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<v Speaker 1>Hello, and welcome to Western civ. Episode four hundred and

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<v Speaker 1>eighty six, the Early Republic. When the Treaty of Paris

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<v Speaker 1>was signed in September seventeen eighty three, the United States

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<v Speaker 1>was at last recognized as a sovereign nation. The war

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<v Speaker 1>had ended, soldiers went home. George Washington, in a truly

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<v Speaker 1>extraordinary act for the time, resigned his commission before Congress

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<v Speaker 1>in December, saying, quote, having now finished the work assigned me,

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<v Speaker 1>I retire from the great theater of action to contemporaries.

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<v Speaker 1>His voluntary return to private life evoked the great Roman

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<v Speaker 1>who I love Cincinnatus, who set down his sword and

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<v Speaker 1>took up his plowshare when his time was on, and

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<v Speaker 1>he re ensured Americans that they had not fought to

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<v Speaker 1>trade one tyrant for another. But what lay ahead was unclear.

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<v Speaker 1>For America, the thirteen States were bound only by the

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<v Speaker 1>Articles of Confederation, a makeshift framework drafted during the war.

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<v Speaker 1>Under the Articles, there was no president, no national judiciary,

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<v Speaker 1>and Congress possessed little real power. The states jealously guarded

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<v Speaker 1>their sovereignty. A Massachusetts delegate captured the mood bluntly, quote,

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<v Speaker 1>we are not a nation under the Articles of Confederation.

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<v Speaker 1>Congress could wage war, it could conduct diplomacy, and it

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<v Speaker 1>could kind of manage Western lands, but it couldn't levy

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<v Speaker 1>taxes directly or regulate commerce. In other words, what the

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<v Speaker 1>Articles of Confederation could do were all geared towards one thing,

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<v Speaker 1>fighting a war with Great Britain. But that was over.

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<v Speaker 1>Now the government needed to do different things. But that

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't necessarily on the table. If money was needed, Congress

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<v Speaker 1>had to request it from the States, which often refused

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<v Speaker 1>or potentially delayed. A Rhode Island politician sneered at the

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<v Speaker 1>request of taxes. Quote we will not give a farthing end.

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<v Speaker 1>Quote that's good because farthings actually won't be the currency yet.

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<v Speaker 1>In the early years, there remained moments of a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of promise. Congress organized the settlement of Western territories through

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<v Speaker 1>landmark laws. The Ordinance of seventeen eighty five, which surveyed

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<v Speaker 1>land into neat little townships for sale. The Northwest Ordinance

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<v Speaker 1>of seventeen eighty seven, which established a path for new

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<v Speaker 1>territories to become states, outlawed slavery in the Northwest Territory

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<v Speaker 1>and guaranteed civil liberties. These ordinances were amongst the articles

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<v Speaker 1>of Confederation's greatest achievements. Still they could not disguise deeper troubles.

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<v Speaker 1>The post war years were hard. Britain barred American ships

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<v Speaker 1>from the West Indian ports, crippling trade. The new nation,

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<v Speaker 1>lacking a stable currency, was flooded with paper money of

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<v Speaker 1>uneven value. Inflation, sword debts mounted, and farmers groaned under

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<v Speaker 1>taxes they simply could not pay. States often quarreled with

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<v Speaker 1>one another like petty medieval fiefdoms. New York taxed goods

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<v Speaker 1>coming from Connecticut and New Jersey, Virginia and Maryland argued

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<v Speaker 1>over navigation rights on the Potomac River. Without a central

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<v Speaker 1>authority to mediate these rivalries petty as they were threatened

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<v Speaker 1>to fracture the Union foreign powers. Since this weakness, Britain

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<v Speaker 1>kept troops stationed and forts along the Great Lakes in

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<v Speaker 1>violation of the Treaty of Paris, claiming unpaid loyalist debts

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<v Speaker 1>as justification. Spain closed the Mississippi to American trade, angering

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<v Speaker 1>Western settlers. A Connecticut farmer would later write, we have

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<v Speaker 1>won the war, but we cannot govern ourselves. The crisis

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<v Speaker 1>came to a head in Massachusetts. Farmers in the western

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<v Speaker 1>counties burdened by debts and taxes, began to revolt in

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<v Speaker 1>seventeen eighty six. Led by Daniel Schayes, a former Continental

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<v Speaker 1>Army captain. They closed courts to prevent foreclosures on their lands.

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<v Speaker 1>They marched on Springfield, at where the arsenal was in

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<v Speaker 1>early seventeen eighty seven. The Massachusetts government, unable to rely

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<v Speaker 1>on federal troops, raised a private militia of merchants and

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<v Speaker 1>property owners. In January seventeen eighty seven, the militia fired

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<v Speaker 1>on Shay's men, dispersing the rebellion, but the shock was profound.

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<v Speaker 1>If veterans of the Revolution could take up arms against

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<v Speaker 1>their own government, what did independence actually mean? George Washington,

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<v Speaker 1>watching from Mount Vernon, wrote, quote, what a triumph for

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<v Speaker 1>our enemies to verify their predictions that we are incapable

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<v Speaker 1>of governing ourselves. Even before Shay's rebellion leading figures since

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<v Speaker 1>the articles were inadequate. In seventeen eighty five, Washington had

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<v Speaker 1>hosted the Mount Vernon Conference to settle the Virginia Maryland

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<v Speaker 1>dispute over navigation. This small success encouraged a broader meeting

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<v Speaker 1>at Annapolis in seventeen eighty six, where Alexander Hamilton issued

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<v Speaker 1>a cl for a general convention, which would in theory

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<v Speaker 1>revise the articles, not get rid of them. But of

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<v Speaker 1>course the real turning point was Shay's rebellion. The fear

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<v Speaker 1>of anarchy convinced many that the Union would simply dissolve

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<v Speaker 1>if there wasn't a central, stronger government. In seventeen eighty seven,

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<v Speaker 1>in February, Congress reluctantly agreed to a constitutional convention again

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<v Speaker 1>in Philadelphia, this time again, as I said, quote for

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<v Speaker 1>the soul and express purpose of revising the articles. But

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<v Speaker 1>if you know anything about American history, you know that's

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<v Speaker 1>now what's going to happen now. The Philadelphia Convention, as

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<v Speaker 1>I said, did not arise out of confidence, but a crisis.

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<v Speaker 1>By the mid seventeen eighties, the United States under the

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<v Speaker 1>Articles of Convention was simply unworkable. We continued to hear

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<v Speaker 1>words of warning from George Washington, who would lament, we

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<v Speaker 1>are fast verging to anarchy and confus usion. How melancholy

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<v Speaker 1>is the reflection that, in so short a space we

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<v Speaker 1>should have made such large strides towards fulfilling the prediction

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<v Speaker 1>of our transatlantic foe that we should be no more

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<v Speaker 1>than a rope of sand. Now, all the disputes over trade, taxation,

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<v Speaker 1>and debts, compounded by Shay's rebellion made it clear that

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<v Speaker 1>the federal government lacked the power to preserve order, and

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<v Speaker 1>so this revision was necessary. But revision in Philadelphia was

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<v Speaker 1>not what everyone had in mind. On May the twenty fifth,

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<v Speaker 1>seventeen eighty seven, after delays due to poor roads and

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<v Speaker 1>slow travel, delegates from seven states finally formed a quorum

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<v Speaker 1>at Pennsylvania State House now Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Over

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<v Speaker 1>the summer, fifty five delegates would attend at some point,

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<v Speaker 1>though never all at once. They represented every state but

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<v Speaker 1>Rhode Island, which boycotted in protest. The room itself were stifling.

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<v Speaker 1>Philadelphia summers are notoriously hot and humid, and the windows

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<v Speaker 1>were shut tight to ensure secrecy. James Madison would recall quote,

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<v Speaker 1>no whisper of the proceedings had transpired. Guards were posted outside.

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<v Speaker 1>The secrecy allowed free debate, but also few old rumors outside.

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<v Speaker 1>The Convention's legitimacy was shaky. At first, they were authorized

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<v Speaker 1>only to amend the articles, but as Alexander Hamilton later wrote,

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<v Speaker 1>a bold step was taken. Soon, delegates agreed to scrap

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<v Speaker 1>the articles entirely. George Washington was unanimously chosen President of

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<v Speaker 1>the Convention. Obviously, his very presidents, cloaked in dignity and restraint,

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<v Speaker 1>gave the proceedings the legitimacy it so badly needed. Governor

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<v Speaker 1>Morris later remarked, the moment that man opened his lips,

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<v Speaker 1>we felt ourselves all in fury. James Madison, still in

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<v Speaker 1>his thirties, arrived prepared with extensive notes on political history,

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<v Speaker 1>ranging from ancient confederacies to Enlightenment theorists. He would take

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<v Speaker 1>meticulous records of the debates, later published as his notes

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<v Speaker 1>on the Federal Convention are single greatest window into the proceedings.

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<v Speaker 1>Madison's diligence earned him the title Father of the Constitution.

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<v Speaker 1>On May the twenty ninth, Edmund Randolph of Virginia introduced

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<v Speaker 1>the Virginia Plan, based largely on Madison's works, and proposed

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<v Speaker 1>a strong national government with three branches, a bicameral legislature

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<v Speaker 1>with representation based on population, an executive chosen by the

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<v Speaker 1>legislature basically a parliamentary system, and a judiciary with broad powers.

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<v Speaker 1>Madison was pleased writing, a government without the power to

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<v Speaker 1>act is no government at all. Experience has taught us

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<v Speaker 1>that the existing system is inadequate. We must resort to

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<v Speaker 1>a national government. Now, this, of course, was revolutionary. Instead

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<v Speaker 1>of amending the articles, which everyone said they were going

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<v Speaker 1>to do when they went into that state House, they

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<v Speaker 1>created an entirely new government, rooted not in state sovereignty

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<v Speaker 1>this time, but in the keywords we the people. Now.

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<v Speaker 1>Of course, it wasn't over. The Convention was marked by

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<v Speaker 1>heated arguments and a lot of very difficult compromises. Small

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<v Speaker 1>states recoiled at the idea of the Virginia Plan. William

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<v Speaker 1>Patterson of New Jersey countered with the New Jersey Plan,

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<v Speaker 1>of course, which preserved equal representation for each state in

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<v Speaker 1>a unicameral or one chamber Congress. Patterson would warn, our

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<v Speaker 1>constituents will never agree to a plan which robs them

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<v Speaker 1>of their equality. New Jersey will not be swallowed up. Now.

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<v Speaker 1>The impasse threatened to collapse the Convention until Robert Sherman

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<v Speaker 1>of Connecticut proposed the Great Compromise, a bicameral legislature with

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<v Speaker 1>proportional representation in the House and equal representation in the Senate.

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<v Speaker 1>On the sixteenth of July. The compromise carried, but only

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<v Speaker 1>by a single vote, and of course, the question of

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<v Speaker 1>slavery proved even more explosive. Southern delegates demanded that enslaved

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<v Speaker 1>people be counted towards their representation. Northerners were appalled and objected.

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<v Speaker 1>Governor Morris himself thundered against slavery as a nefarious institution,

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<v Speaker 1>a curse of heaven. But the northern states needed the

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<v Speaker 1>Southern ones, and so political necessity prevailed. The three to

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<v Speaker 1>fifths Compromise counted three out of every five enslaved persons

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<v Speaker 1>for the purposes of representation and taxation. Again, if you've

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<v Speaker 1>ever read the Constitution, you know that the Constitution actually

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<v Speaker 1>makes no reference to slavery. Okay, it simply says other persons. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>the issue of the slave trade also arose. Southern states

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<v Speaker 1>threatened to secede if Congress restricted it, and so the

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<v Speaker 1>final compromise allowed the importation of slaves until eighteen oh eight,

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<v Speaker 1>after which point Congress could ban it. But by and large,

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<v Speaker 1>just kind of foreshadowing, most Southern states had ceased the

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<v Speaker 1>importation of enslaved persons by that point. How to choose

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<v Speaker 1>an executive was another bitter dispute. Fearing both monarchy and

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<v Speaker 1>mob rule, delegates experimented with ideas ranging from a plural

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<v Speaker 1>executive to election by Congress, and so Eventually, on actually

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<v Speaker 1>the last day of the convention, they settled on the

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<v Speaker 1>electoral College, which to many remains the bane of American

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<v Speaker 1>political existence to this very day. But it too was

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<v Speaker 1>a compromise. It balanced state and national interests by assigning

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<v Speaker 1>states electors based on their population. So instead of having

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<v Speaker 1>a popular vote decide the president, you would have different

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<v Speaker 1>states that I would have different weights, that would be

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<v Speaker 1>a consequential choice. Hamilton, always the proponent of stronger authority,

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<v Speaker 1>went so far as to suggest a president that would

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<v Speaker 1>be elected for life. His proposal was too monarchical to

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<v Speaker 1>be taken seriously, but it underscored the anxieties of the moment.

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<v Speaker 1>By late summer, the shape of the new government was

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<v Speaker 1>now clear. There would be a national government with three branches,

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<v Speaker 1>checks and balances to prevent tyranny, and federal supremacy over

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<v Speaker 1>state laws. The task of polishing the draft fell to

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<v Speaker 1>the awesomely named Committee of Style. I wish we had

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<v Speaker 1>one of those still. It was led by Governor Morris,

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<v Speaker 1>and he was the one who actually wrote that famous

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<v Speaker 1>opening in the preamble, we the people of the United States,

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<v Speaker 1>in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice,

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<v Speaker 1>ensure domestic tranquility, and so on and so forth. But

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<v Speaker 1>this wasn't just a rhetorical flourish. By invoking we the

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<v Speaker 1>people rather than we the States, Morris was emphasizing a

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<v Speaker 1>shift from a confederation of sovereign states to a government

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<v Speaker 1>that was rooted in the people themselves, and so on.

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<v Speaker 1>The closing days around September seventeenth, seventeen eighty seven, the

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<v Speaker 1>final Constitution was signed by thirty nine delegates. Franklin Benjamin

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<v Speaker 1>Franklin that is too weak to stand on his own

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<v Speaker 1>urge support despite imperfections. Thus, I consent, sir, to the Constitution,

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<v Speaker 1>because I expect no better, and because I am not

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<v Speaker 1>sure that it is the best the opinions I have

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<v Speaker 1>had of its errors. I sacrificed the public good. George

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<v Speaker 1>Washington would later write, simply, it appears to me a

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<v Speaker 1>little short of a miracle that delegates from so many

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<v Speaker 1>different states should unite in forming a system of national government.

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<v Speaker 1>Yet still not everyone was convinced. Sinst three men Elbridge, Jerry,

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<v Speaker 1>who's eventually going to by the way give his name

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<v Speaker 1>to jerry mandering. George Mason and Edmund Randolph refused to sign,

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<v Speaker 1>objecting to the absence of a Bill of rights. Mason

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<v Speaker 1>himself warned this government will either end in monarchy or

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<v Speaker 1>a tyrannical aristocracy. Couriers carried the new Federal Constitution away

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<v Speaker 1>from Philadelphia in September seventeen eighty seven like a lightning

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<v Speaker 1>bolt in saddle bags. Congruous bowing to the moment, resolved

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<v Speaker 1>on September the twenty eighth to transmit the document to

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<v Speaker 1>state conventions elected for the purpose, a quiet but crucial

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<v Speaker 1>decision that plays sovereignties squarely in the hands of the

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<v Speaker 1>people of each state. Secrecy gave way to a flood

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<v Speaker 1>of newsletters and pamphlets. Within days, printers set the constitution

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<v Speaker 1>in type, pamphlets appeared, taverns hummed with political activity. A

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<v Speaker 1>national argument, what one observer called a war of pens began.

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<v Speaker 1>Two great choruses quickly formed. There were the Federalists, led

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<v Speaker 1>by intellectually James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, who

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<v Speaker 1>defended the new constitution in a series of essays signed Publius.

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<v Speaker 1>Then there were the anti federalists, writing as Brutus, Cato, Sentinel,

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<v Speaker 1>the Federal Farmer, and others, and they warned that the

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<v Speaker 1>proposed government would swallow liberty whole. The lines were pretty sharp.

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<v Speaker 1>Brutus opened fire in October seventeen eighty seven, writing, history

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<v Speaker 1>furnishes no example of a free republic anything like the

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<v Speaker 1>extent of the United States. A nation so large, the

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<v Speaker 1>writer argued, would slide into consolid and despotism. Publius replied,

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<v Speaker 1>the scale was the remedy, not the disease. Madison's famous

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<v Speaker 1>answer in Federalists Number ten ran like a counter melody.

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<v Speaker 1>Quote extend the sphere and you take in a greater

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<v Speaker 1>variety of parties and interests and quote factions, they argued,

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<v Speaker 1>would check other factions. Liberty like fire, must be contained,

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<v Speaker 1>of course, but can never be smothered. Madison later sketched

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<v Speaker 1>the architect of restraint quote if men were angels, no

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<v Speaker 1>government would be necessary. Now the debate quickly focused on

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<v Speaker 1>two principles sovereignty federal or national representation, And then a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of smaller ones. Was there going to be a

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<v Speaker 1>standing army? How are tax is going to be collected,

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<v Speaker 1>and who would run the courts? But above all, the

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<v Speaker 1>anti federalists' major attack point focused around an absence, the

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<v Speaker 1>specific absence of a bill of rights. George Mason would

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<v Speaker 1>refuse to sign in Philadelphia, leveled a devastating charge when

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<v Speaker 1>he wrote objections, quote there is no declaration of rights

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<v Speaker 1>end quote. Now. Hamilton responded in Federalist Number eighty four

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<v Speaker 1>that a list might not only be unnecessary but dangerous.

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<v Speaker 1>Quote wide declare that things shall not be done, which

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<v Speaker 1>there is no power to do. Yet as winter set in,

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<v Speaker 1>they would be politics and not logic that would decide

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<v Speaker 1>the issue. Delaware was the first to move unanimously, ratifying

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<v Speaker 1>the constitution on December seventh, seventeen eighty seven. Pennsylvania followed

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<v Speaker 1>on December twelfth, after a rather bruising convention, the anti

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<v Speaker 1>federalist descent of the minority protests the speed and missing

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<v Speaker 1>rights again. New Jersey followed on December the eighteenth, Georgia

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<v Speaker 1>in January of seventeen eighty eight, relatively quickly thereafter Connecticut.

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<v Speaker 1>So five states were in and they only needed nine.

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<v Speaker 1>It was critical that those at the convention decided unlike

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<v Speaker 1>the articles of Confederation, unanimous consent would not be needed.

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<v Speaker 1>What they needed, of course, was three quarters, and they

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<v Speaker 1>were about halfway there. Unfortunately, now the path got rockier. Massachusetts,

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<v Speaker 1>where the Revolution truly begun and where Shay's rebellion had

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<v Speaker 1>recently occurred, had only shaken confidence in the idea of

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<v Speaker 1>a republic. In Boston, the galleries were packed. John Hancock

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<v Speaker 1>courtly and calculating. Presiding over the affairs Samuel Adams listened

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<v Speaker 1>to the side county delegates fretted that sixty five representatives

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<v Speaker 1>in the new House were just too few. Ministers concerned

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<v Speaker 1>themselves over federal power over religion, Nearly everyone wanted a

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<v Speaker 1>declaration of rights. The result was a political invention of

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<v Speaker 1>lasting consequence. Ratify now, amend later, and so it was

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<v Speaker 1>on February the sixth, seventeen eighty eight. Massachusetts ultimately voted

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<v Speaker 1>one hundred and eighty seven to one hundred and sixty

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<v Speaker 1>eight to ratify, but it paired its assent with a

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<v Speaker 1>recommendation that amendments, including protections that become the Bill of Rights,

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<v Speaker 1>be speedily adopted. This, as it's been called Massachusetts Compromise,

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<v Speaker 1>gave undecided states a pathway accept the concept except the

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<v Speaker 1>frame of the Constitution, and then work to improve it.

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<v Speaker 1>With Massachusetts in Maryland ratified on April the twenty eighth,

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<v Speaker 1>and then South Carolina May the twenty third, seventeen eighty eight,

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<v Speaker 1>the ninth state was within reach, and so all eyes

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<v Speaker 1>turned to New Hampshire, Virginia and New York, each a

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<v Speaker 1>giant in terms of population or influence or both. In

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<v Speaker 1>New Hampshire, the first Convention adjourned to consult the people,

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<v Speaker 1>then reconvened, followed the Massachusetts model, and so it was

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<v Speaker 1>ratified on June the twenty first, seventeen eighty eight. That

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<v Speaker 1>was the ninth state. By the terms of the constitution,

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<v Speaker 1>the new government could actually form. But there was a

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<v Speaker 1>problem with this. If you look at the map of

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<v Speaker 1>the United States, without Virginia and New York's assent, there's

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<v Speaker 1>a gaping hole in the middle of the country. Without

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<v Speaker 1>the those two, the Union would be pretty lopsided and

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<v Speaker 1>would lose the majority of its population. So even though

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<v Speaker 1>nine states had been had, it was very important to

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<v Speaker 1>proponents of the constitution that both New York and Virginia,

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<v Speaker 1>the economic powerhouses as well by and large of the

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<v Speaker 1>New Republic, signed on. And so we turn our attention

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<v Speaker 1>to Virginia, which debated the issue between June second and

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<v Speaker 1>twenty fifth and the year seventeen eighty eight. In Richmond,

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<v Speaker 1>the hall rang with oratory. Patrick henriesaw on the proposed

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<v Speaker 1>frame quote a great and mighty consolidated government end quote.

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<v Speaker 1>George Mason, though, repeated his charge no Bill of rights

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<v Speaker 1>meant no security for the people. Madiston stood quietly alone,

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<v Speaker 1>but answering the charges point by point. Representation, Well, that

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<v Speaker 1>will simply grow with population. The necessary and proper clause,

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<v Speaker 1>that's an instant. It's not a blank check. The presidency powerful, yes,

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<v Speaker 1>but necessary and fenced in by elections, impeachment, and the

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<v Speaker 1>separation of powers. Madison also offered the most potent concension

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<v Speaker 1>of all. He would champion amendments in the first ever

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<v Speaker 1>federal Congress. The vote was close on June the twenty fifth,

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<v Speaker 1>but it passed eighty nine to seventy nine, with a

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<v Speaker 1>robust list attached of recommended rights. Madison had won not

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<v Speaker 1>by crushing his opponents, but by promising to absorb their

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<v Speaker 1>best arguments into the Constitution's future. And so it's on

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<v Speaker 1>to New York. If Virginia was the Order's battlefield. New

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<v Speaker 1>York was a pamphleteers dream. Hamilton had begun the Federalists

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<v Speaker 1>there the previous fall. Madison John Jay joined, producing the

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<v Speaker 1>eighty five Essays by May of seventeen eighty eight. In

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<v Speaker 1>the Poughkeepsie Malangdon Smith led skilled anti federalists who insisted

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<v Speaker 1>only a declaration of rights could make the plans safe,

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<v Speaker 1>and that representation in the House was too thin to

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<v Speaker 1>mirror the number of people. And so Hamilton deployed every argument,

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<v Speaker 1>from national credit to commercial necessity, and every lever, including

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<v Speaker 1>the fact of New Hampshire and Virginia's ratifications. New York

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<v Speaker 1>could not avoid to be isolated between a new federal

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<v Speaker 1>Union to the south and a ratify New England to

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<v Speaker 1>the east, and so the Convention adopted Massachusetts's formula ratify

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<v Speaker 1>now recommend Later, on July the twenty sixth, seventeen eighty eight,

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<v Speaker 1>New York ratified the Constitution by three votes, thirty to

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<v Speaker 1>twenty seven, and it issued a circular letter urging other

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<v Speaker 1>states to support the amendments. And so that brings us

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<v Speaker 1>to the holdouts North Carolina and Rhode Highland. North Carolina

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<v Speaker 1>met in Hillsborough in the summer of seventeen eighty eight

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<v Speaker 1>and declined to ratify the Constitution without a Bill of rights.

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<v Speaker 1>The state actually waited until November the twenty first, seventeen

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<v Speaker 1>eighty nine, after the new Congress had already proposed the

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<v Speaker 1>first ten amendments to the Constitution. Rhode Island, wary of

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<v Speaker 1>centralized power and protective of paper money policies, rejected the

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<v Speaker 1>Constitution by popular referendum in seventeen eighty eight and stayed

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<v Speaker 1>out until the pressure Mountain commercial sanctions loomed and the

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<v Speaker 1>new federal tariff threatened to isolate the little state, and so,

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<v Speaker 1>by a raiser then two votes on May twenty ninth,

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<v Speaker 1>seventeen ninety, by thirty four to thirty two, Rhode Island

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<v Speaker 1>ratified the Constitution and became the thirteenth star on the

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<v Speaker 1>federal flag. Now Madison would keep his word. In the

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<v Speaker 1>first Congress, he sifted state recommendations and bblic anxieties into

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<v Speaker 1>a coherent set of amendments. In June seventeen eighty nine,

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<v Speaker 1>he introduced proposals that confirmed, rather than curtailed, the new

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<v Speaker 1>government's legitimacy. There would be protections for speech, the press, religion, assembly,

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<v Speaker 1>and petition. There would be a right to keep in

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<v Speaker 1>bear arms. There would be safeguards against quartering, unreasonable searches,

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<v Speaker 1>compelled self incrimination, and cruel punishments. There would be a

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<v Speaker 1>guarantee of due process and jury trials, and the Ninth

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<v Speaker 1>Contenth Amendments reserving unenumerated rights and powers. By September seventeen

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<v Speaker 1>eighty nine, Congress sent twelve amendments to the States. Ten

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<v Speaker 1>were ratified by December the fifteenth, seventeen ninety one, and

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<v Speaker 1>became the Bill of Rights, binding anti federalist fears into

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<v Speaker 1>the Constitution's fabric and completing the political bargain forged in

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<v Speaker 1>the ratifying conventions. What did this debate ultimately decide? First,

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<v Speaker 1>this would be federalism by design. Ratification confirmed a compound

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<v Speaker 1>republic national where it must be federal where it could

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<v Speaker 1>be Madison's phrase actually in Federalists Number thirty nine. Supremacy

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<v Speaker 1>and necessity in proper clauses survived, and so did the promise,

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<v Speaker 1>of course, that the states themselves would retain broad powers.

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<v Speaker 1>It was a clever balancing act and one that persists

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<v Speaker 1>to this day. There was also representation that was dealt

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<v Speaker 1>with in a very unique way. Critics of a small

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<v Speaker 1>house of representatives want and built an expansion. In fact,

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<v Speaker 1>the very first Congress swiftly passed a law increasing representation.

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<v Speaker 1>The People's Branch, in fact, was born pretty small, but

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<v Speaker 1>it was always meant to grow liberty as architecture, not slogan.

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<v Speaker 1>The victorious federalists claim was structural separation of powers, checks

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<v Speaker 1>and balances, extended fear. But the enduring anti Federalist victory

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<v Speaker 1>was purely textual. It was the Bill of Rights. Together

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<v Speaker 1>they created a constitution that both dispersed power and declared rights,

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<v Speaker 1>which was for the time unbelievable. And so, in April

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<v Speaker 1>of seventeen eighty nine, amid church bells and cannon salutes,

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<v Speaker 1>George Washington took the oath of President the First of

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<v Speaker 1>the United States, on the balcony of Federal Hall in

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<v Speaker 1>New York City. The Constitution, born in secrecy, now lived

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<v Speaker 1>in public view, tempered by the very criticisms that almost

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<v Speaker 1>undid it. The ratification struggle had not merely approved a document.

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<v Speaker 1>It had taught Americans how to argue their republic into

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<v Speaker 1>being with essays and elections, with concessions and amendments, and

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<v Speaker 1>with a vigilant Franklin capturing the mood as he left

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<v Speaker 1>Independence Hall. When he was asked what kind of government

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<v Speaker 1>America had, he responded, quote, A republic if you can

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<v Speaker 1>keep it now. Next week we must shift our gaze

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<v Speaker 1>back to Europe and begin the long and toiling tale

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<v Speaker 1>that is the French Revolution