George Washington once said, “The Constitution is a guide I will never abandon.” Though Washington was thoroughly committed to the Federalist party and probably was obligated to stand behind those words, The Constitution of 1787 must have been a greatly substantial document if one of the most famous historical figures of America prided himself in following it. However, if you remember anything from your ninth grade Civics class, you would know that The Constitution was not the first form a government America followed; after America won its independence from Great Britain, she was put under the authority of another document known as the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation, though wasn’t a complete failure, did not encompass
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Arguably one of the biggest events showing the need for a new form of government was Shay’s Rebellion in 1787. Due to the economic downfall that happened because of the debt America had racked up after the American Revolution, a depression had forced the government to create harsh taxation policies to make up what they owed. The rebels of the policies retaliated in violence, creating a conflict that the national government could not put-down themselves. This was due to the fact that under the Articles, Congress could declare war, but not be allowed to create an armed force--which meant they had to rely on the states’ militias to protect the country from threats (Doc. D). Using this method ultimately failed due to the fact that it took time for Congress to finally put down the threat, unlike years later in 1794 when Alexander Hamilton’s tax on whiskey angered farmers in Western Pennsylvania and created a revolt known as the Whiskey Rebellion. The result of the Whiskey Rebellion ended differently than Shay’s Rebellion, for Washington sent an overwhelming number of soldiers to squash the insurgents to show that The Constitution could handle internal dangers such as rebellions that the Articles of Confederation could not (Doc. E). Not only did the Articles hinder the protection of the United States, but it also created issues due a complete lack of an Executive branch and a missing independent Judiciary branch; America had no spokesman without a powerful Executive head which meant the country was at an extreme diplomatic disadvantage, and without a strong Judicial Branch which meant Congress didn’t have any way to enforce national laws. The Constitution rectified these issues by creating an Executive branch that was equally as powerful as the Legislature, giving the president the authority to
Arguably one of the biggest events showing the need for a new form of government was Shay’s Rebellion in 1787. Due to the economic downfall that happened because of the debt America had racked up after the American Revolution, a depression had forced the government to create harsh taxation policies to make up what they owed. The rebels of the policies retaliated in violence, creating a conflict that the national government could not put-down themselves. This was due to the fact that under the Articles, Congress could declare war, but not be allowed to create an armed force--which meant they had to rely on the states’ militias to protect the country from threats (Doc. D). Using this method ultimately failed due to the fact that it took time for Congress to finally put down the threat, unlike years later in 1794 when Alexander Hamilton’s tax on whiskey angered farmers in Western Pennsylvania and created a revolt known as the Whiskey Rebellion. The result of the Whiskey Rebellion ended differently than Shay’s Rebellion, for Washington sent an overwhelming number of soldiers to squash the insurgents to show that The Constitution could handle internal dangers such as rebellions that the Articles of Confederation could not (Doc. E). Not only did the Articles hinder the protection of the United States, but it also created issues due a complete lack of an Executive branch and a missing independent Judiciary branch; America had no spokesman without a powerful Executive head which meant the country was at an extreme diplomatic disadvantage, and without a strong Judicial Branch which meant Congress didn’t have any way to enforce national laws. The Constitution rectified these issues by creating an Executive branch that was equally as powerful as the Legislature, giving the president the authority to