Many citizens commonly view the American political system as a wild horse controlled by the Constitution, a comprehensive document written by the framers. They reference the intent of the Founding Fathers, specifically, how they would be ashamed of the modern presidency. However, in actuality, the Founding Fathers would not only recognize but also approve of the modern presidency because it is largely what they expected.
At the time of the Founding Fathers, the American citizens recognized that the Articles of Confederation, which had laid the foundation for the United States needed to be significantly altered. The Articles of Confederation, which once held the states together, was no longer capable of holding the nation together without a …show more content…
In May of 1787, the Constitutional Congress began and forever changed the shape and scope of American politics. The delegates came together with a vision of a strong central government, but no clear or detailed plan on how to accomplish it. At the time, they had recognized through their experiences that the state’s legislative branch of government slowly became the most powerful branch. The legislature controlled the actions of both the judicial and executive branches of government. With the power to choose who filled the executive and judicial offices and whether they remained, the legislature had become overpowered. The separation of powers, which was intended as a way to strengthen each of the three governmental bodies and prevent tyrannical rule had become unbalanced. Without a serious change to the separation of powers, the legislature would become an unstoppable force, or as Thomas Jefferson noted, “173 despots … just as oppressive as one” (Ellis, …show more content…
The current executive branch at the state level became so powerful because it was mainly decided by the legislature. A large number of the delegates wanted to free the slaves and impose a direct democracy, but the southern states were opposed to any legislation, which aimed to remove slavery (Ellis, 2015). The southern states would leave the convention and oppose the plan for a strong central government if any limitations on slavery were proposed. The smaller states were also opposed to a direct democracy because it would severely limit their power. As a result, the delegates came up with the Electoral College, which allowed each of the states to receive a number of electors based on their numbers in the House of Representatives and the senate. This compromise gave the smaller states a little more power than a direct democracy, but more importantly appeased the southern states with one amendment. The Southern States wanted their slaves to count as citizens for the purpose of assigning representatives and electoral votes. This change would, however, change the balance of power to heavily favor the southern states. As a result, the 3/5ths compromise came into existence. This allowed slaves to be counted as 3/5ths of a person for the purpose of assigning representatives and electoral votes (Ellis, Nelson
At the time of the Founding Fathers, the American citizens recognized that the Articles of Confederation, which had laid the foundation for the United States needed to be significantly altered. The Articles of Confederation, which once held the states together, was no longer capable of holding the nation together without a …show more content…
In May of 1787, the Constitutional Congress began and forever changed the shape and scope of American politics. The delegates came together with a vision of a strong central government, but no clear or detailed plan on how to accomplish it. At the time, they had recognized through their experiences that the state’s legislative branch of government slowly became the most powerful branch. The legislature controlled the actions of both the judicial and executive branches of government. With the power to choose who filled the executive and judicial offices and whether they remained, the legislature had become overpowered. The separation of powers, which was intended as a way to strengthen each of the three governmental bodies and prevent tyrannical rule had become unbalanced. Without a serious change to the separation of powers, the legislature would become an unstoppable force, or as Thomas Jefferson noted, “173 despots … just as oppressive as one” (Ellis, …show more content…
The current executive branch at the state level became so powerful because it was mainly decided by the legislature. A large number of the delegates wanted to free the slaves and impose a direct democracy, but the southern states were opposed to any legislation, which aimed to remove slavery (Ellis, 2015). The southern states would leave the convention and oppose the plan for a strong central government if any limitations on slavery were proposed. The smaller states were also opposed to a direct democracy because it would severely limit their power. As a result, the delegates came up with the Electoral College, which allowed each of the states to receive a number of electors based on their numbers in the House of Representatives and the senate. This compromise gave the smaller states a little more power than a direct democracy, but more importantly appeased the southern states with one amendment. The Southern States wanted their slaves to count as citizens for the purpose of assigning representatives and electoral votes. This change would, however, change the balance of power to heavily favor the southern states. As a result, the 3/5ths compromise came into existence. This allowed slaves to be counted as 3/5ths of a person for the purpose of assigning representatives and electoral votes (Ellis, Nelson