Vonelle Robertson Professor Currie American National Government April 15th, 2015 Essay: Should the 17thAmendment be repealed? While citizens of each state did not directly vote in the senators of their respective states legislatures chose the senators based on the law that was adopted in the constitution in 1788.The 17th amendment came about because of the state legislature being deadlocked over the election of United States Senators. This left numerous senate vacancies lasting as long as months or even years. But this was not the first attempt to amend the constitution to elect senators by popular vote. It was first introduced in the US House of Representatives in 1826 but the amendment did not have favorable support until the late 19th century
The main purpose of this chapter is to determine the Founding Fathers’ motives for creating the Constitution by analyzing a secondary source by Woody Holton, and several primary sources. Frist, I will begin with the secondary source, “Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution” by Woody Holton. Mr. Holton’s main purpose was to locate the motivation behind the Constitution in developments in the states (page 90). Mr. Holton addressed several grievances for possible motives of the Founding Fathers’. First, the excessive democracy that acerbated many Americans, the runaway inflation caused by the farmers who were allowed to satisfy their debt to creditors with property and good instead of hard currency, and the Revolutionary War that
“The Second Founding: How The Civil War And Reconstruction Remade The Constitution '' by Eric Forner is about how the American Civil War and the period of Reconstruction converted the Constitution and the country itself. In the book Eric Forner analyzes many different struggles that the United States went through during the era of Reconstruction. Despite Eric Forner analyzing different struggles, two of the struggles that are mentioned a lot in the book are the political and social struggles of the Reconstruction era. Despite there being many different points Eric Forner makes throughout the book, the main argument that Eric Forner argues is how the Reconstruction era after the Civil war was a crucial transformative moment in United States history. Impact was most noticeable in the constitution being adjusted and a lot more comprehensive which made a
Mina Farooqi The era following the close of the Civil War saw a shift in government attitudes away from laissez faire; the government no longer practiced non-interference in the direction of economic affairs, rather initiated policies that shaped the economy. The government initiated the building of private companies including railroad networks, while providing essential loans, subsidies and grants of public land, thus transforming US capitalism. The entire industrial US was the product of a massive public-private partnership in which the government played critical roles. Federal power allowed for the launch of the transcontinental rail project and communication lines, which opened up the vast Western frontier for farming, trade, tourism and
In Paul Finkelman’s article “How the Civil War Changed the Constitution” shows how the Civil War affected the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment. One of the main reasons for the Civil War was slavery. The constitution however, did not use the word slavery in their constitution. I found that to be very interesting because its almost like Americans were ashamed of their behavior. Why were the Northern’s more against using the word slavery than southerners?
I Agree… “The Federalist No. 84” and “The Anti-Federalist No.84”, both have their views on what should happen to our government. Whether it is to add a bill of rights or not, but I agree with the writer of “The Federalist No.84” because if the Constitution is adopted, then it will be our Bill of Rights, also based on other countries’ bill of rights then it may argue with a semblance of reason. Because I have read both sides of the discussion, I can see who is wrong and why.
On 1787, a constitutional convention was held in Philadelphia state house, where three proposal were suggested: the Virginia Plan, the New Jersey Plan, and the Connecticut Compromise. The Virginia Plan intention was to establish a Congress with numerical representation and a more robust national government; however, this proposition led into an opposed proposal called The New Jersey plan. The New Jersey plan was made to make modification to the Articles of Confederation but more importantly, the plan is to make clear of whom has the power of what states. Two delegates from Connecticut were joined together to acquire the image only by the states in senate and numbers in the House, calling it the Connecticut Compromise. As all the Plans I previously mentioned, I will go on depth on how the Virginia Plan, the New Jersey Plan, and the Connecticut Compromise shape America today.
The Great Compromise which was founded at the Constitutional Convention wasn't formed without trouble. Many of the delegates that participated in the convention were wealthy landowners and lawyers, who owned many slaves. They failed to notice the diversity that excited within the nation. As they talked how to repair the Articles of Confederation, issues would arise that would create continuous debates amongst each other. One of the issues that would arise would be the nature of the new government.
I believe that the Fugitive Slave Act was the main cause of the Civil War. This was when the south forced the north to catch any runaway slaves. Even if they just let the slave go through there property there is a high chance they could still get caught. When they get caught for not catching the slave they get fined 30,000 dollars in today's money. If they were to catch a slave and then have it run away it would be a 100,000 dollar fine.
The Federalists wanted a strong central government. The Anti- Federalists claims Constitution gives the central government too much power and, and they worried about the new constitution will not give them any rights. That the new system threatened freedom; Also, threatened the sovereignty of the states and personal liberties; failed to protect individual rights. Besides, some of famous peoples such as " Patrick Henry" and artists have came out against the Constitution. Although the anti-Federalists were unsuccessful in stopping the passage of the Constitution, their efforts have been responsible for the creation and implementation of the Bill of
William Jennings Bryan builds an effective argument proving the legitimacy of the Butler Act by persuading the audience that the act was created with a justifiable and tangible purpose in mind, rather than merely on a whim. He accomplishes this by appealing to pathos, more specifically the audience’s sense of entitlement. He proposes that the law is just, as a majority of people in Tennessee support it and since their taxes go towards paying teachers, they have a right to influence the public education system. He argues that the Legislation was acting in favor of the majority, which he furthered by using the collective word “we,” throughout his speech when referring to the people paying taxes to build a feeling of solidarity. By doing so,
16) Thomas Jefferson and the Anti-Federalists believed in a strict interpretation of the Constitution, more power to the states, and supported trade with the French. When Hamilton issued the idea of a National Bank, Jefferson opposed it, saying that it was not a specific power given directly in the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson, however, changed his views on strict and loose interpretation of the Constitution when he purchased Louisiana territory. He used a loose interpretation of the Constitution and used treaty-making powers to seal the deal with France. Another principle was the power to the states.
The Federalist Papers were, and still are, very important to American History. These series of essays, mostly written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, were published to persuade Americans to ratify the new constitution. The new constitution would replace the Articles of Confederation, what the American’s had been living under at the time. The constitution highlighted an issue that the articles did not; empowering the central government like never before. Allowing the central government to act in the interest of the United States.
Abraham Lincoln deserved to be called the first statesman of America, because he really represented the saying that there are no rules in war. The constitution is the force of any country. However, with U.S during Lincoln’s administration it was the other way around as the historian George D. Fletcher says in his Our Secret Constitution that the country’s central constitutional event, the event from which it received its present meaning, is not the original founding but the civil war i.e. Lincoln took the task of a carpenter to reinterpret the Declaration of Independence and the constitution. He continues that civil
World War II was the deadliest war of all time. Many soldiers who did not die had been captured by their enemies. After World War I, there was an addition to the Geneva Convention, a document created to protect prisoners during war. The document proved crucial and saved countless soldiers from almost certain death. Unfortunately, not all countries participating in the war had signed it.
