The Constitution And The Ratification Of The Constitution

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When the United States of America’s government was first created there were many arguments about the jobs it would have and how much power it would possess. The first document that set the foundation for the national government was the Articles of Confederation. However, it had many weaknesses and denied the government the power to levy taxes and regulate commerce. In addition to denying the national government essential powers, it did not provide for a judiciary branch. Many of the political leaders realized that the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation were issues that needed to be addressed and resolved. As the leaders began to revise the Articles of Confederation, a better solution began to take shape: the Constitution. However, …show more content…

However, before this Constitution could be put into effect it had to have the approval of at least nine states. Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison wrote the Federalist papers to explain and defend the Constitution in hopes that it might help convince the states to approve its ratification. Two of the most well-known papers, both written by Madison, were numbers ten and fifty-one. Number ten deals primarily with the dangers of faction and the ways that the Constitution would defend against it. A large republic is the best way to control the effects of faction. It ensures that worthy candidates will be elected by a larger majority and also allows for a larger society, providing for numerous opinions and ideas, as well as making it difficult for an unjust majority to form. Paper number fifty-one deals with a similar topic, the misuse of power both by the government and by one part of society against the other. If a government cannot effectively govern itself, then it cannot govern its people. In theory, by dividing the power of the national government between three different branches, the Constitution ensures that one branch will not hold more power than the other. This protects the people from oppressive rulers and allows the government to control itself. The society is then broken into multiple different classes, interests, and parts to prevent an unjust majority from forming and compromising the rights of the minority. The Federalist papers provided detailed explanations of the Constitution and helped to secure its ratification in

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