The Dispute That Disconcertingly Didn 't Win

Before the Declaration of Independence was signed, colonists were treated very unfairly by their mother-countries leader, King George III. King George had not helped the 13 colonies in any way and really only used them to gain wealth for Great Britain and himself. George’s method of gaining wealth from the 13 colonies was that they could only trade to Great Britain, which did not help the 13 colonies expand as a country. Also, he heavily taxed colonists on the western hemisphere because he needed aid to pay off his former war debts. The colonists were not happy about his acts because it gave them little opportunity of expanding their wealth or fortune which, is the main idea of coming to the “New World.” This made colonists very angry now was thickening the hatred for their leader they were now just as motivated as the politicians; resulting in, plenty of change, leading to the American Revolution. Jefferson understood the colonists and he was able to express or summarize their ideas, thoughts, and motivations through the document; “We the People”. Even though the Declaration of Independence was a main contribute to the ending of the American Revolution, the war had lasted an extra five years with Britain. Britain did not want to lose the 13 colonies

Establishing an effective system of government has proven to be an obstacle for centuries. Fortunately, the Founding Father recognized the common flaws of governments, as did many common men in the colonies. Consequently, the ratification of the constitution was vital for a healthy governmental system, though it did bring about much debate and persuasion. There were two main positions which people took during the ratification, those being the Anti-Federalist and the Federalist. The Anti-Federalist were a diverse assembly involving prominent men such as George Mason and Patrick Henry, and also the most unlikely of individuals, those being Farmers and shopkeepers. The chief complaint about the Constitution was that it confiscated the power from the sates, thereby robbing the people of their power. Oppositely, the Federalist believed in removing some control from the states and imparting that power to the national government, thus making America partially national. Throughout this debate, many letters were shared between the two sides, and eventually, it led to the federalist winning over the colonies.

The ratification of the US Constitution in 1787 sparked a ferocious and spiteful debate between two large groups of people, those who supported the ratification and those who did not. Both sides were very passionate about their ideas yet they were so divergent, as one believed that the ratification could create a more powerful, unified country, while others worried about the government gaining perhaps too much control. The supporters and opponents equally had various strong reasons in their beliefs regarding the ratification of the US Constitution, the most common for the supporters being that the current government was heading badly, and a ratification would fix all the mistakes made originally and set the course for a successful government. On the other hand, the biggest concern for the opponents was that the ratification would give the government too much power, and there would be no controlling force to keep the government in its place.

In 1787, the Constitution was written and submitted for ratification by the 13 states, but not everyone agreed with it. There were two groups of though. One was the Anti-federalists, who opposed the Constitution and the other group were the Federalists, who supported it. The Anti-federalists were people who supported the Articles of Confederation because they were doing well under them. They were mostly poor people from rural areas and were supported by the big states. They believed that the Constitution did not secure their rights and gave the central government too much power. The Federalists were mostly the wealthy people who lived in or near city areas and were supported by the smaller states. They believed that the separation of

The Republicans, or supporters of State’s rights, viewed that the American Revolution occurred to free America from Britain control as well as to create a country run by self-governing people. The Federalists agreed that the American Revolution took place to free America, but they believed that newly freed America needed a strong central government to represent them. A prime example of State versus Federal was exemplified during The Dinner hosted by Thomas Jefferson. As stated in the book, “The Major business of the evening, in all likelihood, was an agreement to recalculate Virginia's debt and corresponding share of the enlarged federal debt.” (-Page 73.) The backstory to this quote was that each state owed taxes from the American Revolution. However, there was a dispute between the supporters of State rights and the supporters of the Federal Authority on who should collect the debts. The quote is saying that the goal of The Dinner was to settle whether the States of the Federal Government was going to collect the Revolution debts. Although this may seem to be an easy answer to questions like this, events much like this continue

Since raising revenue in the United States was one of the first economic issues the Federalists were up against, a solution to national debt had to be found and agreed upon. During the Federalist’s struggle, James Madison was a federalist who was

A key concern the federalist’s held since the start of the war with parting from England is that citizens of America could ultimately divided against each other if their voice is not heard with the new form of government that

Then there were Anti- Federalists who believed that the bulk of duties should continue to be left to each state's own discretion, so that there would be no misrepresentation of the people it governed. It's left to say that neither side saw eye to eye, but would eventually reach a "compromise", the Federalists would institute their version of the Constitution which had a clear notion of Central Government and it's duties. The Anti-Federalists would receive an additional amendment to the Constitution (The Bill of Rights), which would protect the personal liberties they were convinced a Central Government would revoke. Both sides seemed fairly satisfied with the outcome, though there was still fear of that popular tyranny from the outside. But the act of tyranny they should have feared was their own, for the Framer's motives for creating a new constitution was really protecting the few (the rights of the Wealthy) against the many (the non-elite).

The early years of the Constitution of the United States were full of political strife. The two prominent political ideals were complete opposites. The Jeffersonian Republicans were focused on giving power to the people and maintaining a pastoral economy, while the Federalists supported the control of the government by the elite class, and maintaining “positive” democracy. Both parties feared the influence and effect the other party would have on the public. In Linda K. Kerber's article, “The Fears of the Federalists”, the major concerns Federalists held in the early 19th century are described. Ever since the war with and separation from England, the citizens of America were seen to be continually drive to “patriotic rebellion” as a way to

In the year 1787, early America, officials and delegates came together to form a constitution that would restore the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation was the attempt at creating a government for the newly independent America. But, it soon became clear that the document was not strong enough to govern America. Therefore, delegates who came to be known as Federalists and Anti-Federalists issued major arguments on the ratification of the U.S Constitution. Federalists were individuals who wished to unify the 13 states in negotiation, and

On October 20, 1787 The Massachusetts Sentinel, published a newspaper article trying to get people to be in favor of the new constitution. The article reads, “Let us look and behold the distresses which prevail in every part of our country… the complaints of our farmers… the complaints of every class of the public creditors”(Doc 1). Basically the excerpt from the newspaper is saying that with a state government it is bad for the people because it is hard for all of the states to agree on one thing. All of these people complaining shows that the state government that is in place is just producing problems and that a central government would be more effective. Furthermore George Washington wrote a letter to John Jay on August 1, 1786 in the letter Washington agrees with Jay’s criticisms to the Articles of Confederation. Washington exclaims that, “We have probably had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confederation”(Doc3). In other words Washington is saying that when the constitution was originally written Washington had a lot more trust and integrity in his people that they would do right. When Shays rebellion in 1786 took place things changed because this is what made Washington realise that a new constitution with more laws and amendments was

Except now instead of Loyalists vs. Patriots there were Democratic Republicans vs. Federalists. Upon legal recognition of the United States as an entity separate from Britain, a document was created to establish distinct rules and values of the government. This document, called The Constitution of the United States (1787), would “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves…”. The Constitution has been successful and has served the test of time, but everything it states allows for various interpretations. A major divide in popular opinion was created and would remain past Thomas Jefferson's 1800 inauguration. People who based their views strictly upon the Constitution were known as Anti-Federalists or Democratic Republicans. They believed in a small national government with strong individual state governments. Antifederalists were often common people who wanted fair representation. In 1787 a document was written called Letters from a Federal Farmer. The line “I can consent to no government, which, in my opinion, is not calculated equally to preserve the rights of all orders of men in the community.”, really emphasizes the fear of an overpowering government. Federalists supported a strong national government with smaller less powerful state governments. James Madison, in Federalist 10 (one of the Federalist Papers), refuted the anonymous Anti-Federalist author by writing that “statesmen will be able to adjust these clashing interests and render them all subservient to the public good..”. James Madison thought that by enabling statesmen to have power they could undermine things established for the public

In the initial years of the United States a meeting of delegates appointed by the several states met for the sole purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation. The result of this meeting was the creation of the U.S. Constitution that would soon become the ultimate directive for both Federal and State Governments. Since its birth it has been revised, amended, and ratified in order to solidify the allocation of power between the separate branches of government. Although this may be the case, distribution of the powers has been disputed ever since the formation of the Constitution. These political, legal, and quasi-legal constitutional disputes triggered civil unrest and led to explicit acts of opposition involving nullification and

After the Revolutionary war the United States was at a cross-roads. The American Constitution had been written, and the Federalists were attempting to ratify the Constitution throughout the thirteen States(Bloom, "The Constitution of the United States: Questions and Answers") Those who stood against ratifying the Constitution were known as Anti-Federalists. Whether or not to ratify the constitution was a large manner of debate for many well educated men. George Mason, a Virginian public servant spearheaded the Anti-Federalist movement.(USHISTORY.COM "George Mason"). Mason found several major flaws within the constitution including; The lack of a bill of rights, The fact there was far too much power consolidated within the federal government,

Following the Revolutionary War, the Federalists and the Jeffersonians would dictate the country’s future through their decisions. After gaining independence from Britain, the United States would need a clear path to endure the future hardships and struggles, and the founding fathers would need to decide where to lead it. The Jeffersonians, the staunch defenders of the everyman and of states’s rights, would battle the Federalists, those who saw the need for a strong national government to stabilize the economy and unify the existing states.