Unit 3 The Constitution

3 branches of government

Executive, Legislative, Judicial

3/5 Compromise

-each slave would count for 3/5 of a person for taxation and representation purposes

amendments

Official changes, corrections, or additions to the Constitution, required a 2/3 vote from the senate and a 3/4 vote from the states.

Anti-Federalists

Opponents of the American Constitution at the time when the states were contemplating its adoption. Mostly middle-class people who didn't want all the representation in the government to go to the rich people. They wanted the power to go to the states and not have a strong federal government.

Article 1 of the Constitution

Section of the Constitution laying out powers and responsibilities of the Legislative Branch

Article 2 of the Constitution

Section of the Constitution laying out powers and responsibilities of the Executive Branch

Article 3 of the Constitution

Section of the Constitution laying out powers and responsibilities of the Judicial Branch

Article 4 of the Constitution

Outlines the rights and expectations for all states and citizens including the adding of new states, full faith and credit clause, privileges and immunity and guarantees a republican government.

Article 5 of the Constitution

Outlines the process for amending or changing the Constitution

Article 6 of the Constitution

Supremacy Clause, oath of office, religious tests not allowed, debts

Article 7 of the Constitution

Outlines the process for ratification of the Constitution

Articles of Confederation

A document that imposed a weak central government where the states each had separate power, only lasted 12 years

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the Constitution

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power, there is 1 president but they had "checks and balances", for example, vice president, impeachment, cabinet, elected by the electoral college

Constitutional Convention

A meeting to fix the Aoc / Write a new constitution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the summer of 1787. 55 representatives attended, but no one from Rhode Island was there.

Electoral College

A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president

Federalism

a form of government in which power is divided between the federal, or national, government and the states

Federalist Papers

A collection of 85 articles written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison under the name "Publius" to defend the Constitution in detail.

Federalists

Supporters of the Constitution and the New Federal Government. They wanted a unified country and didn't want the states to have a lot of power. Mostly made up of wealthy, upper-class citizens.

Great Comprimise (Connecticut Plan)

agreement providing a dual system of congressional representation where the Senate was composed of 2 representatives from each, and the House of Representatives was based on population

Paper Money Inflation

some states turned to paper money in order to inflate the currency and make it easier to pay back debts from the Revolutionary War

James Madison

"Father of the Constitution," Federalist leader, and fourth President of the United States.

New Jersey Plan

A constitutional proposal that would have given each state one vote in a new congress

Northwest Ordinance

Enacted in 1787, it is considered one of the most significant achievements of the Articles of Confederation. It established a system for setting up governments in the western territories so they could eventually join the Union on an equal footing with the original 13 states

Popular Sovereignty

A belief that ultimate power resides in the people.

Ratification

Formal approval, final consent to the effectiveness of a constitution, constitutional amendment, or treaty

Recession

a period of temporary economic decline during which trade and industrial activity are reduced

Roger Sherman

He helped draft the Great Compromise that determined how states would be represented in Congress

Separation of Powers

Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive applying and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law

Shay's Rebellion

Rebellion led by Daniel Shays of farmers in western Massachusetts in 1786-1787, protesting mortgage foreclosures. It highlighted the need for a strong national government just as the call for the Constitutional Convention went out.

Supremacy Clause

Article VI of the Constitution, which makes the Constitution, national laws, and treaties supreme over state laws when the national government is acting within its constitutional limits.

Virginia Plan

"Large state" proposal for the new constitution, calling for proportional representation in both houses of a bicameral Congress. The plan favored larger states and thus prompted smaller states to come back with their own plan for representation.

Problems with the AoC

treated each state as it's own country (too much power to the states and not enough to the central government), couldn't levy taxes, any changes needed a unanimous vote

Results of the Problems with the AoC

lots of arguments, weren't able to get stuff done on a large scale, major crises are harsher without a central government.

Significance of the Northwest Ordinance

Any new states can come in as an equal state, with the same respect and number of representatives in the government.

Significance of Shay's Rebellion

it was a wake up call that the Articles of Confederation were too weak and that they needed a constitution.

Commerce Clause

The clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.

What was added to the constitution that made it more popular?

A bill of rights

1st Amendment

Freedoms of thought (basic freedoms); Freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition

2nd Amendment

Right to keep and bear arms

3rd Amendment

No quartering of soldiers

4th Amendment

Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures

5th Amendment

Criminal Proceedings; Due Process; Eminent Domain; Double Jeopardy; Protection from Self incrimination

6th Amendment

The right to a Speedy Trial by jury, representation by an attorney for an accused person

7th Amendment

Right to jury in civil trials.

8th Amendment

No cruel or unusual punishment

9th Amendment

Citizens entitled to rights not listed in the Constitution

10th Amendment

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.