TOPIC #6 — FRAMING THE CONSTITUTION

Q1:     Who were the people ("The Framers," "The Founding Fathers") who actually drafted the Constitution? Who asked them to assemble and what were they asked to do? When, where, and how did they do their work?

Q2.     What were some of the great compromises made by the framers of the Constitution (for example, pertaining to representation in Congress, eligibility to vote and hold federal office, the powers of Congress, the office of President, the balance between the state and central governments)? Why did they make these compromises?

Review:        confederal vs. federal system

                                direct representation of the people

                                direct agency over people

Virginia Plan

                                           Consolidation dimension

New Jersey Plan  

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    anarchic      AofC               NJ             Const.             VA             unitary

Drafting the Constitution

          Federal compromise

          Representation (Connecticut) compromise

          Commerce compromise (see Box on “Logrolling a Constitution,” K&J, pp. 56-57)

          Executive compromise

          Avoided questions: succession/slavery/etc.