Constitutional Convention The Great Compromise, the 3/5 Compromise and the Commerce Compromise

The Constitutional Convention  Who: Representatives from the states including: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Hamilton  When: May 1787  Where: Philadelphia  What: Their original purpose was to revise the AOC’s but they quickly decided to write a new national constitution

The Constitutional Convention  Issues:  States representation  Slavery  Taxes

The Great Compromise  Concerns states representation  Virginia Plan: Each state should be represented based on its population  New Jersey Plan: Each state should be represented based on equal representation  The Great Compromise Solution:  A bi-cameral legislature (two houses)  House of Representatives: based on population  Senate: based on equal representation

3/5 Compromise  Southern states wanted slaves to be counted as part of their population, but Northern states opposed this.  The decision would impact how much tax a state paid as well as representation in Congress.  The 3/5 Compromise: 3 out of every five slaves would count toward the general population of a state for the purposes of taxation and representation.  Congress could not regulate the slave trade for twenty years, until 1808.

The Commerce Compromise  Southern landowners, who sold cash crops to England, did not want taxes on their exports of tobacco and other crops.  The Commerce Compromise: no taxes on any exports, but imports could be taxed.

The New Federal Government Executive, Legislative, and Judicial

The Preamble  Form a more perfect union  Establish justice  Insure domestic tranquility  Provide for the common defense  Promote the general welfare  Secure the blessings of liberty

Executive Branch  President, Vice- President, and Cabinet  Purpose is to enforce the laws  President is the Commander-in-Chief of the nation’s army and navy; he can appoint ambassadors, negotiate treaties, and appoint Supreme Court Justices

Legislative Branch  Congress  House of Representatives  Senate  Congress makes the laws, declare war, borrow money, issue money, and regulate commerce (trade) between different states or with foreign countries

Judicial Branch  Supreme Court  Makes sure the laws are Constitutional  Justices (judges) are appointed for life by the President, with approval from the Senate

Principles of Government

Limited Government  The belief that the powers of the government should be limited  It has no powers other than those granted in the Constitution

Republicanism  A republican form of government-a democratic government chosen by the people.  Republic-a government in which decisions are made by elected representatives, not a king.

Popular Sovereignty  People hold the supreme power  Powers of the government come from the consent of the governed  How do we exercise our power?

Federalism  Government power is divided between the federal government and the state governments

Separation of Powers  To avoid giving too much power to any one person the powers given to the federal government were separated into the three branches  This decision was based on the writings of Baron de Montesquieu

Checks and Balances  Each branch can check the other branches to make sure powers are not being abused

Individual Rights  We have rights that are not specifically listed in the Constitution that cannot be taken away

Amendment Process  Allows changes and additions to the Constitution