Franklin D Roosevelt: The Constitutional Convention

1071 Words3 Pages

APUSH ESSAY [placeholder introduction] 400 years is a heck of a lot of time to sort through. Yet there are a few items which stand out above all others. these are >>Constitutional Convention, Progressive Era, Franklin D Roosevelt The Constitutional Convention was held to write a document to replace the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation was the USian people's first attempt at a constitution and had many issues. The federal government had little power and experienced problems with debts, interstate trade, tariffs, and rebellion. It only lasted about ten years, from 1777 when it was ratified to 1787 when the Constitutional Convention began. The Convention began on May 25, 1787 and lasted five months to September 17. During this time, 55 delegates from 12 states gathered in Philadelphia to deliberate over the issues facing the young US. This group of people included some of the most well-known names in US history: George Washington, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, and more. Some of the issues that stood before them were debated during the creation of the Articles of Confederation and some were new problems that had been created or worsened by the Articles. Popular representation in government, separation of powers, the “necessary and proper” clause, slavery, the electoral college, and the balance of power between the federal and state governments were major topics. For instance, many different plans for the distribution of representation were proposed, and in addition to parts of the constitution such as the necessary-and-proper clause and an absent list of citizens' rights became an issue that caused three of the people who took part in the Convention to withhold their signatures. The Consti... ... middle of paper ... ...e president in a pivotal time: 1932, during the early Depression. While this alone would make his influence on the US is significant, he also had three times the usual amount of time to exert that influence, since he was in office for a little over three full terms. This gave him a large window of opportunity to leave his mark on US history. Even in the first few months of his presidency, he was making waves: his New Deal established an “alphabet soup” of agencies, giving relief to the US people ravaged by the struggling economy. He passed many significant or long lasting policies. alphabet soup social security “good neighbour” FDIC FDR was very well-liked and in some ways he was a symbol of the US “fireside chats” won by 17% popular vote margin in 1932 24% popular margin 1936, third largest smaller margin in 1940 but still 10%

Open Document