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| A written set of rules for the operation of a government. The U.S. Constitution was written in 1789 and created a three branch government - legislative, judicial, and executive - with all branches being "separate but equal" in power. |
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| Articles of Confederation |
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| First constituion of the U.S., it created a weak federal government because people where afraid of the power of a king. It could not collect taxes, control trade between states or stop states from making their own money. |
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| Sets up a way to sell land in the west. Towns divided into squares and sold for $640 per square mile (one dollar and acre). |
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| A law that created a way for territories of the U.S. to become states. The territory must have 60,000 people and not already be in a state. |
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| This is a tax on imported goods. While it is good for U.S. businesses and their workers, tariffs raise the prices of products, hurting consumers. |
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| The final straw for the Articles of Confederation government, this event saw farmers in Massachusetts burning banks to destroy records of loans. This is illegal, but the federal government could not do anything about it because the Articles had no executive branch. |
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| Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation |
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| No executive branch (cannot arrest people), no judicial branch (no court system or prisons), no taxes (no money to do anything), cannot stop states from making own money (made selling things from state to state very difficult and confusing) |
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| Constitutional Convention |
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| Group of leaders met in Philadelphia to create a new constitution because the Articles of Confederation were not working. They created the U.S. Constitution in 1789. |
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| A leader of the Constitutional Convention, he is pushing for a stronger federal government than the Articles of Confederation. |
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| Took notes at the Constitutional Convention. It is because of these notes that we know what the arguments were and who made them. |
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| Virginia (Large State) Plan |
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| This plan called for a new constitution that had three branches. The legislative branch as to have two houses, both with the number of representatives to be determined by the population of the state. This mean the four large states would have outvoted the nine small states on all issues. |
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| New Jersey (Small State) Plan |
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| A response to the Virginia Plan, this plan called for a three branch government. The legislative branch would have only one house with one representative per state. This would mean that the nine small states, who had fewer people than the four big states, would always overrule them. |
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| A combination of the Virginia (Large State) Plan and the New Jersey (Small State) Plan, this plan created a three branch government. It solved the questions about representation in government. The legislative branch would have two houses, the House and the Senate. The House would have the number of representatives based on population, while the Senate would have two Senators per state. |
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| This compromise settled how slaves would be counted for population when determining representation in the House of Representatives. Slaves would be three-fifths of a person. |
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| The question about how power should be shared between the states and the federal government. The new U.S. Constitution gave much more power to the the federal government. This meant that the states had to give up power. Southern states in particular were concerned about this. |
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| The ability of the citizens to determine the laws that will govern them. Later, this will be used to determine whether the Kansas and Nebraska Territories will have slavery. |
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| The part of the government that creates laws. The U.S. government has a two branch legislative branch with the Houses being called the Senate and the House of Representatives. |
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| The portion of a government that enforces the laws. In the U.S., the executive branch is headed by the President. |
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| The portion of the government that is responsible for interpreting the laws. In the United States, the federal government has three levels in the judicial branch - District Courts, Courts of Appeals, and Supreme Court. |
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| A system in the U.S. Constitution to ensure that no branch becomes more powerful than the other two. Examples would be that the President selects new Justices for Supreme Court, but they have to be approved by Senate. Usually more than one branch is required for actions. |
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| Group largely made up of Southern farmers who required that a Bill of Rights be promised before they would ratify the U.S. Constitution. This would place limits on how much power the federal government has over people. |
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| Additions to the Constitution that allow it to change as necessary. There have been only been 27 Amendments in over 200 years. |
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| These are the first ten Amendments to the Constitution. They were added at the insistence of the Federalists. They place limits on what the government can do to individuals. For example, the First Amendment gives citizens the right to free speech, press, religion and assembly. |
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| The Tenth Amendment, this change states that the federal government may control things not mentioned in the Constitution. It is believed this was added to allow the Constitution to adapt to changing thought and technology. |
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| The Tenth Amendment, this states that any powers not given to the federal government is controlled by the states. |
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| Each branch of the federal government does something different, but all are intended to have the same amount of power. |
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| To accuse a government official of a crime. A trial is then held to decide whether or not to remove the official from office. |
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| The President has the power to not sign a bill passed by Congress. This is an example of checks and balances. |
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| These people function as advisors to the President. The must be approved by Senate. There are 15 cabinet departments including the Secretary of State. |
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| The highest court in the U.S. It consists of nine judges (eight Associate Justices and one Chief Justice). Its decisions are final. |
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| This person is in charge of Supreme Court, but his vote only counts as one vote like the rest of the Justices. The current Chief Justice is John Roberts. |
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