U.S. History 1301: How Powerful Should Government Be?

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U.S. History 1301: How Powerful Should Government Be?

Introduction

During the American government's formation, the determination of the federal government’s powers was a hotly debated issue. After drafting the declaration for independence from England, the Americans were obliged to write the Articles of Confederation that defined their relationship as a joint entity (Palombo, 2019). However, the Articles were not effective in establishing a powerful government that could conduct foreign policy through Congress, without the states' voluntary agreement. Strengthening the government was an essential issue, and Congress decided to replace the Articles with a new Constitution (Hall, 2018). This paper highlights two speeches, which were delivered in the debate between federalists and anti-federalists on establishing a more powerful government.

Historical Context

The revolution by colonial Americans gave them independence from the British crown's abusive power and establishment of states. The new nation was weak and not unified because some states did not identify themselves with the country (Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 1968). The government's strength became apparent because Congress could not maintain its powers to conduct and regulate policies. This led to a convention in Philadelphia in 1787, where delegates decided to revise the Articles of Confederation (Menkel-Meadow, 2019). The ultimate decision was to scrap the Articles and ratify a new constitution that would lead to establishing a national government. The ratifying convention was carried out in Virginia State in 1788, where anti-federalists and federalists engaged in a heated debate about the ratification. The state provided a historical backdrop in determining how the government would be powerful because it was populous and large. The two key speakers in the Virginian convention were Patrick Henry – anti-federalist – and Edmund Pendleton – federalist.

Argument

At the Virginia State ratifying convention, anti-federalists like Patrick Henry opposed the Articles of Confederation's replacement. Henry was a lawyer and a politician who campaigned against the approval of the constitution. Generally, the proposed constitution was viewed as a...