Simone Lawson
The United States Constitution has been criticised for being written by and for the rich. The Founding Fathers were wealthy landowners, merchants, and slave owners, and many were businessmen. They had political power both before and after independence from Britain, and they designed the Constitution to ensure the aristocracy would continue to rule. The Constitution was also criticised for its vagueness and lack of specific protection against tyranny. The Anti-Federalists, for example, demanded a more concise document that unequivocally laid out the rights of the people and the limitations of the government's power.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Written by the rich | Robert Morris, George Washington, John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson |
| Written for the rich | To protect the interests of the wealthy |
| Written to be vague | Open to interpretation |
| Voting qualifications | Only white men who owned property had the vote |
| Taxing Clause | Congress has the authority to "lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imports, and Excises" |
| Lack of separation | No need for separation of state and business interests |
| Opposition | Anti-Federalists opposed the ratification of the Constitution |
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What You'll Learn
- The Founding Fathers were rich businessmen before the revolution
- The Senate and President were selected by the powerful and wealthy
- Only white men who owned property could vote
- The wealthy wrote the rules to keep themselves in power
- The Constitution was vague and open to interpretation, changing over time
The Founding Fathers were rich businessmen before the revolution
The United States Constitution has been criticised for being a document of, by, and for the rich, for control of the laws by which a government operates. The Founding Fathers have been described as rich businessmen who fought for their money and to have a place in the government.
While campaigning, Scott Walker emphasised that he did not come from wealth or prominence, even bragging that he bought a sweater for a dollar. However, he referred to the founding fathers as businessmen with political careers. According to the National Archives, the 55 delegates who attended the Constitutional Convention, from which the U.S. Constitution emerged, were "well-educated men of means who were dominant in their communities and states, and many were also prominent in national affairs."
Some founding fathers were indeed rich before the revolution. George Washington, for example, accumulated vast acreage—more than 50,000 acres by his death—by shrewd speculation in frontier land he surveyed. He also married one of the richest widows in Virginia. Benjamin Franklin, the 10th son of a soap maker, grew his wealth and reputation in myriad ways. He had a thriving business printing everything from books to currency, and he published his newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, and his best-selling Poor Richard’s Almanack. John Hancock and Thomas Jefferson were also very rich men.
However, it is important to note that not all of the Founding Fathers were rich. Samuel Adams, for example, was born to a Boston malt merchant who tried to set up a mortgage bank. The British shut it down and ordered Adams' father to repay all the loans, bankrupting him.
The Founding Fathers' wealth and social standing allowed them to take on influential roles in the government. They had the means to get into politics full-time, and they wrote the rules that kept the powerful and wealthy in power and wealth.
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The Senate and President were selected by the powerful and wealthy
The United States Constitution was drafted at the Federal Convention of 1787, also known as the Constitutional Convention, by a group of delegates who gathered in Philadelphia. The delegates, led by General George Washington, debated the structure and powers of Congress, ultimately establishing a bicameral legislature with a House of Representatives and a Senate.
The Senate, in particular, was designed to be a small, deliberative body that would serve as a counterbalance to the more democratic House. The characteristics of the Senate, including representation, qualifications for office, and term lengths, were the subject of fierce debate and compromise. While the delegates agreed on equal state representation in the Senate, they disagreed on the length of senators' terms. Some states favoured one-year terms, while others preferred longer terms, such as the seven-year terms proposed by Edmund Randolph and James Madison.
At the time of the Constitutional Convention, the right to vote was limited to white men who owned property. This meant that the Senate and President were effectively selected by a small group of wealthy and powerful individuals. The House of Representatives was the only branch of the federal government that was intended to be directly elected by the people, and even then, only property-owning white men could participate in the electoral process.
The founding fathers who drafted the Constitution were often wealthy businessmen and slave owners themselves, such as George Washington, who was among the wealthiest presidents due to his extensive land holdings and slaves. Andrew Jackson, another early president, also derived his wealth from similar sources. This dynamic has continued throughout US history, with most presidents before 1845 being extremely wealthy, and even those who were not born into wealth often accumulating significant fortunes during their lifetimes, such as Lyndon Johnson.
While there has never been a property qualification for the presidency, it is worth noting that many presidents have married into substantial wealth or benefited from family fortunes, such as John F. Kennedy and Donald Trump. Additionally, the salary of the president has increased over time, further contributing to the financial advantages enjoyed by those who hold this office.
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Only white men who owned property could vote
The United States Constitution was written by 55 wealthy men in Philadelphia, including George Washington, who was the richest person in America at the time. The Constitution was originally vague and open to interpretation, and the government it established has changed a lot over time. However, it is argued that the powerful and wealthy wrote the rules to keep themselves in power.
The U.S. Constitution originally left it to states to determine who was qualified to vote in elections. For decades, state legislatures restricted voting to white male landowners, and some states also employed religious tests to ensure that only Christian men could vote. Only three states, Kentucky, New Hampshire, and Vermont, had universal white male suffrage. In the early 19th century, state legislatures began to limit the property requirement for voting. By 1830, the number of states with universal white male suffrage had risen to ten, although six still had property qualifications and eight had tax-paying qualifications.
In 1821, the state of New York held a constitutional convention that removed property requirements for white male voters but required that "persons of colour" own $250 worth of property to vote. This rule was abolished in an amendment in 1826, but the proportion of African Americans who were free and could vote remained low. The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed during the Reconstruction period following the Civil War, declared that people could not be denied the right to vote because of their race. However, former Confederate states passed Jim Crow laws and amendments to effectively disenfranchise African American and poor white voters through poll taxes, literacy tests, and other restrictions.
The struggle for equal voting rights has been a long and ongoing process in the United States, with various amendments and laws expanding access to the vote based on race, gender, ethnicity, disability, age, and other factors.
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The wealthy wrote the rules to keep themselves in power
The United States Constitution has been described as a document "of, by, and for the rich". The wealthy and powerful men who wrote the Constitution were the same ones who did not want to lose their money to unfair taxes. They were also the ones who had the means to get into politics full-time.
The Founding Fathers were rich businessmen and landowners, merchants, and slave-owners who held political power both before and after independence from Britain. They fought for their money and a place in the government. When they didn't get what they wanted, they started a new country.
The Continental Congress, which governed the colonies during the war, was dominated by rich men, linked by business and family connections. The Senate and the President were selected by people who already had power. The House is the only Federal Branch that was written to be directly elected by the public, and not just the people with power or wealth.
The Constitution was also vague and open to interpretation, which made it easier for the wealthy to shape it to their advantage. For instance, the phrase "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" from the Declaration of Independence was altered in the Constitution to "life, liberty, and property".
The Constitution also did not reflect the interests of the disenfranchised. Four groups were not represented at the Constitutional Convention: those without property, slaves, indentured servants, and women. Qualifications for voting at the state level required, in most cases, the owning of property and excluded women, indigenous people, and slaves.
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The Constitution was vague and open to interpretation, changing over time
The United States Constitution has been criticised for its vagueness and lack of specific protections against tyranny. For instance, Patrick Henry attacked the proposed Constitution, asking the Virginia convention:
> What can avail your specious, imaginary balances, your rope-dancing, chain-rattling, ridiculous ideal checks and contrivances.
Richard Henry Lee also criticised the Constitution for its lack of provisions to protect "those essential rights of mankind without which liberty cannot exist".
The Constitution was written by 55 wealthy men, many of whom were landowners, merchants, slave-owners, and businessmen. Some historians argue that the Constitution was designed to protect the interests of the wealthy. For example, Robert E. Brown points out that the phrase "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" from the Declaration of Independence was altered in the Constitution to "life, liberty, and property".
The Constitution was also written at a time when only white men who owned property could vote. Those without property, slaves, indentured servants, and women were not represented at the Constitutional Convention and thus the Constitution did not reflect the interests of the disenfranchised.
However, others argue that the Constitution was not purpose-built to benefit the rich. While the wealthy had a strong influence on the creation of the document, it is still quite vague and open to interpretation. The system of government outlined in the Constitution has changed a lot over time, arguably helping the poor more than any other system in history.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, the US Constitution was written by the rich, for the rich, to maintain their wealth and power.
The US Constitution was written by 55 wealthy men, including George Washington, who was the richest person in America at the time.
There are several pieces of evidence that support this claim. Firstly, the document was written by wealthy individuals who had a clear motivation to protect their economic interests. Secondly, the Constitution included provisions that favoured the wealthy, such as the Taxing Clause in Article I, which granted Congress the authority to collect taxes without regard to population, benefiting wealthier states. Additionally, the original Constitution did not provide specific protections for citizens' rights and freedoms, which some viewed as inferior and vague.
Yes, there were opposing views during the drafting of the Constitution. The Anti-Federalists, for example, argued against the ratification of the Constitution, criticising it for its vagueness and lack of protection against tyranny. They demanded a more concise and unequivocal document that explicitly laid out the rights of the people and limitations on the government's power.
The US Constitution, in its original form, restricted voting rights to white men who owned property. Women, people of colour, tenants, and those without property were excluded from the democratic process, despite being subject to taxation. This effectively concentrated political power in the hands of wealthy white male landowners.
