Unit 3 Lesson 5 Ratification of the...

WARM UP

①  You need a pencil/pen

②  We will watch Peanuts This is America on the U.S. Constitution

③  Answer the questions that correlate with the video

THE U.S. CONSTITUTION

I.  Popular Sovereignty – supreme power rests with and only with the people

II.  The people are in charge of their own government

A.  Some parts of the Constitution go against popular sovereignty i.  Electoral College chooses the president,

not popular vote ii.  State Legislatures chose the Senate, not

popular vote a.  Later changed to direct popular election by 17th

Amendment

THE SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE CONSTITUTION


II.  Limited Government A.  Also called constitutionalism, and rule of law B.  Government is not all-powerful (can’t do anything

they want) C.  Powers government has and doesn’t have are listed


III.  Separation of Powers A.  U.S.A. uses a presidential government,

where the executive, judicial and legislative branches are chosen separately

B.  Each branch has its own powers and responsibilities

C.  Keeps one person or persons from becoming too powerful in the USA

i.  The USA is afraid of tyranny and strong governments


IV.  Checks and Balances A.  Each branch is not

totally independent of the others

B.  They have powers to override each other when necessary

C.  Each branch can control the other so that no one branch is too powerful


V.  Judicial Review A.  Courts may determine

whether or not what the President or Congress does is Constitutional

B.  If court declares an

act unconstitutional, the act is not a law, and the decision cannot be overridden


VI.  Federalism A.  The national government is given certain powers

by the Constitution B.  Whatever is left is a power for the states to use C.  National and state governments are given certain

powers to ensure that neither becomes too powerful

I.  Constitutional Convention ended Sept. 17, 1787 – on 39 men of 55 ultimately signed the Constitution

II.  Under A of C – all 13 states had to agree, but

the delegates decided after 9 agreed, those agreeing states would adopt the Constitution

III.  Convention men going over the heads of Congress and states.

IV.  The Constitution had to be ratified (approved) before it became the law of the land!

END OF THE CONVENTION

THE RATIFICATION OF THE CONSTITUTION

I.  Each state hold special convention in order to vote on constitution

II.  State delegates elected by people

III.  Ratification of Constitution required the approval of 9 states.

IV.   Purpose: A.  Bypass state legislatures who would oppose it since

Constitution reduced power of states B.  Gave framers time to campaign for delegates in

their states who would support ratification

THE PROCESS

FEDERALISTS VS. ANTI-FEDERALISTS

I.  Supporters of the constitution

II.  Insisted division of powers/system of checks and balances would protect US from the tyranny of centralized authority

III.  Wanted a strong central government

FEDERALISTS

I.  Those who opposed a strong central government, and were against a Constitution

II.  Countered with list of possible abuses of power of a strong central Gov.:

A.  Would serve the interests of the privileged minority B.  Would ignore rights of the majority C.  Doubted a single Gov. could manage the affairs of a

large country D.  Constitution’s lack of protection for individual rights E.  Felt states lost a lot of power

III.  Supported the A of C & states rights

ANTI-FEDERALISTS

I.  Non-Supporters of the Constitution

A.  rural areas i.  saw little benefit in a strong

government that might add to their tax burden.

B.  Large states and those with strong economies (ie. NY) i.  because had greater

freedom under the Articles of Confederation

II.  Leading Non-Supporters

A.  Patrick Henry, Sam Adams, Richard Henry Lee

ANTI-FEDERALISTS

I.  Supporters of Constitution:

A.  urban centers (merchants, skilled workers, laborers) i.  saw the benefit of a national

gov. that could control trade B.  small states and those with

weak economies i.  because central gov. could

protect their interests

II.  Leading Supporters: A.  George Washington B.  James Madison

FEDERALISTS

I.  Both sides campaigned on subject of Constitution

II.  Attempting to get the public to support their position on the Constitution

III.  Used newspapers to get their views across

IV.  2 Leading Documents:

THE CAMPAIGN IN THE NEWSPAPERS

I.  Pro- Constitution Writings

II.  85 essays in NY newspapers 1787-1788

III.  Published by signature “Publius”

IV.  Written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay

V.  Provided an analysis and explanation of the Constitution

VI.  Influential & convinced many that the Constitution was needed

FEDERALIST PAPERS

I.  Anti-Constitution

II.  written by Richard Henry Lee

III.  Insisted rights of individuals needed to be protected

IV.  Argued that a strong government in the USA would be like Great Britain.

LETTERS FROM THE FEDERAL FARMER

THE BILL OF RIGHTS

THE 1ST AMENDMENT

I.  Freedom of Religion A.  Establishment Clause – government cannot

establish a religion B.  Free Exercise Clause – government cannot

prohibit you from practicing religion

II.  Freedom of Speech III.  Freedom of the Press IV.  Right to Assembly V.  Right to Petition

I.  Since Constitution weakened states’ power, they needed something in Central Gov. to protect Individual Rights

II.  Despite Federalist arguments, they yielded

III.  A Bill of Rights was added to protect individual rights of American citizens…

A.  The Federalists get their strong government B.  The Anti-Federalist get their rights protected

REASONS FOR CALL FOR BILL OF RIGHTS

I.  First State to Ratify – Delaware – Dec. 1787

II.  New Hampshire 9th state to ratify = constitution is passed

III.  NY,VA, NC, and RI had not yet voted A.  Needed NY and VA to legitimize the Constitution

RATIFICATION

I.  Heated debate in VA, but support of GW, JM brought Federalist victory in June 1788

II.  NY ratified on July 26, 1788

III.  Last state to accept Constitution = RI (5/29/90)

IV.  Many states had waited for Federalists pledge to include Bill of Rights before ratifying

V.  Bill of Rights finally passed by Congress 9/25/89, ratified Dec. 15, 1791.

The Final Victory

Unit 3 Lesson 5 Ratification of the...

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