The Plan for Government (1787)
a Guide to the Constitution- Dawson Walker
New Government Neededed
Issues, Explanations, and More!
Who Were The Delegates?
The delegates were made up of wealthy, knowledgeable, white males from each stateIssues of Representation
How were the states going to be represented? There were two plans, Virginia Plan which was based on population, and the New Jersey Plan which was based on the same power for all. They also went through the Great Compromise, which the house of representatives was based on the Virginia Plan and the Senate was based on the New Jersey Plan
Issue of Slavery
Should the population count slaves? Of course the south said yes to this but the north said no. They also came up with a compromise for this which was called the three-fifths compromise. Three fifths of the slaves counted.
Issue of States and Federal Power
This issue created the system of federalism. The power was divided between federal and state. Nation powers were delegated powers while state powers were reserved powers.
Separation of Power
To protect against bad government they divided the government into three parts, legislative to make laws, Executive to enforce the laws, and Judicial to interpret the laws.
Changing the constitution
In case the government needs to be changed, amendments can be added if 2/3 of the house of rep. agree and 2/3 of the senate agrees also.