1. Struggle for Ratification of the U.S. Constitution

2. Warm-up
What is 1 way the Constitution improved the Articles of Confederation?
What was the 3/5 Compromise?
Who wrote the Bill of Rights and the Constitution?
What two documents influenced the Bill of Rights?

3. Essential Questions
What were the arguments for and against the ratification of the Constitution?
Who were the leading Federalists and Anti- Federalists in the pivotal ratification debate in Virginia?

4. What Does Ratification Mean?
Ratify means to approve or officially make something valid
The Constitution didn’t go into effect immediately after the Founding Fathers finished it!
Final approval of the U.S. Constitution needed 9 states to approve before the new constitution would go into effect!

5. Federalists (pro-ratification)
favored a strong central (FEDERAL) government.
believed a strong central government could promote economic development and public improvements.
wanted to ratify the Constitution with no changes
Today, people who see a primary role for the federal government in solving national problems are heirs to the Federalist tradition!

6. Key Federalists
Alexander Hamilton: financial wizard; founder of America’s first bank; first Secretary of the Treasury
James Madison: Father of the Constitution (obviously he’d want to ratify it)
Both of these men authored the Federalist Papers to try to convince states to ratify the Constitution

7. Anti-Federalists (opposed ratification)
feared that an overly powerful central (federal) government would destroy the individuals’ and the states’ rights
supported strong state governments
opposed ratifying the Constitution unless individual rights were protected
demanded a Bill of Rights be added to the Constitution
Today, more conservative thinkers echo these concerns and champion liberty, individual initiative, and free markets.

8. Key Anti-Federalists
George Mason: author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights, which Madison based the Bill of Rights on
Patrick Henry: famous for his “Give me liberty, or give me death!” speech that motivated Patriots during the American Revolution

9. The Constitution was ratified in 1788.
A New Government
The Constitution was ratified in 1788.
The Federalists promised to add a Bill of Rights as their first order of business
But did the ratification of the Constitution end the debate over the government’s power?

10. The Federalist Papers
The Federalist Papers were essays written by John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison in support of ratifying the U.S. Constitution.
Read each of the excerpts from the Federalist Papers on your own, and write a one-sentence summary of what you think each quote means.

11. John Marshall
How did Chief Justice John Marshall, a Virginian, contribute to the growth of the U.S. Supreme Court’s importance in relation to the other branches of government?

12. Marshall’s Impact
John Marshall was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 1801 to 1835.
Chief Justice is the head of the 9- person Supreme Court and presides over all cases.
Over 34 years, the Marshall Court strengthened the role of the Supreme Court as an equal branch of the national government

13. Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Established the doctrine of judicial review: the Supreme Court’s ability to declare a law or act unconstitutional
Judicial review became the court’s most powerful tool for checks and balances
In the case, Marbury sued Madison for an appointment as a federal judge in D.C. Marshall claimed the court had no power to issue writs of mandamus.

14. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
Established the doctrine of implied powers: powers not directly mentioned in the Constitution that seem “necessary and proper”
Specifically in this case, the different levels of government (national, state, local) aren’t allowed to tax the other levels of government
In this case, Maryland taxed all
non-state banks. Federal-employee
McCulloch didn’t comply with the
state’s law and was sued. Marshall
sided with McCulloch and said
Maryland couldn’t tax the national government

15. established the rules on interstate commerce
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
established the rules on interstate commerce
established the court’s authority to mediate disagreements between competing business interests.
Individual states can’t
control INTERstate commerce

16. Marshadll Court in Conclusion
Overall, each decision of the John Marshall Court (Marbury, McCulloch, Gibbons) helped to strengthen the power of the national government.

17. Marshall Cases Summaries
For each of the Marshall cases (Marbury, McCulloch, Gibbons), write a 2-sentence text message (on your paper) to your friend explaining 1. what happened and 2. why it’s important (how it applies to today).