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Articles Of Confederation Pros And Cons

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In the year 1787, Alexander Hamilton decided that the United States had to amend the Articles of Confederation, and sent out an invitation to the thirteen colonies. The meeting included 55 delegates from twelve colonies. The Constitutional Convention was a meeting that determined whether or not the Articles of Confederation were going to be kept or disregarded. A revolution is usually a violent attempt by many people to end the rule of one government and start a new one: a sudden, extreme, or complete change in the way people live, work, etc. (Merriam Webster Dictionary). The Constitution is the system of beliefs and laws by which a country, state, or organization is governed (Merriam Webster Dictionary). Despite the fact that the nation had …show more content…

The Articles of Confederation had created a basic foundation for the government, but the Constitution had expanded the government further, trying to help alleviate the problems. The Constitution gave the national and state governments the power of levying taxes on the citizens to pay off the debt. The idea that was created came for the government "to pay for its significant expenditures during the Revolution[.] Congress had two options: print more money or obtain loans to meet the budget deficit. In practice it did both, but relied more on the printing of money, which led to hyperinflation" (US Department of State "U.S. Debt and Foreign Loans, 1775–1795"). One thing that the government had to keep in mind when creating more money, or borrowing money, was that the value of the original dollar would then decrease significantly. Thus, since the value of the dollar decreased, it driven the lower classes further down into their own debt. Although printing money or borrowing it had caused problems, the Constitution had wanted everything to be equal, instead of free, as it was under the Articles of Confederation. The U.S. Government faced many debt problems throughout its time, but because of the Constitution, it started to slowly bring the government, and its people, out of the debt by enforcing exact liberties …show more content…

When writing the Constitution, the Federalists, which included Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, had stated the rights and liberties of the civilians within the Constitution. Alexander Hamilton, a federalist, believed that if a Bill of Rights was to be created then the whole idea of republican government would fall apart. As stated in a federalist letter, " [the constitution] would contain various exceptions to powers not granted, and on this very account would afford a colorable pretext to claim more than were granted”(Federalist No. 71, Alexander Hamilton). The Constitution stated that all free people had equal rights. Rights that were implicit, which connected to fixing all the problems within the government and the people. The Constitution changed the government by giving equal powers and rights to the state and national

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365 Words | 2 Pages

1a. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress didn’t have the power to tax the colonies so their only option was to request the states for money, which often ended in rejection. Because Congress had so little money to regulate the army/navy and resolve crises, they sold off western lands and printed worthless print money in desperate attempts to do without money. The constitution solves this dilemma by giving Congress the power to make revenue through taxing and borrowing and also the power to appropriate funds.

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The Constitution addressed the problems of the Articles of Confederation by giving them the power to regulate trade, collect taxes, created an executive branch, and created a judicial branch. With the new Constitution the power to regulate trade between the states and other countries. Taxes were able to be made and collected by the government. The new executive branch guaranteed a strong central government and a President to lead. The new judicial branch was in charge of trails and upholding the new Constitution to make sure that it was followed.

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After the Revolutionary War, most states went into debt because the finance of the Revolutionary War pushed out the taxes three or four times the level to help wage the war. Most American demanded the relief of high taxes and heavy debt. Alexander Hamilton "instituted a plan to get the brand new nation off on the right foot financially." Hamilton believed in debt because in order to establish credit you must have the ability to borrow in the future. Hamilton also wanted to establish a national bank to unify and stabilize currency called the Bank of the United State.

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These authorities that the national government should have, were all up to the states to decide under the Articles. With the taking away some of the states rights in the Constitution, Anti-federalists feared that this would leave the states too weak, resulting in more problems. Under the new Constitution, many powers that were now in the government 's hands are: the power to levy and collect taxes, the power to regulate interstate commerce, the government set up a national court system consisting of district, circuit, and a supreme court, the government could enforce laws, there was now a house based on population, and a senate based on equal representation (two votes per state), to amend the Constitution, a ⅔ vote of Congress was needed, and a ¾ vote of the states were needed, and a majority rule was needed to pass bills. These new powers and abilities of the national government helped to create a strong, new

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The Articles of Confederation, the first governing document in American history, only allowed for one branch of government, Congress, which could lead to one group of people having all of the power, possibly not allowing for representation of all of the social classes. This upper class tyranny was exactly the problem that the colonists had fled from in England, and they were afraid that these issues would continue to plague them in America. This fear led to a very weak central government, whose extremely limited power stunted the development of our young nation. Later, when writing the Northwest Ordinances, Jefferson proposed the idea of having three branches of government, and a system of checks and balances between the three to ensure

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The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, but there was a grapple for its ratification that went on until about two decades after the ratification. Members of Congress believed that the first government of the United States or the Articles of Confederation, needed to be adjusted while others did not want anything to change. After the Revolutionary War, the people did not want a strong central government, because it reminded them too much of what they were trying to escape from. Under the Articles, each state had their own laws, and the need for a new Constitution was desired by many. The Constitution of 1787 created huge debates, arguments and splits in the nation that lasted for several year after its ratification between people who

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There was also economic problem because the money that was produced under the Article did not hold any kind of value. So Shay's Rebellion was formed and protest against the debt because the government could not pay their bills. They could not pay angry soldiers who weren’t paid, and angry

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of the Constitution to the states for consideration. To amend the Articles of Confederation had required unanimous approval of the states. The delegates agreed to change the approval process for the Constitution so only nine of the thirteen states had approved. After this, the new government of the United States would come into existence.

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This is one of the successful parts of the Articles of Confederation because under the articles, the government cannot institute tax thus the government cannot make money. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 removed debts from the states and it also allowed the government to raise money by selling off the new

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By writing a new constitution, the farmers were able to address the problems which the nation faced under the Articles of Confederation. The most important issues were addressed by the establishment of a stronger national government that was selected by the citizens. Unlike the Articles of Confederation, were each state maintain its own sovereign rule, each state was represented equally in Congress through the representatives elected by its citizen. Therefore, power was no longer placed in a single institution such as the states or one overall governing body, but rather in the hands of the people. This government had the power to tax, regulate trade and commerce, and coin a national currency with a majority vote versus a unanimous vote.

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The government hadn’t yet begun to tax, so progress in paying back the money was slowed. So, more money was printed. This action wasn’t a concern until wars began to pile up. The consequence was that the U.S. began to accrue debt. Some blame George Washington for today’s debt crisis, some say it’s Alexander Hamilton’s fault, and some even blame President Obama; but, there isn’t one specific person to blame for our current debt crisis.

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The Constitution gave the Congress the power to levy taxes and borrow money so that they could run the government. It responsible of maintain the

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After the ratification of the Constitution, a new system of government was introduced, but America was facing major difficulties. The United States was in an enormous amount of debt from the Revolutionary War, and rising political parties were already developing tensions. Political leaders such as Alexander Hamilton and George Washington took measures to shape the orderly growth of the United States Government which followed. Hamilton’s financial plan and Washington’s precedent contributed to the institution of a strong national government that would shape the economic growth of the U.S. During the state of debt, Hamilton recognized America ’s need for an effective financial system.

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It describes the rights and responsibilities of the government and of all the states as a federal government. A system whereby several states form a unity but remain independent in internal affairs. Since the Constitution came into force in 1789, it has been amended twenty-seven times to meet the changing needs of the maturing nation which is now very different from the eighteenth-century world in which it was created. The ideals of the Constitution are to form one union from all the states. The states work together as one nation but have independent internal laws.

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But when Shays's rebellion erupted in Massachusetts, Washington knew something needed to be done to improve the nation’s government. In 1786, Congress approved a convention to be held in Philadelphia to amend the Articles of Confederation. At the Constitution Convention, Washington was unanimously chosen as president. Among others, such as James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, Washington had come to the conclusion that it wasn't amendments that were needed, but a new constitution that would give the national government more authority. Still hoping to retire to his beloved Mount Vernon, Washington was once again called upon to serve this country.

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