government gave too much power Essay

The two major plans proposed during the 1787 constitutional convention was The Virginia Plan and The New Jersey Plans. The Virginia Plans called for a strong national government branched into judicial, legislative and executive branches. The legislative branch would have two houses- the first house being chosen by the people and the second house by

The Virginia Plan was centered mainly around the idea of having a new form of government. This was one of the many advantages because in time, the new nation would have collapsed under the Articles of Confederation.

However, some ideas from it were used in the new constitution. The Virginia Plan was used, but many delegates felt that any new government would need new powers and a new organization to exercise those powers fully.

During the constitutional convention, two plans were proposed to solve the problem of state representation in the government. The first of the two plans was the Virginia Plan, proposed by James Madison and the second being the New Jersey Plan, proposed by William Patterson. Both plans consisted of three branches of government, executive, legislative, and judiciary. however, the New Jersey Plan allowed for multiple executives. Additionally, the Virginia Plan had a bicameral legislature, both houses based on state's’ population or its wealth. The New Jersey Plan, on the other hand, has a unicameral legislature, with its single house giving a single vote to each state

The primary source is Federalist paper No. 10, which is a the first of James Madison’s contributions to the series of essays known as the Federalist Papers. This essay is a highly regarded paper among the collection. The Federalist No. 10 is merely rhetoric used to rationalize the benefits of a new system of government, explain how the new union will be constructed and most crucial to the essay, sway public opinion to support the ratification of the new constitution. This particular primary source is imperative to understanding the complexity of the United States government at the time of its birth as well as now. Madison makes an argument that the expansion of the federal government is necessary to protect liberty against the excess of democracy. The document reveals the advantages of a Republic and serves as an explanation as to why the U.S. espouses a Republican form of government and the Constitution.

Virginia plan was the first and large plan drafted by James Madison and presented by Edmund Randolph to the Constitutional

It made several proposals regarding the structure and powers of the federal government. Under the Virginia Plan, both houses in the legislature would have their representatives decided according to a state's number of free citizens. It was assumed by Madison that both large and small states would agree to this proposal; however, the smallest states were opposed because they knew they would have less Congressional power under this governmental structure. Roche uses words like "militant" and "truly radical" when describing the structure of the federal government under the Virginia Plan. Both he and Lance Banning relate the support Madison's plan received to the delegates' memories of the behavior of state legislatures under the Articles of Confederation. It is not surprising, therefore, that some delegates first supported a plan that would protect against abuses of power by the states. In response to the Virginia Plan, states' righters began supporting the New Jersey Plan, which called for equal representation in every state. Roche describes it as a "reversion to the status quo under the Articles of Confederation with but minor

During the writing and ratifying of the Constitution, there were some fundamental issues being debated. The main debate was about whether to amend the Articles of Confederation or write a new constitution. James Madison, a member of the Virginia Assembly, moved the convention along but proposing a document he had drafted called the Virginia Plan. The Virginia Plan created a central republican form of government. The government would consist of the legislative, executive and judicial branch. It

Larger states wished for state representation to be based on population while smaller states opposed the concept. The Virginia Plan had the lower house of the legislative branch be represented by population and the upper house was elected by the lower house. This meant the smaller states may not be represented in the upper house. However, the Great Compromise settled solved the problem by having two delegates from each state in the upper house, satisfying the smaller states. The lower house of representation would still be based on population, pleasing the larger states.

James Madison introduced the Virginia Plan which had the idea of a bicameral legislature and was in favor of larger states. As you can imagine not everyone liked this idea especially the smaller states because it seemed to be exclude them from having a voice. This is when William Paterson knew he should do something, this is when he introduced the New Jersey Plan. The New Jersey Plan proposed a unicameral legislature and had a one vote per state mentality and of course favored the smaller states. This plan did have one idea in common with the Virginia Plan and that idea was separation of powers or having the three branches of government; legislative, executive and judicial. James Madison did not take a liking to this proposal or anyone in favor of the Virginia Plan for that matter because it was an alternative option to their

The authors did a good job stating facts about both plans while staying partial to neither of them. On page 32 in the second paragraph the authors write “For instance, it did go a long way in meeting the objectives of those who wanted a stronger union, such as that envisioned in the Virginia Plan, by granting the central government taxing powers and control over interstate and foreign commerce, and by providing as well that its laws would be the “supreme law of the of the respective states…” These together shows the readers a lot of information about the two plans.

The middle of the novel is focused on Berkin writing about the back and forth of arguments the delegates contested because they wanted to produce a document best fit for the nation. It did not take long for supporters and opponents of the Virginia Plan to voice out their opinion. When Randolph proposed, “that a national government ought to be established consisting of a supreme Legislative, Executive & Judiciary”.(ch 4 pg 69). When discussing the details of three branches Berkin writes that men needed,“The branches had to be able to cooperate, but they also had to be able to restrain one another. The tools of restraint given to one branch depended upon the dangers inherent in the powers given to another.” (ch 4 Pg 95). However opponent Charles

Considering the unsuccessful Articles of Confederation, it was vital to construct a better statute under which government would function. This new law would have to incorporate values of a Republic, and the ultimate goal of unifying the nation through the creation of a stronger national government, while still acknowledging states’ rights. James Madison, who is accredited for being the “father of the Constitution,” paved the road for the development of the modern Constitution. However, many feared this strong central government would inevitably turn into a tyranny, much like the one they had just fought to escape from. Eventually, after many conventions, the Constitution, which incorporated compromises between states, was finally adopted, and calculated into it were several ways a tyrannical government could be prevented.

The Great Compromise was the great combined attributes between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan. The Virginia Plan was introduced by James Maddison proposing new structures of government by the scrapping of the Articles Of Confederation. The New Jersey Plan was introduced by William Paterson that was also proposing that a new constitution should written. A major setback that the people had was being taxed with being represented. One of the Virginia Plans proposal was if the taxes were gonna go to the national government or the number of its free citizens. Later down the road, taxes were destroyed and citizens were being represented based on their size. Furthermore, the Virginia Plan wanted to scrape the Articles of Confederation because