Because George Washington lent his prestige to the Constitution and because of the ingenuity and organizational skills of its proponents, the Constitution was ratified in all states. The convention had begun altering its original plan but then decided to abandon continued efforts of emendation, and officially set about constructing a new Constitution of the United States. Extend the sphere, and you take in a greater variety of parties and interests you make it less probable that a majority of the whole will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens'. 10 on his support for a federal government, 'the smaller the number of individuals composing a majority, and the smaller the compass within which they are placed, the more easily will they concert and execute their plans of oppression. James Madison stated in a pre-convention memorandum to the delegates that because 'one could hardly expect the state legislatures to take enlightened views on national affairs', a stronger central government was necessary. Preceding examples, such as in the Virginia Declaration of Rights, influenced the delegates whilst framing their ideas of Federal bicameral legislature ( United States Congress), balanced representation of small and large states ( Great Compromise), and checks and balances structures. This was a clear development in federal thought. There, the delegates debated the structure, provisions, and limitations of Federalism in what would be the Constitution of the United States. On May 15, 1787, fifty-five delegates met at what would be known as the Constitutional Convention in the Philadelphia State House. Moreover, the federal government had proven incapable of raising an army to quell the rebellion, so that Massachusetts had been forced to raise its own. The rebellion was fueled by a poor economy that was created, in part, by the inability of the federal government to deal effectively with the debt from the American Revolutionary War. The movement for federalism was greatly strengthened by the reaction to Shays' Rebellion of 1786–1787, which was an armed uprising of yeoman farmers in western Massachusetts. For example, the Articles allowed the Continental Congress the power to sign treaties and declare war, but it could not raise taxes to pay for an army and all major decisions required a unanimous vote. Federalism was a political solution for the problems with the Articles of Confederation which gave little practical authority to the federal government. 4 Between dual federalism and the New Dealįederalism is a form of political organization that seeks to distinguish states and unites them, which assigns different types of decision-making power at different levels to allow a degree of political independence in an overarching structure.

Feudalism chart united states gov