The United States was in a crucial state after the Revolutionary war. The peace agreement ensured that there was calmness in the country and other developments could take place. There was a need to come up with a comprehensive power structure that will cater for the various needs of the young nation. Slavery, citizen rights and foreign policy were among the many pressing issues. Additionally, a stand-off between the northern and southern states required that a compromise be reached upon promptly. In this regard, the law makers decided to draft the Constitution in 1787 to harmonize things. The process faced a number of challenges that the lawmakers had to overcome to come up with the final draft as discussed below.
The Constitution was drafted to implement republican’s agenda. The Constitution contained clauses on the bill of rights, opening of the western lands allowing settlement, increased education for women and approaches on the slave trade. The Constriction also addressed the issue of equal distribution of resources among the various states. Division of power among the various organs of the government created a system aimed at driving the country to future glory. Rules and regulations for electing various representatives in the government were also defined. Finally, a bill of rights to help promote rights of citizen, freedom of expression, religion and criminal justice were included in the Constitution.
There was a hot debate deliberating on the Constitution. Key concerns were how the powers between the Congress and the House of Representatives should be distributed and whether the Constitution should do away with the states. To convincingly tackle this problem, the lawmakers made several compromises. They agreed that there should be elections after a given duration, and the government is made up of three organs executive, legislative and judiciary. The final draft of the constitution was drafted on July 1787 and consisted of major principles only. All institutions were given legal names and powers of each office stipulated. The qualifications for any office were stated. Appointment of the various state officials such as judges was assigned to the Executive but should be approved by the legislative. This system of balance and checks ensured that officials in public offices performed as required by law.
Before the final Constitution was drafted, the federal government operated from the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation posed several challenges for the government in its operations. There was no clear approach on how to approach issues on foreign policies and enforcing of the rule of law in the states. The framers assigned specific duties to each of the three branches of the government. Congress was responsible shaping foreign policies while the House of Representatives dealt with issues to do with domestic taxes. The executive was responsible for dealing with smaller matters. However, debate indicated that the Executive required more powers to handle matters of foreign affair. This resulted in the president acquiring the authority to handle matters on foreign policies.
In conclusion, the Constitution was drafted and finalized with the idea of implementing the various agendas. These agendas would help to kick start the governance of a young nation, growth and prosperity. To come up with a draft that was fair for all, the framers had to tackle several issues that hindered their goal. Finally, the draft was voted by all state delegates to become the United States Constitution.
References
Mintz, S., & McNeil, S. (2013). The Critical Period. Retrieved June 28, 2013, from Digital History: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraID=4&smtID=2
US Department of State. (2013). Constitutional Convention and Ratification,1787-1789. Retrieved June 29, 2013, from OFFICE OF THE HISTORIAN: http://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/ConventionandRatification
