The Compromises

Edmund Randolph’s Virginia Plan: 2 Houses based representation on populationPresident and Courts chosen by legislature

William Patterson’s NJ Plan: Each state has 1 vote; increase powers of Congress

Great Compromise: Lower house based on population; Upper house 2 members from each state; All $ Revenue Bills must begin in lower house

Slavery

Non slave states wanted slaves counted for taxation but not representation; Wanted an end of importation of slavesSlave states wanted slaves counted for representation but not taxation; Wanted no interference with slave trade from the federal government

3/5 th Compromise: 60% of slaves counted for representation and taxation; No interference with slave trade for 20 years

Commerce Issues

North: wanted tariffs to make foreign goods expensive and to raise revenueSouth: wanted no tax on exports and a 2/3 vote for commerce bills (such as tariffs: afraid of reciprocity)

Commerce CompromiseNo tax on exports; simple majority to pass commerce bills such as tariffs

Chief Executive

Term of office: life? 6 years? 4 years? Term limits?

How elected? State legislatives? Senate and/or House of Representatives? Popular Vote? Electors / Electoral College

The Participants:

55 menWhiteRelatively Young (40’s) Exception: Franklin (81)Professional (lawyers, merchants, publishers)WealthyVeterans

Charles Beard’s Interpretation 1913

Authors of the Constitution (Madison, Hamilton, Dickinson, Franklin, Morris, et al) were . . .

Beard argued that The Constitution was a counter-revolution• Set up by the rich in opposition to the farmers and small planters. • Designed to reverse the “radical democratic” tendencies unleashed by

the Revolution among the common people: farmers and debtors - people who owed money to the rich / Shays’ Rebellion

• All Wealthy men (merchants, lawyers)• Created a conservative, stable government that

would protect their interests: their wealth • Get rid of “pursuit of happiness”• Replace with protection of “property”• Include a guarantee of contracts: legal and

enforceable• National government to oversee commerce

Washington and Adams Administrations 1788 – 1800

1. Hamilton’s Financial Plan: Report on the Public Credit. Pay all debts in full at face value (“Assumption of Debts”}; create a Bank of the U.S. (BUS) – this was the big issue of the day!

2. Opposition: Madison, Jefferson and Randolph. Gave national government too much power; Virginia paid all of its debts

3. Bank issue: did Constitution allow for its creation? Strict Constructionist: NO. Elastic Clause only permits laws that are necessary. The Bank is not necessary.

4. Loose Constructionist: It’s necessary and proper. If the Constitution doesn’t deny the National Government, then it can.

1. Whiskey Rebellion: caused by excise tax (to pay for Assumption of Debts). Conspiracy theories

Sinister plot by Jeffersonians to overthrow new government?? or Innocent rebellion by unhappy farmers? Or was it a sinister plot by the Federalists to create a national army to put down future rebellions? Main lesson: Washington would not tolerate resistance to federal law.

2. Development of Political Parties Jefferson and Madison believe Hamilton is subverting the Revolution’s ideals; Hamilton believes opposition is an illegal faction plotting to overthrow government: Hamilton’s followers: Federalists. Jefferson’s followers: Democratic-Republicans (D-R) or just Jeffersonians.

Foreign Affairs

D-R: Supported the French Rev.; favored American assistance (remember: 1778 Treaty of Alliance with France and the whole shared ideals of republicanism) Feds: US depended on British imports [and the tariffs from them] for money; we have more in common with England (language, customs, government)1793: France declares war on England, Holland and Spain. What should US do?Citizen Genet: Frenchman comes to US to recruit Americans to fight British and Spanish. Supported by D- R “clubs”Washington’s Policy: Neutrality; sends John Jay to London

Jay’s TreatyEngland still occupied trading posts (forts?) in Northwest;Interfering with American shipping: search and impressed “British” AWOL sailorsRejected our claim of “neutral rights”Never returned (or paid for) slaves taken during RevolutionOwed us “compensation” for our slaves & our ships seized

Hamilton “sabotaged” talks by secretly informing British that US would not insist on all of its “demands” [a “tip off”]In treaty: British agree to get rid of the forts and some trade restrictions. In return England could have tariffs on American goods, English exports got most favored status in the US and the US agreed to compensate England for pre-revolutionary debts. Impressment would continue

D-R outraged by treaty; despite that, it was ratified by Senate.

Pinckney’s Treaty

Extremely Pro-American treaty with Spain

Spain mistakenly believed that the Jay Treaty was a new Anglo-American Alliance that could threaten Spain

Gave Americans the right to navigate freely on Mississippi River

Election of 1796The Jay’s Treaty controversy made the lines between the Feds and D-Rs even clearer: Feds put little emphasis on involving ordinary people in politics, favored a strong central gov’t, preferred commercial interests, were pro-British, and were pessimistic about the future. DRs disliked a strong central gov’t, focused on westward expansion, preferred agrarian interests, and were more optimistic about the future.

- During the 1790s the majority slowly switched to the D-Rs.

Washington retired; gave the famous Farewell Address, which mainly called for commercial but not political links to other countries [no permanent alliances], stressed the need for unilateralism, and called for unity.

John Adams and Thomas Pinckney ran from the Federalist side and Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr represented the D-Rs. Since the electors were only told to vote for their two favorites [the Constitution didn’t provide for parties], it ended up that Adams was President and Jefferson was Vice President.

Oh no…

The Adams Administration-Adams agreed with Washington [ Presidents should be above politics and not support any factions] He let others take the lead.- Because of the Jay Treaty the French started seizing American ships carrying British goods. Adams sent 3 men over in 1798 to negotiate a settlement, but Talleyrand demanded a bribe before negotiations could begin. Adams told Congress it wasn’t working; Congress insisted he release the reports. -Adams ended up withholding only the names of the French agents, which led to the name of the XYZ Affair. This generated enormous anti-French sentiment – Congress abrogated the 1778 Treaty, and a Quasi-War began in the Caribbean.

• The DRs continued to support France• Adams: Are they traitors?• Other Federalists saw this as an

opportunity to prove once and for all that the D-Rs were subversive foreign agents. • 1798 the Federalist Congress passed the

Alien and Sedition Acts.

The Acts were meant for recent immigrants [who were generally DRs]: • Naturalization Act (Alien) lengthened the

residency requirement and had all resident aliens register, and it allowed for the detention of enemy aliens during wartime and allowed the President to deport dangerous aliens.

• Sedition Act applied to citizens as well and tried to control speech against the gov’t.

In response, Jefferson and Madison drafted the Virginia (Madison) and Kentucky (Jefferson) Resolutions, which outlined the whole states’ rights argument for the first time. [very important]

- Adams once again sent an envoy to Paris, this time seeking compensation for seized ships and abrogation of the 1778 treaty. The Convention of 1800 ended the Quasi-War but only provided for the abrogation of the treaty.

- Unluckily for Adams the results of the negotiations weren’t known until after the election of 1800 [his decision to start them alienated everybody and prob. cost him the victory by dividing the Feds].

The “Revolution of 1800”

-The DRs won but• Jefferson and Burr got the same # of votes This

“tie” had to be settled by the House. [Burr should have told everyone to vote for TJ but didn’t!]

• Hamilton’s behind-the-scenes maneuverings got Jefferson to be President.

• Consequently, in 1804 the Twelfth Amendment changed voting to a party ticket.

-Will things be different? The Feds are out. The Jeffersonians are in.

*Race Relations at the End of the Century*

• Indians now came under US influence [Treaty of Greenville after the Battle of Fallen Timbers] In 1789

• The Indian Trade and Intercourse Act (1793) promised that the gov’t would supply Indians w/animals, tools, and instruction in farming

• This plan ignored traditional Indian customs of communal landowning and women farming/men hunting.

-African Americans began forming their own Baptist/Methodist congregations.

-These were sometimes used to plan revolts, such as:

-Gabriel’s Revolt (1800) and Sancho’s Conspiracy (1802).

-Neither revolt worked [they were found out] and they only resulted in increasingly severe laws against slaves.

Bill of Rights 1791

.Freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly

.Right to keep and bear arms

.No quartering without consent

.Against search and seizure

.Not subjected to same offense twice, be deprived of life, liberty, or property.Right to speedy trial.Guaranteed trial by jury.No excessive bail, fines or cruel and unusual punishment.Rights are not confined to what is written.Powers not delegated to U.S. are reserved to states