Notes on the Rejection of a Unitary System and the Articles of Confederation
Rejection of Unitary System
The founders immediately rejected a unitary system, which is an undivided government with a hierarchical structure.
A unitary system resembles a triangle, with one person at the top (like a king, pharaoh, or czar) and others reporting to that person.
The founders rejected this system because they had just gotten rid of a king and didn't want another one, especially one nearby who could become a tyrant without having to cross an ocean.
Some people may have talked about making George Washington king, but it wasn't realistic, and Washington himself would have refused.
The founders knew Washington would say no, which is why they considered him as a candidate for king.
Confederation vs. Federal System
The main question became whether to have a confederation or a federal system.
Both systems have a central government and states.
In a confederation, states take precedence in disputes, while in a federal system, the central government takes precedence.
The U.S. has a federal system today.
The founders were wary of a strong central government and initially leaned towards a confederation.
Analogy: The founders were previously mistreated by government and were very hesitant to create another strong government.
Historical Debate on Colonial Oppression
There is a historical debate on how oppressed the colonists truly were.
Some historians argue that the oppression was exaggerated.
However, the colonists believed they were mistreated, which led to their breaking away from England.
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation were based on a "firm league of friendship".
This is problematic because a government cannot be based on friendship.
Governments require enforcement mechanisms, such as the IRS demanding taxes with the threat of court and imprisonment.
Analogy: Government is like a single parent with 13 unruly children (the states).
If the children are allowed to make decisions, it can lead to chaos.
Under the Articles of Confederation, state sovereignty was paramount.
There was a Confederation Congress but no president or national judiciary.
The Congress could direct foreign affairs, but domestic affairs were left to the states.
This division was problematic because most political issues are intertwined.
Example: The 9/11 terrorist attacks had local, state, national, and international implications.
There were no standing armies due to fear of English soldiers.
Any country without an army is vulnerable to invasion.
The U.S. was lucky during the 1780s because European nations were preoccupied with their own conflicts.
Congress did not have exclusive power to print money, leading to states printing their own money.
This caused problems as people from one state wouldn't accept money from another state.
Today, Congress has the power to print money and delegates authority to the Department of Treasury and the Bureau of Engraving and Minting.
Congress had few enforcement powers.
A government must have rules and punishments for violating those rules.
Nine of the 13 states (75%) had to approve laws, which is a supermajority.
Requiring a 75% majority makes it difficult to get anything done.
Unanimity was required to amend the Articles.
This made it virtually impossible to make any changes.
Example: Rhode Island was disruptive and stopped participating in meetings, but their participation was needed to change the articles and force them to participate.
Each state was responsible for its Revolutionary War debt.
The Confederation Congress lacked the authority to enforce repayment.
States like Massachusetts refused to pay, leading to a situation where France wasn't getting repaid for their help during the war.
By the mid-1780s, the U.S. was a failed state because it couldn't pay its debts.
Many Americans were simply trying to make a living and weren't focused on the government's problems.
Good and Bad Aspects of the Articles of Confederation
Good: A weak central government cannot oppress its citizens.
Good: States could exercise sovereignty, and leaders gained experience at the local and state level.
Good: The dream of a rural, agrarian American township was theoretically possible.
Good: It highlighted the need for a strong government.
Issue: Representation became a problem.
Most people lived in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New York.
If every state had an equal vote, the minority of the population could control the majority.
If representation was based on population, those three states could control the other ten.
Solution in the Constitution: The House of Representatives is based on population, while the Senate gives every state two senators (equal voice).
Compromise involves everyone getting something they want.
Thomas Edison story: He sold a patent for $1 million, but the buyer would have paid $2 million, and Edison would have taken half a million.
Supermajorities lead to gridlock.
Under the Constitution, a simple majority is needed to pass a bill, but supermajorities are needed to amend it.
Each state acted like its own little nation.
The motto of the U.S. government is "E pluribus unum" (out of many, one).
The Articles of Confederation had 13 little nations.
There was the problem of economic growth.
The U.S. needs enough government regulation to establish the rules of the game while allowing the private economy to grow.
Prelude to the Constitutional Convention
Many people agreed there was a problem with the Articles of Confederation but didn't know what to do.
The "tipping point" is when something happens that forces change.
Prelude One: James Madison and Alexander Hamilton
James Madison was a young, wealthy Virginian and a smart individual.
He was elected to the Confederation Congress and recognized the problems with the Articles.
Alexander Hamilton came from humble beginnings in the West Indies.
He was brilliant and worked in a country store as a child.
Hamilton had an amazing ability to calculate and add cost immediately.
People said he was like a little adult. He was extremely intelligent.
He volunteered during the American Revolution and became George Washington's assistant.
In 1786, Hamilton and Madison pushed for a convention in Annapolis, Maryland, to discuss trade problems.
They wanted to fix the Articles of Confederation and establish a stable economy and currency.
Only five of the 13 states sent representatives to the Annapolis Convention.
The convention was largely a disaster,
Hamilton and Madison got to know each other and realized they needed another meeting.
They agreed to meet the following summer in Philadelphia for what became the Constitutional Convention.
Idealized painting of George Washington crossing the Delaware.
Washington, Hamilton, and Madison realized Washington was indispensable.
Hamilton and Madison convinced Washington to come out of retirement and attend the convention.
Prelude Two: Shays' Rebellion
Daniel Shays was a farmer in Western Massachusetts and a captain in the Continental Army.
He was wounded during the Revolutionary War and didn't get paid for the last two years of service.
Shays and other farmers were losing their farms due to hyperinflation and high taxes.
Shays led a rebellion to seize weapons from the armory in Springfield and burn mortgages at the county courthouses.
He gathered about 1,500 people.
The governor called out the state militia, but many members were sympathetic to the rebels.
The governor appealed to the Confederation Congress for help, but there was no standing army.
There was no money to raise one as well.
Shays' Rebellion scared people in Massachusetts and made headlines throughout the 13 states.
The government cannot keep its citizens safe.
The average person wanted a change.
The governor got rich people to hire mercenaries to defend the armory.
Shays' men were outnumbered and dispersed.
By the fall of 1786, business and political leaders wanted to fix the Articles of Confederation.
The average person wanted a change.
The result was the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787.
The delegates decided to start from scratch and created the Constitution of the United States.