Framing a New Government By the mid 1980s the Confederation congress was immensely unpopular.

Some members even withdrew from Philadelphia to escape from army veterans demanding pay. I. Advocates of Centralization -The Confederation had satisfied the people for a long time, since they wanted to keep political authority centered in the states -Soon, in the 1780s, wealthier groups in the country wanted a more national government that could fix the problems in the countryesp the economic problems that affected them -Some military men aspired to influence and invigorate the national govt. Some even wanted a military dictatorship. Newburgh Conspiracy to challenge congress, Washington blocked potential rebellion. -WHAT PEOPLE WANTED -Manufacturers (artisans & mechanics) wanted to replace state tariffs with high national duty -Merchants wanted to replace 13 diff state commercial policies to make one single national one -Land speculators wanted to have the Indians removed from their western tracts -Creditors wanted to prevent paper money -Investors in Confed securities wanted the govt to fund a debt and enhance the value of their securities -Property owners looked for protection from the threat of mobs (Shays Rebellion) -By 1786, the demands were so powerful that people began considering how drastic the changes should be. -Needed strengthening at its weakest point: ITS INABILITY TO TAX -Alexander Hamilton was a reformer, NY lawyer, political genius, illegit son of Scottish merchant in West Indies, and was once a military aide to Washington. -Was unhappy with the articles of Confed and the weak central govt it created -Called for national convention to overhaul entire government -James Madison of Virginia was his ally, who persuaded the Virginian legislature to have an interstate conference on commercial questions. -5 states sent delegates to a meeting held in Maryland in 1786, but the delegates approved Hamiltons proposal recommending the Congress call a convention of special delegates from all the states to gather in Philadelphia next year to consider ways to make the Federal Govt Constitution adequate -In 1786, it seems like there would be little interest in the meeting at Philadelphia, especially since they couldnt win the interest of George Washington. Then, in 1787, Shays Rebellion occurred. Thomas Jefferson wasnt shocked, but Washington was alarmed by it, and went to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. His support made the meeting legit and stuff. II. Divided Convention -55 men representing all states except Rhode Island attended the convention. They later became known as Founding Fathers. -They were all very well educated by the standards of their time. All feared follies of democracy, but were also suspicious of concentrated power because of the revolution. -Washington presided over the sessions. Each state delegation had a single vote, and major decisions would not require unanimity but rather majority. -James Madison had a detailed plan for a new national government, and Virginians used it to control the agenda since the convention began. -Edmund Randolph proposed that a national government should have a supreme Legislative, an Executive, and a Judiciary. -Delegates were so committed to fundamental reform that they approved this resolution pretty quickly -Randolph introduced details of Madisons plan: VIRGINIA PLANnew national legislature consisting of two houses. In the lower house, states would be represented in proportion to their

population. (In this way, Virginia-the largest- would have ten times as many representatives as Delaware-the smallest) Members of the upper house were to be elected by the lower house, and some of the smaller states might at times have no members at all in the upper house. -Small states opposed this idea, and William Paterson of New Jersey submitted an alternative to the Virginia Plana plan for a federal rather than national government. -NEW JERSEY PLAN: Each state has EQUAL REPRESENTATION, but it gave congress expanded powers to tax and regulate commerce. -Negotiated the Virginia and new Jersey plan; Virginian Plan supporters had to make concessions; Permitted members of the upper house to be elected by the state legislatures rather than by the lower house of the national legislature. This way, every state would have at least one member in the upper house -Also argued about slave representation III. Compromise -Delegates bickered for weeks, seemed like convention would fall apart, but Benj Franklin warned that there would be disastrous psychological consequences if they gave up. -July 2nd, the convention agreed to a GRAND COMMITTEE to resolve disagreements. The committee had a delegate from each state, and produced a proposal that became the basis of the GREAT COMPROMISE. -Grand Committee dealt with problem of representation. Proposal called for a legislature in which the states would be represented in the lower house on the basis of POPULATION. And EACH SLAVE COUNTED AS 3/5 OF A FREE PERSON in determining the basis for both representation and direct taxation. In the upper house, the states would all be represented equally with two members apiece. -ON JULY 16 1787 THE CONVENTION VOTED TO ACCEPT THE COMPROMISE -Another compromise on slavery. -Southern states feared the power to regulate trade might interfere with slavery, so the convention agreed that the new legislature would not be permitted to tax exports, and was forbidden to impose a duty of more than 10 dollars a head on imported slaves. Also agreed that they would have no authority to stop the slave trade for twenty years. It was a large concession to make. -Left out/evaded some issues that the convention was unable to resolve, leaving important questions that would be raised again in later years -Constitution provided no definition of citizenship, no list of individual rights