Many historians acknowledge the Declaration of Independence as the starting point of the American statehood and one of the most prominent democratic instruments of the United States. A large part of the Declaration takes account of all kinds of accusations against the parliament and the monarchy of England that brought tyranny to the land and undermined the economic interests of the colonists. The true value of the document lies in its social philosophy that “defined three inalienable rights (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 18)”: “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” (Declaration of Independence, US 1776, par. 2) The Declaration recognized the right of people to participate in legislation, the jurisdiction of the common law, the adoption of freedom and privileges. It proclaimed the independence of the legislative branch from the government.
The next milestone in building the US was the adoption of the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union is considered to have been the first constitutional document of the United States. It was framed by the Second Continental Congress on 15 November 1777 in York (Pennsylvania), and ratified by all thirteen states (Maryland was last state to do it on 1 March, 1781). The Articles of Confederation established the powers and authorities of the Confederation. According to the articles, the Confederation was to decide upon questions of war and peace, take on diplomatic functions, allocate monetary and government loans, while the rest of the powers were left to the states.
It soon became obvious that the authority of the government of the Confederation had been very limited (in particular, it did not have the power to levy taxes), which compromised the unity of the new state. Another major drawback was the equal representation of the states in the Congress of the Confederation, which caused dissatisfaction of large and populous states, an issue to be remedied only by the Founders in Philadelphia. Article II of the Articles stipulated that “each state retains its sovereignty, freedom and independence, and every Power, Jurisdiction and right, which is not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress assembled.” Such extensive authority retained by states was the reason of “radical” states flourished, which caused turmoil. For example, in Rhode Island a legislature “instituted economic policies, including drastic currency inflation, that frightened business and property owners throughout the country” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 35). The central government was not in the position to intervene, severely limited by the Articles. Foreign commerce was another issue of huge economical impact that could not be managed centrally (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 34). Inability to effectively and timely quench Daniel Shays rebellion that terrified local institutions. That was the last dent to the shaky structure of the central government under the Articles. The need for amendments and modifications was evident. The bourgeoisie and rich planters needed to change the political system. This task was entrusted to the Constituent Convention in 1787, which framed the Constitution and established a strong central government of the Federation.
The Constitution of 1787 was the result of increased Federalist Movement in that period of US history. She defended the interests of the two dominant groups of the time – the merchants of the North and the slave-owning planters of the South, reached the craved for unity through compromise on the issues outstanding from times of the Articles of Federation. “[T]he framers sought to create a new government capable of promoting commerce and protecting property from radical state legislatures and populist forces hostile to the interests of the commercial and propertied classes” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 37). One of the main contention points was the representation issue. The Virginia Plan proposed by Edmund Randolph provided for proportional representation based on the population and revenue of each state. The New Jersey Plan coming from less-populous states was aimed at directly the opposite – equal representation. The decision was found that shaped the structure of government, as we know it. The Great Compromise was to create two chambers with overlapping powers, The House of Representatives apportioned according to populace and the Senate with equal representation. The second issue related to representation concerned the extent to which slaves could serve as the basis for representation. The House of Representatives composition depended on the number of people including slaves. The ratio of slaves in some states reached 5 blacks to one owner (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 37). The solution for that was called Three-Fifths Compromise, which means 5 slaves “would count as three free persons” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 37). The delegates from northern states opposed to counting slaves whereby admitting they were but property, which was in contradiction with their moral perspective. There were claims that if the slaves were to be counted they were to be treated as citizens and not as property. But instead of letting the slave inclusive count and storing the argument for the future, they insisted on exclusion that proved for me personally that they valued their representation more than their principles. Five to three means that the slaves were considered a little more than half of a free person. However, that was quite a progress compared to post-medieval Europe.
The principle of the constitutional order proclaimed republican form of government, based on the supremacy of the legislature. The “establishment of national judicial supremacy and the effort to construct a strong presidency” were among the primary goals of the Framers (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 37). The Basic Law of the United States embodied their political culture and worldview, which encompassed diverse constitutional traditions of the Old World, especially of England, as well as all political philosophy of the European Enlightenment. The important accent was given to need of avoidance of so-called “excess democracy” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 40).
The Constitution appeared not only as a treaty between the different groups of the upper class, but as an agreement between them and the politically active groups of US citizens that was later to be termed “social contract” after Thomas Hobbes’ “contract theory” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 29). Separation of powers and efficient federalism were the prominent achievements of the new constitution. Federalism was also an instrument that allowed the Constitution to have had the “most fundamental influence on American life” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 41) The need of public support of the new constitution was the background for “constitutional provision for direct popular election of representatives and, subsequently, for the addition of the Bill of Rights” (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 40).
Article I, Section 8, provides for the implied powers that enable Congress “to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers.” This “necessary and proper clause” gave enough elasticity, which made the system viable in the long run, although it would not be use for several decades (Ginsberg, et. al. 2014: 63). The states mostly retained the police powers that include criminal codes development and enforcement, health and safety rules administering, family regulation.
The equality for all citizens was a challenge due to the fact that people tend to strike up alliances to struggle for their interests. James Madison in one of the anonymous articles for the New York Journal outlined the essence of the problem and proposed possible solutions. “There are . . . two methods of removing the causes of faction: the one, by destroying the liberty which is essential to its existence; the other, by giving to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and the same interests” (The Federalist, Paper 10). In my opinion, this was the beginning of the American Dream, a national idea that would reconcile different people and let them live peacefully and consciously under the common governance principles.
The Constitution can be considered one of major achievements of humankind. The fact that it has lasted for so long is due to the flexibility inherent to the Constitution from the beginning. The elastic clause made it possible for the United States to remain united for so long. Along with the Amendments provision and the Supremacy clause, it was an instrument to overrule separate states regulations if it was deemed “necessary and proper” at the moment. For example, that clause allowed the creation and proper functioning of such a fundamental institution as the National Bank.
Works cited
Ginsberg, Benjamin, Lowi, Theodore J., Weir Margaret, et all. We the People: An Introduction to American Politics (Ninth Essentials Edition). 2012. Web. PDF
