experimenting with confederation

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Experimenting with Confederation Chapter 5 Section 1

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Experimenting with Confederation. Chapter 5 Section 1. I Americans Debate Republicanism. Everyone understood they needed a republican gov’t but some reluctant to unite under a strong central gov’t WHY DO YOU THINK SOME ARE RELUCTANT TO SUPPORT A STRONG CENTRAL GOV’T?. A. Basis for a Republic. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Experimenting with Confederation

Experimenting with Confederation

Chapter 5 Section 1

Page 2: Experimenting with Confederation

I Americans Debate Republicanism• Everyone understood they needed a

republican gov’t but some reluctant to unite under a strong central gov’t

WHY DO YOU THINK SOME ARE RELUCTANT TO SUPPORT A STRONG CENTRAL GOV’T?

Page 3: Experimenting with Confederation

A. Basis for a Republic• Favored republic because a

democracy, gov’t directly by the ppl, put power in hands of uneducated mases– Republic=gov’t in which

citizens rule through elected reps

• Republicanism=the idea that gov’ts should be based on consent of its ppl– Meant diff. things to diff. ppl

Page 4: Experimenting with Confederation

• Some believed the success would only come if ppl placed the good of the country before personal interest

• Others argued that allowing citizens to pursue own econ. And pol. Interest would benefit the nation

• States created their own constitutions which showed fear of centralized gov’t

Page 5: Experimenting with Confederation

II Continental Congress Debates• While states created their own constitutions,

the Continental Congress began to draft its own– Had to answer 3 basic questions

Page 6: Experimenting with Confederation

A. Representation by Population or by State?

• States came together but were not equal in land size, wealth, & population– Should each state elect the same # of reps or

should states w. large pop have more reps then those w/ smaller pop

• Members viewed themselves as reps of independent states– Decided each states would have 1 vote regardless

of pop

Page 7: Experimenting with Confederation

B. Supreme Power: Can it be Divided?• Most ppl until then believed gov’t could

not shar supreme power or it wouldn’t function

• Congress created the Articles of Confederation– Articles of Confederation= gov’t in which 2

levels of gov’t shared fundamental powers• Under the Articles the national gov’t

had right to…– Declare war/make peace– Sign treaties– Borrow $$– Deal w/ Native Americans

Page 8: Experimenting with Confederation

• ARTICLES DID NOT CREATE SEPARATE EXECUTIVE TO ENFORCE THE ACTS OF CONGRESS OR A COURT SYSTEN TO DECIDE THE MEANING OF LAWS

• THIS MADE THE GOV;T AND THE ARTICLES WEAKTO PROBLEMS

Page 9: Experimenting with Confederation

C. Western Lands: Who Gets Them?• Arguments over western lands delayed new gov’t– Some wouldn’t sign until all claims to western lands

were given up– Belief was that western claims would make some

states largerover powering of smaller states• Land Ordinance of 1785= established plan for

surveying western lands

Page 10: Experimenting with Confederation

• Northwest Ordinance of 1787= procedure for dividing the land and set requirements for admission of new states– Congress appoints governor &

judges– When ter. Has 5,000 voters they

can write temp constitution & elect gov’t

– Total pop reached 60,000 settlers could write state constitution which needs to be approved by Congress before statehood is granted

Page 11: Experimenting with Confederation

III the Confederation Encounters a Problems

A. Political & Economic Problems• Most serious prob = lack of unity• States pursued own interests rather then the nations

– Did not recog. Diff. among pop of states• Georgia (25,000) & Mass. (270,000) same pol power

– Amendment to Articles only with approval from ALL STATES• Changes were diff. to achieve

– Most serious econ prob= debt from Revolution• Congress did not have power to taxcan’t pay debt

Page 12: Experimenting with Confederation

• Congress asked approval from states to impose a tariff– Tariff=tax on imported goods

• One state rejected it so Congress could not impose tariff

Page 13: Experimenting with Confederation

B. Foreign Relations Problems• Britain refused to evacuate military forts

because US could not pay back war debt• Spain closes access to Miss. R which was vital

to western and southern American farmers• These problems stemmed from the weakness

of the Confederation gov’t