Official 2015 7B Constitution Study Guide and Guided Notes #6 The Road to the Constitution

I. The Declaration of Independence – July 4, 1776

A. The colonies declared their independence from King George III and Great Britain for several reasons:

1. Geography - The ___________________________ of the colonies from much smaller island nation of Great

Britain created an independence that was hard to overcome. Those willing to colonize the new world generally

had a strong independent streak desiring new opportunities and more freedom.

2. Politics – The existence of ________________________________________ meant that the colonies were in

many ways independent of the Crown. These legislatures were allowed to levy taxes, muster troops, and pass laws.

Over time, these powers became rights in the eyes of many colonists. When the British tried to limit these

legislatures’ powers, conflict ensued.

3. Culture (The Enlightenment) - Many of the revolutionary leaders had studied major writings of the

Enlightenment including those of _______________________________, ___________________________,

and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. From these writings, the founders adopted the concepts of the _________________

______________________________, limited government, the consent of the governed, and separation of

powers.

4. History and Economics - The British, in deep debt from the French and Indian War, increased economic

restrictions and taxation demands on the colonies, leading to increasing dissatisfaction in the colonies. The

colonists thought they ___________________________________________________________ on sugar,

paper, tea, and many other items ________________________________________ in the British Parliament.

This conflict became violent, leading to the Revolutionary War (1775-1783).

B. The Declaration of Independence had four functions:

1. We declared our separation.

2. We defined our rights.

a. People have a right to ________________________________________________________________.

b. People have a right to ________________________________________________________________.

3. We told England our specific complaints. (We listed 27 complaints, including all the taxes.)

4. We declared ourselves to be free and independent. II. The Articles of Confederation – Our First Constitution

A. The Articles created a loose confederation of states and a ________________________________________, leaving

most of the power with the state governments.

B. Under the Articles, there was ____________________________________________ – the legislative branch – and

only one house in the Congress. _______________________________________________ in the Confederation

Congress, regardless of its size or population.

C. Any act of Congress required the votes of nine of the thirteen states to pass. Amending the Articles required a

unanimous vote.

D. Under the Articles, the ___________________________________________________________ to enforce laws,

_________________________, regulate foreign and interstate commerce, or ______________________________.

E. The individual _______________________________________________, including the power to enforce laws,

administer justice in courts, and levy taxes. Most states had their own militia and printed their own money.

F. ______________________________________________________ was an armed uprising that took place in central

and western Massachusetts in 1786 and 1787. Daniel Shays, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War, led the

rebellion. It was an attempt by farmers and others, embittered by land seizures and bankruptcies, to take over the

government because of rising debt and economic chaos after the American Revolution.

G. The Rebellion brought the _________________________________________________ – the government’s

inability to raise taxes and an army - into focus because the national government was unable to gather a combined

military force amongst the states to help put down the rebellion.

III. The Constitutional Convention

A. As the economic and military weaknesses became apparent, individuals began asking for changes to the Articles that

would create a ____________________________________________________.

B. A meeting was set in Philadelphia on May 25, 1787. This became the _________________________________.

Over the course of that summer, 55 delegates from 12 colonies debated, compromised, and came up with a

Constitution, a _______________________________________.

C. One of the biggest controversies from the beginning of the Convention was how ____________________________

in the legislative branch should be determined. For the colonists, differences between the states’ populations raised

basic questions about representation.

1. The ______________________________ (by William Paterson) proposed that there be a one house

(unicameral) Congress with ____________________________ from each state.

2. The ______________________________ (by James Madison) recommended a two house (bicameral)

Congress with _________________________________________ – representation based on the size of a

state’s population.

3. The two sides compromised in the __________________________________ (by Roger Sherman), which

set up two houses of Congress (______________________________) Congress, with the House of

Representatives using proportional representation (each state sends a number of representatives based on the

state’s population) and the Senate using equal representation (each state sends two senators).

D. Another controversy at the Constitutional Convention was how ____________________ would be counted in terms

of representation.

1. The ______________________ states wanted slaves fully counted as persons for determining representation

in the House of Representatives; they did not want slaves to count as property for taxation purposes.

2. The __________________ states took the opposite position; they wanted slaves to count as property for

taxation purposes, but not as persons for determining representation in the House of Representatives.

3. The two sides worked out an agreement in the ___________________________________________.

Under this compromise, states would count 3/5 or 60% of the slaves toward their population for determining

representation in the House of Representatives.

IV. The Basic Principles in the Constitution – How it Guards Against Tyranny

A. ____________________________________: Under the Constitution, it is the __________________ of the United

States who ______________________________________ and who establish a system of government for their own

well-being through democracy – the election process.

B. ____________________________________: The U.S. Constitution established a government based on

"federalism," or the sharing of power between the ___________________________________ governments. Under

the U.S. Constitution, both the national and state governments are granted certain exclusive powers and share other

concurrent powers.

C. ____________________________________: The Constitution separates the _____________________________,

___________________________, and ___________________________________ powers of government. It then

places these powers in three different branches of government. Each branch has different—and limited—powers,

duties, and responsibilities.

1. The legislative branch ____________________ laws.

2. The executive branch ____________________ laws.

3. The judicial branch ______________________ laws.

D. ______________________________________: Each branch has ways to check or balance the power of the other

branches.

1. The legislative branch can impeach the president and justices.

2. The executive branch (president) can veto laws and nominate justices.

3. The judicial branch can declare laws and presidential acts to be unconstitutional

E. _______________________________________: As protection from the powers of a strong national government,

the Constitution was amended right away to include a Bill of Rights to guarantee civil liberties to individuals. Several

states who sided with the Anti-Federalists, a group believing the Constitution gave too much power to the central

government, refused to ratify the Constitution until the Bill of Rights was proposed. James Madison, a Federalist,

wrote the Bill of Rights. Madison wrote 12 amendments; 11 were ratified (the first 10 amendments comprise the Bill

of Rights and they were ratified in 1791; the 27th Amendment, limiting congressional pay raises, was ratified in 1992).