Omar Bennett
The United States Constitution, the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution, was drafted at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787. The convention was convened to amend the Articles of Confederation, which had proven ineffective in addressing the young nation's needs. The Constitution was missing a bill of rights, which was a significant concern for the Anti-Federalists, who also feared that it created a powerful central government. The first ten amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were later added to address this issue. The original Constitution also lacked the authority to regulate commerce, print money, and enforce rules. The delegates to the convention represented diverse interests and crafted compromises, resulting in a powerful central government that has endured as one of the most emulated constitutions globally.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| No bill of rights | Lacked individual liberties |
| No definition of eligible voters | Each state determined who could vote |
| No power to regulate commerce | No authority to protect or standardise trade |
| No power to print money | |
| No enforcement powers | |
| Fierce debate over congressional representation | Based on population or equal division between states |
| Slavery | Delegates agreed the slave trade could continue until 1808 |
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What You'll Learn
The Constitution lacked a bill of rights
The United States Constitution was written in the summer of 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by delegates from 12 states. It was intended to replace the Articles of Confederation with a new form of government. The Constitution was ratified by 9 of the 13 states, enacting a powerful central government composed of three separated powers, with both reserved and concurrent powers of states.
However, the Constitution did not initially include a bill of rights. Several delegates, including George Mason, refused to sign it because it lacked a bill of rights to safeguard individual liberty. James Madison, initially an opponent of the Bill of Rights, introduced a list of amendments to the Constitution on June 8, 1789, to win support in both houses of Congress and the states. He focused on rights-related amendments, ignoring suggestions that would have structurally changed the government.
The House approved 17 amendments, of which the Senate approved 12, which were sent to the states for approval in August 1789. By December 15, 1791, three-fourths of the states had ratified 10 of these amendments, now known as the "Bill of Rights." These amendments were designed to limit government power and protect individual liberties. For example, the First Amendment protects the freedom of speech and religion, while the Fourth Amendment safeguards citizens' right to privacy and protection from unreasonable government intrusion.
The addition of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution was a significant development in American history, ensuring that the government's powers were limited and that the rights of citizens were protected.
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No power to regulate commerce
The Articles of Confederation, America's first constitution, gave the Confederation Congress the authority to make rules, request funds from the states, and print money. However, it lacked the power to regulate commerce, which was essential for resolving disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade that threatened to tear the fledgling nation apart.
The delegates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 sought to address this shortcoming by including the Commerce Clause in the new Constitution. This clause grants Congress the power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes."
The Commerce Clause gave Congress the authority to make regular and prohibit the trade, transportation, or movement of persons and goods between states, foreign nations, or Indian tribes. However, it did not include the power to regulate the economic activities that produced the goods to be traded or transported, such as manufacturing or agriculture.
The interpretation of the Commerce Clause has evolved over time. Early Supreme Court cases primarily viewed it as limiting state power rather than a source of federal power. However, beginning with NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp in 1937, the Court began to recognize broader grounds for using the Commerce Clause to regulate state activity. The Court held that an activity was considered commerce if it had a "substantial economic effect" on interstate commerce or if the "cumulative effect" of one act could impact such commerce.
In more recent cases, the Supreme Court has attempted to curtail Congress's broad legislative mandate under the Commerce Clause by returning to a more conservative interpretation. For example, in United States v. Lopez (1995), the Court held that Congress could only regulate the channels of commerce, the instrumentalities of commerce, and actions that substantially affect interstate commerce.
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No power to enforce rules
The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, by 38 delegates, with one delegate signing on behalf of John Dickinson of Delaware, who was absent. The Constitution was intended to revise the existing government, but instead, it introduced a completely new form of government.
The Constitution was a replacement for the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles of Confederation gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it lacked enforcement powers, and it couldn't regulate commerce or print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.
The Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia in May 1787, with the delegates swearing secrecy so they could speak freely. By mid-June, they had decided to completely redesign the government. The framers of the Constitution compromised by giving each state one representative for every 30,000 people in the House of Representatives and two representatives in the Senate. They also agreed to count enslaved Africans as three-fifths of a person and allowed the slave trade to continue until 1808.
The Constitution created a powerful central government, which was a concern for Anti-Federalists, as it reminded them of the one they had just overthrown. The Anti-Federalists also opposed the Constitution because it lacked a bill of rights. The Federalists, on the other hand, believed that a strong central government was necessary to face the nation's challenges. The Constitution was ratified by 9 of the 13 states, enacting the new government.
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No power to print money
One of the notable omissions from the US Constitution, as originally drafted and ratified in 1787, was the absence of a provision explicitly granting Congress the power to print money. At the time, the lack of a monetary policy and the power to issue currency was a significant oversight. The Constitution did not address the issue of a national currency or provide the federal government with the authority to regulate the money supply.
The Articles of Confederation, which preceded the Constitution, had granted the individual states the power to print money, which resulted in a chaotic situation with a variety of currencies in circulation, leading to economic instability and depreciation. The lack of a uniform currency was one of the motivations for calling the Constitutional Convention, yet the final document did not address this issue directly.
The Founding Fathers were concerned about granting the new federal government too much power, especially in areas that could impact individual liberties and state rights. They were also aware of the potential for abuse and corruption if the federal government had unchecked power to print money. However, not granting the federal government the power to regulate currency meant that the young nation would continue to face economic challenges and a lack of financial stability.
During the Constitutional Convention, the delegates debated the scope of the federal government's powers, including the power to coin money and regulate its value. While there was agreement on the need for a national currency, there were differing opinions on how this should be achieved. Some delegates argued for a stronger central government with the power to regulate commerce and currency, while others advocated for a more limited federal role, leaving most powers to the states.
The final compromise, as reflected in the Constitution, was to grant Congress the power to "coin Money [and] regulate the Value thereof," but the explicit power to print paper money was not included. This omission would have significant implications in the early years of the republic as the new nation struggled to establish a stable financial system and address economic crises.
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No protection against slavery
The United States Constitution, originally intended as a revision of the Articles of Confederation, introduced a completely new form of government when it was signed on September 17, 1787. The document, however, did not include any protection against slavery. In fact, it protected and institutionalized slavery and only protected the rights of white men.
The word "slave" does not appear in the Constitution. The framers consciously avoided the word, but slavery received important protections in the document. One of the most notable provisions was the Three-Fifths Clause, which counted three-fifths of a state's slave population when apportioning representation. This gave Southern states extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College. The Constitution also included a fugitive slave clause, which required the return of runaway slaves to their owners. Additionally, it gave the federal government the power to put down domestic rebellions, including slave insurrections.
The controversy over the Atlantic slave trade was settled by a compromise. In exchange for a 20-year ban on any restrictions on the trade, Southern delegates agreed to other concessions to ensure that South Carolina and Georgia would not refuse to join the Union. Many of the framers had moral qualms about slavery, but they believed that concessions on slavery were necessary to gain the support of Southern delegates for a strong central government.
The Constitution's protection of slavery has been described as its "biggest flaw" by some, including Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky. The document was written in broad, open-textured language, leaving room for interpretation and change over time. This is evident in the evolution of equal protection under the law, which was assured by the 14th Amendment adopted in 1868 after the Civil War.
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Frequently asked questions
The US Constitution did not originally define who was eligible to vote, leaving this to the individual states to determine.
The Constitution also lacked a bill of rights, which was a concern for Anti-Federalists who believed it created a powerful central government reminiscent of the one they had just overthrown.
The Articles of Confederation, which acted as America's first constitution, gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, and couldn't print money.
One of the fiercest arguments during the Constitutional Convention was over congressional representation—whether it should be based on population or divided equally among the states. Slavery was also a thorny issue that threatened to derail the Union.
