The Articles vs Consitution essays

The Articles vs Consitution essays The fundamental basis of our government was very weak compared to the government of today. Under the Articles of Confederation, the states were hardly unified, and had no strong central government. When the Federal Constitution was established, the states were finally united, and the delegates realized that the power must come from the central government. When the Articles of Confederation were written in 1777, weakness was prominent. There was only one vote in Congress for each state, which was unfair to the states with a larger population. There was a Two-Thirds vote required in Congress for all important decisions. There were no separation of powers; Congress carried out the laws. The central government had no control over commerce; each state had individual foreign affairs. There were no federal courts, and had no authority to act directly upon individuals and no power to compel states. Under the Articles, the states seemed to have more power than the central government. Realizing that America was under a weak central government, in 1788 thirteen delegates met in Philadelphia to draw up the new and improved Federal Constitution. This created unlike the Articles a more unified union. A compromise was made between the populous states and the smaller states. Two houses of government were established. In the Senate, there were two votes, disregarding the population of the state. This complied with the equal representation deal. The other half was called the House of Representatives, which the votes depended on the population of that state. In the matter of deciding important issues, a simple majority vote was needed in Congress. There were now three branches of government, the executive (presidential), legislative (Congress), and the judicial (Supreme Court). The executive branch now had the powers to execute laws, and the Supreme Court headed the Federal Courts. The power foreign and interstate commerce was now gi...