Chapter 5: Shaping a New Nation

1. Chapter 5:Shaping a New Nation

2. Articles of Confederation • Loose confederation, or alliance, of thirteen separate, sovereign nations (states) • States retained most of government’s power • The new confederation was a republic

3. Each state had one vote—all states were equally represented in Congress • Western land claims delayed ratification until 1781

6. Congress had the power to: • declare war • negotiate peace • sign treaties • borrow money • regulate currency • establish a postal system • deal with Native Americans

7. Congress lacked the power to: • enforce its laws—no executive branch • interpret the meaning of laws—no national judicial system • tax • Accomplishments of the Confederation: • Land Ordinance of 1785 • established a plan for surveying and selling public lands • Northwest Ordinance of 1787 • Set guidelines for admission of new states

9. Problems faced by the U.S. under the Articles: • large states were unhappy with their representation in Congress • huge national debt • Congress had no money to carry out its responsibilities • amending the Articles required unanimous consent of all states • Congress was relatively powerless

10. The Constitution • 1786—Shays’s Rebellion; MA farmers angry over taxes and increased debt rebelled and drew attention to problems facing weak confederation government • 1787—convention held in Philadelphia, PA to revise (fix) Articles of Confederation; 55 delegates from 12 states (RI sent no one)

11. Issues • weakness of national/central government • representation of states in Congress • national debt • Important figures • George Washington (VA) • Benjamin Franklin (PA) • James Madison (VA) • Alexander Hamilton (NY) • Gouverneur Morris (PA) • Roger Sherman (CT) • William Paterson (NJ)

12. Articles scrapped in favor of new constitution • US was divided on a number of issues, many of which were North vs. South • New document was drafted to replace Articles; the new Constitution was a “bundle of compromises”

13. Representation • small states (NJ Plan) vs. large states (VA Plan) • Great Compromise—bicameral (two-house) legislature (Congress) • House of Representatives (good for large states) • Senate (good for small states)

14. Slavery • Slave population—Southern states wanted to count all for representation, none for taxation (determining each state’s portion of the huge national debt); North strongly opposed this idea • Three-Fifths Compromise—three-fifths of each state’s total slave population would be counted for representation and taxation (each slave counted as three-fifths of a person)

15. Commerce • Northern states wanted Congress to regulate interstate and foreign trade; Southern states feared an export tax on agricultural products and a ban on the importation of slaves • Commerce Compromise—Congress could: • tax imports • regulate interstate & foreign trade • not tax exports; • not restrict importation of slaves for twenty years (until 1808)

16. Constitution provided for: • Federalism—power-sharing between federal (national/central) government and state governments • Delegated/enumerated powers—federal govt. • Reserved powers—state govts. • Separation of Powers—three-branch federal government; each branch has separate & unique powers/duties • Legislative branch—make laws • Executive branch—carry out/enforce law • Judicial branch—interpret law

17. Checks & Balances—each branch has power to monitor the others, keeping all branches relatively equal in power; no single branch can dominate the other two • Amendment process—adopted by Congress as a means of allowing future modification/ changing of the Constitution; made the new document incredibly flexible

18. Composition of the Constitution • Preamble—introduction • Article 1—Legislative branch • Article 2—Executive branch • Article 3—Judicial branch • Article 4—Relations between states • Article 5—Amendment process • Article 6—Supremacy of national govt. • Article 7—Ratification