Strengths And Weaknesses Of The Constitution
Constitution Paper
Kaitlyn Smith
HIS/110
June 8, 2014
Kellie Rainka
Constitution Paper
The Constitution is the backbone of American. It is the freedom, rights, and laws of every American. The Constitution is one of the most important documents to this country. It helped to develop the Great Compromise, it confronted the weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation, and it also addressed the grievances in the Declaration on Independence.
The Great Compromise
The Great Compromise was created by Roger Sherman in order to settle a debate between the large states and the small states. James Madison created a plan for the large states, which he called The Virginia Plan. While, William Peterson devised a plan for the small states, …show more content…
The Articles were known as the first constitution of the United States, however according to “The Articles of Confederation” (2013), “The Articles created a loose confederation or sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments” (para 1).
One weakness of the Articles of Confederation was that Congress could not levy taxes. The nation was still in debt from the Revolutionary War, but Congress was only able to request funds from the state, since the states were the ones who had the power to raise revenue and enforce taxes. However, most of the time the states did not raise the money that was due to the national government (Brackemyre, 2014). Therefore, Congress had a hard time paying off debts and making a national budget. Another weakness of the Articles was that there had to be unanimous ratification of a bull in order for it to become a law. This made making changes that could potentially have improved the nation very difficult. A third flaw of the Articles of Confederation was that Congress could not fully regulate trade, except with Native Americans. Congress was allowed to trade with Native Americans, as long as it did not interfere with the state being able to monitor its own trade. In addition, the Articles did not assign a uniform currency. Congress was able …show more content…
(2013). Retrieved from http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/articles.html
Schultz, K. M. (2014). U. S. History Through 1877 (3rd ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database.
Brackemyre, T. (2014). America 's First Failure at Government: The Articles of Confederation. Retrieved from http://www.ushistoryscene.com/uncategorized/articlesofconfederation/
Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. (n. d. ). Retrieved from https://suite.io/michael-streich/19zs2nv
The Purpose of the Declaration of Independence. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com/purpose-of-declaration-of-independence.html
Lorcher, T. (2012). Summary and Analysis of The Declaration of Independence. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubeducation.com/history-homework-help/40052-declaration-of-independence-summary/
The Declaration of Independence (1776). (2010). Retrieved from
Kaitlyn Smith
HIS/110
June 8, 2014
Kellie Rainka
Constitution Paper
The Constitution is the backbone of American. It is the freedom, rights, and laws of every American. The Constitution is one of the most important documents to this country. It helped to develop the Great Compromise, it confronted the weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation, and it also addressed the grievances in the Declaration on Independence.
The Great Compromise
The Great Compromise was created by Roger Sherman in order to settle a debate between the large states and the small states. James Madison created a plan for the large states, which he called The Virginia Plan. While, William Peterson devised a plan for the small states, …show more content…
The Articles were known as the first constitution of the United States, however according to “The Articles of Confederation” (2013), “The Articles created a loose confederation or sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments” (para 1).
One weakness of the Articles of Confederation was that Congress could not levy taxes. The nation was still in debt from the Revolutionary War, but Congress was only able to request funds from the state, since the states were the ones who had the power to raise revenue and enforce taxes. However, most of the time the states did not raise the money that was due to the national government (Brackemyre, 2014). Therefore, Congress had a hard time paying off debts and making a national budget. Another weakness of the Articles was that there had to be unanimous ratification of a bull in order for it to become a law. This made making changes that could potentially have improved the nation very difficult. A third flaw of the Articles of Confederation was that Congress could not fully regulate trade, except with Native Americans. Congress was allowed to trade with Native Americans, as long as it did not interfere with the state being able to monitor its own trade. In addition, the Articles did not assign a uniform currency. Congress was able …show more content…
(2013). Retrieved from http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/articles.html
Schultz, K. M. (2014). U. S. History Through 1877 (3rd ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database.
Brackemyre, T. (2014). America 's First Failure at Government: The Articles of Confederation. Retrieved from http://www.ushistoryscene.com/uncategorized/articlesofconfederation/
Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. (n. d. ). Retrieved from https://suite.io/michael-streich/19zs2nv
The Purpose of the Declaration of Independence. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com/purpose-of-declaration-of-independence.html
Lorcher, T. (2012). Summary and Analysis of The Declaration of Independence. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubeducation.com/history-homework-help/40052-declaration-of-independence-summary/
The Declaration of Independence (1776). (2010). Retrieved from