Bill of Rights, unity is necessary |
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| 5) Changing the Institutional Framework: Constitutional Amendment |
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Out of nearly 10,000 amendments offered in Congress, the Constitution has been changed or amended only twenty-seven times. |
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Since ten of the amendments occurred in the first few years of U.S. history and two cancel each other out (prohibition), the Constitution has been amended only fifteen times since 1791. |
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The fifteen amendments are concerned with the structure or composition of government and expansion of electorate. |
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Article V describes the amendment process, which requires two-thirds of Congress to accept an amendment and three-quarters of state legislatures to ratify the proposal. Additionally, Congress can call for a national convention to consider amendments. |
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