The major debates were over representation in Congress, the powers of the president, how to elect the president (Electoral College), slave trade, and a bill of rights.

Stimulated by severe economic troubles, which produced radical political movements such as Shays’s Rebellion, and urged on by a demand for a stronger central government, the convention met in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia (May 25–September 17, 1787), ostensibly to amend the Articles of Confederation.

The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was called to revise the ailing Articles of Confederation. However, the Convention soon abandoned the Articles, drafting a new Constitution with a much stronger national government.

It had become clear the US government’s inability to impose taxes, regulate commerce, or raise an army hindered its ability to defend the nation or pay its debts. To find a solution, members of Congress called for a revision of the Articles of Confederation.

The Constitutional Convention took place from May 14 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The point of the event was decide how America was going to be governed. Although the Convention had been officially called to revise the existing Articles of Confederation, many delegates had much bigger plans.

James Madison

Jacob Shallus

The Constitution of the United States established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens. Under America’s first governing document, the Articles of Confederation, the national government was weak and states operated like independent countries.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of …

Constitution created a stronger federal government and divided powers between the central and state government. The constitution also had checks and balances to prevent any one part of the government from becoming too powerful. It also gave central government with a executive and judicial branch.

The United States Constitution grants specific powers and rights to the federal government, called “delegated powers”, if it is not outlined in it, then the government should not do it. This way, it prevents conflict between federal and state government, and also prevents the government from abusing of its power.

The correct answer is expressed powers. Within the US Constitution, expressed powers are ones that are given directly to the federal government. For example, Congress (the legislative branch) has the ability to collect taxes, regulate interstate commerece, and declare war.

What is one way the Constitution addresses potential conflicts between federal and state governments? It asks both governments to consider the protection of individual rights.

For a state to force the federal government to do anything would be very difficult but by nullifying the unconstitutional “law” or regulation they have placed the feds on notice that they have exceeded their authority. And if enough states nullify the law, the feds are powerless to enforce it.

The Supremacy clause establishes that federal laws/United States Constitution take precedence over state laws/state constitutions. The Tenth Amendment establishes that powers not delegated to the federal government are reserved to the states.

Federalism is a compromise meant to eliminate the disadvantages of both systems. In a federal system, power is shared by the national and state governments. The Constitution designates certain powers to be the domain of a central government, and others are specifically reserved to the state governments.

The National Government

Federalism is one of the most important and innovative concepts in the U.S. Constitution, although the word never appears there. Federalism is the sharing of power between national and state governments. In America, the states existed first, and they struggled to create a national government.

3 The Constitution’s Basic Principles: Federalism. Another basic concept embodied in the Constitution is federalism, which refers to the division and sharing of power between the national and state governments.

It is based on the principle of federalism, where power is shared between the federal government and state governments. A theoretical pillar of the United States Constitution is the idea of checks and balances between the powers and responsibilities of the three branches of American government.

Federalism is a system of government in which the same territory is controlled by two levels of government. Generally, an overarching national government is responsible for broader governance of larger territorial areas, while the smaller subdivisions, states, and cities govern the issues of local concern.

Key features of federalism are. There are two or more levels of government. Various levels of government control the same people, but in particular matters of law, taxation and administration, each level has its own Authority. Constitutionally, the presence and authority of each level of government are guaranteed.

Types of Federalism

• Competitive Federalism. This type of federalism is mostly associated with the 1970s and the 1980s, and it began with the Nixon Administration.
• Cooperative Federalism. This term describes the belief that all levels of government should work together to solve common problems.
• Creative Federalism.

The primary objective of New Federalism, unlike that of the eighteenth-century political philosophy of Federalism, is the restoration to the states of some of the autonomy and power that they lost to the federal government as a consequence of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal.

dual federalism

Answer: Federalism has two levels of government: One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest. The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-day administering of their state.

Why did the delegates draft a new plan instead of revising the Articles of Confederation? Some delegates thought that a revision would not make the national government strong enough. The delegates had to compromise to come up with a plan with which most would agree.

Articles of Confederation – Establishing the Government

• Each state had one vote.
• Each state retained all powers not expressly delegated to Congress.
• Delegates to Congress were to be appointed by state legislatures.
• States would not be deprived of western lands.

The Articles created a weak national government. As a result of the Articles of Confederation, states had much more power than Congress and the national government. For the Articles to take effect, all states had to ratify (accept) it. Nine of the thirteen states had to approve any law passed by Congress.

Why did the Founding Fathers replace the Articles of Confederation with the Constitution? In short, the Articles of Confederation did not give the federal government enough power. This system proved ineffective, so the Constitution was created. Under the Constitution, stability and unity increased in the new nation.

What did the Confederation Congress do to strengthen the United States? They created the Land Ordinance of 1785, which helped by setting up a system for surveying and dividing western lands. They also created the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 which created a system for bringing new states into The union.

The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments. The need for a stronger Federal government soon became apparent and eventually led to the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

There was no national court system. The Articles of Confederation established freedom of movement–anyone can pass freely between states, excluding “paupers, vagabonds, and fugitives from justice.” All people are entitled to the rights established by the state into which he travels.

The British Took Advantage Of the Articles of Confederation. According to the Treaty of Paris, the territories west of the original 13 colonies were the responsibility of the United States. Under the Articles of Confederation, absolute unity was required for the U.S. to control that land.

Terms in this set (6)

• States kept their power and independence. Pro.
• No overly powerful government bossing everyone around. Pro.
• Colonists were able to create their own military. Pro.
• Congress could not enforce laws. Con.
• Could not collect taxes. Con.
• Every state had to agree to change articles. Con.

Six Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation:

• No central leadership (executive branch)
• Congress had no power to enforce its laws.
• Congress had no power to tax.
• Congress had no power to regulate trade.
• No national court system (judicial branch)
• Changes to the Articles required unanimous.

Under the Articles of Confederation the national government managed to achieve a variety of successes such as the creation of executive departments to administer finance, foreign relations, and military affairs but the most important achievement would be the Northwest Ordinance which guaranteed equal treatment for …

Therefore, the Articles of Confederation did not provide an effective answer to the problems facing the new nation. Therefore, the Articles of Confederation was not effective in solving many of the problems faced by the newly formed United States.