Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia 1787

Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787

The following slides correspond to parts II, III, and IV of your Character Viewpoint Analysis. Each slide has some information about the creation of the three branches of government. There also basic arguments to help you generate ideas for the Constitutional Convention.

II A(1). One or two houses?

one house (unicameral) one law-making body that meets as one group

two houses (bicameral) one law-making body that meets as two groups

II A(2). What should be the basis of representation?

New Jersey Plan equal representation- each state has the same number of representatives

Virginia Plan representation based on population- the number of representatives is based on a state’s population

II B(1). Should slaves be counted as population?

Southern view Yes. This means Southern states would increase their population and thus would have more representatives in the legislature. Northern view No. Northerners do not want the Southern states to have more representatives.

II B(2). Should slaves be counted for taxation purposes?

Southern view No. They do not want to pay a property tax on their slaves. Northern view Yes. If the South considers slaves property, then they should pay taxes on their slaves as they would other taxable property.

II C. Who should regulate commerce (trade)?

Southern view The states should. They feared the national government would begin taxing their export crops and trying to interfere with the slave trade. Northern view The national government should have the power to tax and use money to benefit the whole country.

II D. Who should choose the legislature?

Note- Many of the members of the Constitutional Convention questioned the ability of the average person to make intelligent decisions, hence the options for government officials choosing the government.

II E. How many years should a term of office be?

short term (1 -4 years) advantages disadvantages

long term (more than 4 years) advantages disadvantages

II F. How many terms of office can be served?

one term advantages disadvantages

more than one term advantages disadvantages

III A. How many executives?

one executive One executive means you have one head of government (who we call a president) who performs the outlined duties of the executive.

more than one executive More than one executive means you have two or more individuals who perform the outlined duties of the executive.

III B. How should the executive be selected? The following options are similar to the legislative branch, but the situation is different. Remember that the Legislative branch has many people while the Executive branch has only a few.

III C. Powers of the executive The following is a partial list of possible powers with explanations.

Some things to think about when deciding executive powers:

III D. How many years should a term of office be?

short term (1 -4 years) advantages disadvantages

long term (more than 4 years) advantages disadvantages

III E. How many terms of office can be served?

one term advantages disadvantages

more than one term advantages disadvantages

IV A. What type of national court system should be created?

IV B. How should justices be selected?

IV C. How many years should a term of office be?

IV D. How long should the justices serve?

Issues of the Constitutional Convention Philadelphia, 1787