Fourth Period Sep 8th notes

• The Constitution

o Document defines the basic structure of government

o Creates a national government while recognizing the authority of state government

o Divides national government in three parts

o Describes the powers of each part; its relationship to the other parts and relationships among the national government, the state governments and the people

• The constitution is rooted in the American Revolution
• The Declaration of Independence
  
• Drawn from the writings of John Locke and that those rights cannot be taken away bu the government
  
• Theory which states that the people agree to establish rulers for certain purposes but they have the right to remove violators
• Major premise is the long list of deliberate acts by the king which illustrates how the British government has destroyed colonist legitimate rights
• Articles of Confederation
• A loose association of independent states that agree to cooperate on specific matters
• Each state retains sovereignty
• Articles of Confederation was weak and ineffective
• The Articles didn't give the national government the power to tax
  
• The Articles made no provision for an independent leadership position to direct the government; the President was merely the presiding officer in Congress
• They didn't allow the government to regulate interstate and foreign commerce
• The amendment process allowed any state to veto any charges to the confederation
  
• The government couldn't quell Shay's Rebellion
  
• Constitutional Convention 1787
• 12 out of 13 states send representatives
• They were given the task of revising the constitution (*)
  
• VA Plan
• In effect a whole new charter for government
• Supported by the larger states

1. Power would be dived among three separate branches
1. legilative
   
2. judicial
   
3. executive
2. The Legislative branch would be bicameral: the (larger) House of Representatives and the Senate
   
   • House of Representatives would be chosen but the people; the Senate would be chosen bu the House of Rep. from candidates the state legislatures had nominated
     
   • Each state's representation would be based on the traces it paid to the nation government or in proportion to its free population
   • Legislature would be empowered to override state laws
3. The executive would consist of an unspecified number of people' would serve a single term of office
   
4. National Judiciary would include one or more supreme courts and other lower courts
5. Their veto could be overridden by a veto of both houses and legislature

• NJ Plan

1. Single camber legislature with the power to raise revenue and regulate commerce woule be established (*)
2. The State would have equal representation in legislature the states would choose the members of the legislature
   
3. Multi person executive branch would be elected bu the legislature but no veto power
4. No provision for a national Judiuary
5. The acts of the national legislature with binding on the states (*)

• NJ Plan was defeated
• CT delegation proposed a compromise know as the CT compromise and as the Great compromise
  
• Delegates Agreement
• One President--electoral college
• Electoral college consisting of electorals chosen for the sole purpose of selecting the president and vice president
• Each state would have as many electors as the sum of representatives and senators
• Each elector would vote two people, the person with the most votes (but at least a majority) would become president and the person with the next highest number of votes would become VP
• If no candidate won a majority the House Rep. would choose the president, with each state's delegation having one vote
• The electoral college eliminate the fear of a popular vote while satisfying the small states desire for a voice in the selection process
  
• Agreed that a president should eligible for reelection and that the term of office should be four years
• Removing a president from office was seen as a very serious political matter; The House of Rep, the Senate, and the Chief justice of the supreme Court would take part in the proceeding

(*)= couldn't read my hand writing may be the right thing or the wrong thing typed