The Constitution of the USA.

During the struggle for independence the American states were united in their opposition to Great Britain. However, after the war many disagreements arose. The most important was how to govern the new country. How united should the new states be?

Some people wanted the nation to be a loose organization of states. They believed that citizens in each state should govern themselves. These people feared a strong national government – the memory of the British rule was fresh.

Others wanted a powerful national government to solve the problems of the new country. Each state had to give up some of its power so that the nation could be stronger.

The first national government was created during the Revolutionary war. The rules for the government were listed in the Articles of Confederation. For seven years (1781-1788) the US was governed according to this document. The Articles of Confederation established a national Congress – a lawmaking body, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There was no president. They feared having another very powerful leader like the British king. Congress was given authority to declare war, to establish an army and navy, to issue and borrow money. But the Articles gave most power to the states. Each one could cast one vote in Congress. A law could be passed only if nine of the thirteen states voted for it. However, Congress had no ways to enforce its laws if the states refused to obey.

This type of government sounded fair, but it did not work well in practice. Firstly, the states had too much power. They often acted like separate nations. Each state could coin its own money, arm its own soldiers and build its own navy. Each could, and sometimes did, make laws to hurt neighboring states (New York and Connecticut merchants). Secondly, there was confusion about currency. Some used coins minted by the states, others used foreign coins, still others traded with goods like salt or pork. But one of the biggest problems concerned foreign policy. Like any nation, the US needed to make treaties with foreign countries, but in 1785 most European nations did not respect American power. They knew how weak Congress was. It could not even collect enough taxes to equip a strong army.

The only successful act of Congress under the Articles of Confederation was the Northwest Ordinance, which concerned western lands north of the Ohio River. It allowed settlers in this area to form new states. An area could become a self-governed state if it had 5,000 voters or 60,000 settlers.

 In spring 1787 the states sent their 55 representatives to Philadelphia in order to take part in the Constitutional Convention and to write a new plan of government. This group included some of the most important leaders in America: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison. The men who gathered at the Convention argued and debated. Delegates from Virginia, New Jersey, Connecticut and other states put forward their suggestions. Many compromises were made before they all agreed upon a plan. They drew upon many sources for creating the new constitution. They studied ancient Greek and Roman history. They also looked at the Iroquois League of Nations and read political theories by John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau.

The project of the constitution was composed by James Madison. It included Locke’s idea that the purpose of government is to protect natural rights of people to life, liberty and property. If a government fails to do so, the people have the right to rebel against it. Locke also rejected the belief that the power of kings came directly from God. He was convinced that political power came from the people. The idea that a government could only exist with the consent of the governed was also used by Madison. The latter included Rousseau’s  statement that all citizens must take part in their government all the time and the principle from the Magna Carta that those who govern are subject to the law of the land as well as those who are governed, too. James Madison added the idea that private property should be the backbone of liberty.

On July 16, 1787 the plan of the new American government was completed. It created the House of Representatives and the Senate and divided the political power among the three branches of government. Congress would have the power to veto any state laws that did not go along with the national constitution.

The problem of slaves was very difficult, for southern states especially. Finally, it was decided to count each slave as three-fifth of a person. By compromising the question of slavery, they set the stage for religious conflicts which would result in the Civil War.

Not all Americans approved of the constitution. It took almost a year before nine out of thirteen states ratified it as there was a strong opposition to the project. People feared that under the constitution the president would become as powerful as a king. They thought that states were the best defenders of the people’s liberties because state constitutions guaranteed personal freedoms, while the US constitution did not have a bill of rights. In Virginia the best known opponent of the constitution was Patrick Henry, who said "I would rather have a king, lords and commons than a government filled with such insupportable evils”. Washington and Madison helped ratify the constitution in Virginia.

In 1787, Thomas  Jefferson was an American diplomat in France. Still he remained interested in what was going on back home. He was surprised to learn that the constitution had no bill of rights. "A bill of rights”, wrote Jefferson from France, "is what the people are entitled to … and what no just government should refuse”.

To get more support for the constitution Madison helped to write 12 amendments, concerning the rights of the people. In December 1791, 10 of them became part of the constitution.

The constitution created in 1787 told the US government what it could do. The first 10 amendments said what the government could not do. Under the new constitution the American nation would grow strong and united. George Washington was easily elected as the first US president. He chose able people to help him run the government. His Cabinet of advisers consisted of 4 members. Thomas Jefferson took charge of foreign affairs as Secretary of State. Alexander Hamilton raised and spent government money as Secretary of Treasury. Henry Knox became the first Secretary of War. Edmund Randolph enforced federal laws as Attorney General. Washington told Congress what laws he thought were necessary ( to create a national bank, to pay off all the debts, to impose tariffs, etc.). He also had the courage to make hard decisions. Thus in 1794, Washington himself led the army to crush the whiskey rebellion in Pennsylvania.

Washington retired in 1796, after two terms of service. This decision set an example for future presidents. In his farewell address Washington asked that people forgive his mistakes and remember the good he had tried to do. Washington wanted Americans to support the union. He was against the growth of political parties which would divide the nation, against permanent alliances with foreign powers which could keep the nation from acting in its own best interests. Many Americans still consider that their first president was the best one.