Philadelphia Convention

The Constitution of the United States of America all started at the Philadelphia Convention. Called by Alexander Hamilton, the purpose of this convention was to revise the Articles of Confederation. The reason for this is because the central government under this document was very weak, for rebellions were very difficult to put down (such as Shays’ Rebellion), Congress lacked the power to tax and have a standing army, and the state government was extremely overpowered (when compared to the central government). During the convention, the framers realized that this document was almost impossible to revise; it would be much easier to start from scratch. Without official permission from Congress, the framers began to rewrite an outline for the

There were two general sides to this argument. One side, which followed the Virginia Plan, believed in a bicameral (two-house) system of legislatures, in which representation was based on the population of the state. This plan was admired by the larger states because they had a larger population, so they would have more representation in Congress. Smaller states, however, favored the New Jersey Plan. The New Jersey Plan discussed a unicameral (one-house) legislature, and each state was able to send the same amount of representatives. To solve this issue, Connecticut delegate Roger Sherman came up with a compromise. He drafted—what is called today—the Great Compromise. The Great Compromise synthesized the two state plans into one combined agreement, in which both sides received part of what they wanted. It stated that there would be two houses of the legislative branch. One house would have representation based on population, and the other would receive the same amount of representatives from each state (two per

The legislative branch consists of the two houses of Congress that have been decided upon by the Great Compromise (the House of Representatives and the Senate). Joint together as one system, Congress has the powers to create laws, declare war, override veto, and impeach the president. Secondly, the executive branch—consisting of the president, vice president, and the Cabinet—has the power to carry out laws (approve), negotiate foreign treaties—such as alliances—, and can grant pardons for federal offers. Finally, the judicial branch, or the Supreme Court Justices can interpret laws, declare laws unconstitutional, and declare the president unconstitutional. Having three branches of government helps keep the government in check, and it prevents one branch becoming more powerful than the other branches. Having these checks—called checks and balances—help keep our government from being tyrannical and ruthless, like the British king and Parliament