There was a profound difference of opinion on slavery. The economy of many southern states depended almost exclusively on agricultural products produced by slaves. To protect their economies, the southern states insisted on two proposals. One of them was to prohibit Congress from taxing exports (to protect their agricultural exports). The second proposal was to prohibit Congress from banning the importation of slaves. (In fact, the word „slave“ was never used in the Constitution. The proposal was written to prohibit Congress from interfering in the importation of „people of this kind,“ as states think they „recognize well.“ Across the country, the call „Freedom!“ filled the air. But what freedom? Few people claim to be anti-freedom, but the word „freedom“ makes a lot of sense. Should delegates be most concerned about protected freedom of conscience, contractual freedom (i.e., for many at that time, the right of creditors to recover debts outstanding under their contracts) or freedom of ownership (debtors complained that this freedom was taken by banks and other creditors)? Moreover, the call to freedom could mean two very different things from the slave issue – for some, the freedom to own slaves meant protection, while for others (who could see better through black eyes), freedom meant ending slavery. In February 1787, Congress decided that a convention should be convened to revise the articles of the Confederacy, the country`s first constitution.
In May, 55 delegates came to Philadelphia, and the Constitutional Convention began. There have been debates about representation in Congress, about slavery and about the new executive branch. The debates lasted four hot and stifling months. But in the end, delegates reached compromises, and on September 17, they drafted the U.S. Constitution and replaced the articles with the government document that has been working effectively for more than 200 years. 2. Discuss the benefits of having the Senate as it is. Delegates compromised by assigning specific responsibilities to the federal government, while delegating all other functions to the federal states.
Delegates proposed many different methods for electing the president. An alternative was the direct election of the people, but this was controversial. Some delegates did not trust the judgment of the ordinary man. Others felt that this was not practical in a country with many rural communities spread over a large area. George Mason, of Virginia, said: In 1787, the debts of the War of Independence accumulated, and many states lag behind in paying their debts. States would impose tariffs on each other and fight across borders. Britain was furious because no debt had been paid before the war, and it refused to respect the treaty that had ended the war (the Treaty of Paris of 1783). Acknowledging that things did not go well, Congress declared on February 21, 1787 that „there are flaws in the present confederation“ and decided that in Philadelphia a convention „for the sole and explicit purpose of revising the articles of Confederation“ . and to make the Federal Constitution responsive to the needs of the government and to the maintenance of the Union. Before the official start of the Congress, Madison and the other Virginia delegates had devised a plan — the Virginia Plan — to correct the articles of Confederation. Their plan went far beyond changes and corrections and did present a whole new instrument of government.
The plan included three distinct branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. The legislative branch would have two houses, the first being elected by the people of each state, and the second by the first from a list drawn up by the national parliaments. The central question of the Convention was whether the Confederation or the federal states had more power. Many delegates believed that the federal government should be able to repeal state laws, but others feared that a strong federal government would oppress its citizens.