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Items 121-139 of 139

  • Letter to John Jay

     |  Articles of Confederation

    Letter to John Jay Letter to John Jay 1 George Washington Washington writes here as a private citizen to Jay, who as Secretary of Foreign Affairs under the Articles of Confederation witnessed firsthand the Articles' shortcomings, as each state pursued a different foreign policy. August 15, 1786 Dear Sir: I have to thank you very sincerely for your interesting letter of the twenty-seventh of June, as well as for the other communications you had the goodness to make at the same time. I am sorry to be assured, of what indeed I had little doubt before, that we have been guilty of violating the treaty in some instances. What a misfortune it is the British should have so well grounded a pretext for their palpable infractions? —and what a ...

  • Letter to James Madison

     |  Articles of Confederation

    Letter to James Madison Letter to James Madison 1 George Washington Washington writes here to Madison, two months before the Constitutional Convention was set to start in Philadelphia. A year earlier, only twelve men from five states attended a gathering held in Annapolis, Maryland, to amend the Articles of Confederation. Both men feared the consequences should this convention similarly fail. March 31, 1787 My dear Sir: At the same time that I acknowledge the receipt of your obliging favor of the 21st. Ult. from New York, I promise to avail myself of your indulgence of writing only when it is convenient to me. If this should not occasion a relaxation on your part, I shall become very much your debtor—and possibly like others in similar ...

  • Letter Transmitting the Constitution

     |  Rethinking Union and Government

    Letter Transmitting the Constitution Letter Transmitting the Constitution 1 George Washington As they affixed their names to the new Constitution, the Framers understood that their work had just begun. Four months of debate and compromise paled in comparison to the challenge of convincing the states to ratify. Unanimity was not necessary for the Constitution to go into effect—only nine of thirteen states were needed—but they knew that without the approval of the largest of the states, including New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, their work would be for naught. Congress sent this letter to each state to begin the ratification process. September 17, 1787 Sir: We have now the honor to submit to the consideration of the United States in ...

  • The Constitution and the Union

     |  Roots of the Slavery Crisis

    The Constitution and the Union The Constitution and the Union 1 Daniel Webster (1782-1852) Webster began representing Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate in 1813, and by the 1830s had attained a national reputation—in part as a result of his Senate debates with nullification proponent Senator Robert Hayne of South Carolina. Webster spent the final decade of his life attempting to avert the growing sectional divide, never wavering in his defense of the Union. In this speech he restated his longstanding conviction that "Peaceable secession is an utter impossibility." He died two years later, in 1852, with the nation divided. March 7, 1850 Mr. President: I wish to speak today, not as a Massachusetts man, nor as a Northern man, but as an American ...

  • What is Progress?

     |  Progressive Rejection of the Founding

    What is Progress What is Progress? 1 Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) After earning a Ph.D. in both history and political science at Johns Hopkins University, Wilson held various academic positions, culminating in the presidency of Princeton University. Throughout this period, he came to see the Constitution as a cumbersome instrument unfit for the government of a large and vibrant nation. This speech, delivered during his successful campaign for president in 1912 and included in a collection of speeches called The New Freedom, puts forward the idea of an evolving, or "living," constitution. 1913 In that sage and veracious chronicle, "Alice Through the Looking-Glass," it is recounted how, on a noteworthy occasion, the little heroine is seized by the Red Chess Queen ...

  • Socialism and Democracy

     |  Progressive Rejection of the Founding

    Socialism and Democracy Socialism and Democracy 1 Woodrow Wilson Wilson makes clear in this article the consequences of rejecting the idea of inherent natural rights for the idea that rights are a positive grant from government. August 22, 1887 Is it possible that in practical America we are becoming sentimentalists? To judge by much of our periodical literature, one would think so. All resolution about great affairs seems now "sicklied o'er with a pale cast of thought." Our magazine writers smile sadly at the old-time optimism of their country; are themselves full of forebodings; expend much force and enthusiasm and strong (as well as weak) English style in disclosing social evils and economic bugbears; are moved by a fine sympathy for the ...

  • The President of the United States

     |  Progressive Rejection of the Founding

    The President of the United States The President of the United States 1 Woodrow Wilson For Wilson, constitutional checks and balances and the separation of powers are indicative of the flawed thinking of America's Founders. They are means of limiting government, when the fact is that government alone can provide the people's needs. Wilson looks to the presidency—the singular voice of the people—as the best hope for overcoming the old order. 1908 It is difficult to describe any single part of a great governmental system without describing the whole of it. Governments are living things and operate as organic wholes. Moreover, governments have their natural evolution and are one thing in one age, another in another. The makers of the Constitution ...

  • The Study of Administration

     |  Progressive Rejection of the Founding

    The Study of Administration The Study of Administration 1 Woodrow Wilson Writing a year before Congress created the Interstate Commerce Commission, the first independent regulatory agency, Wilson argues in this article that it is only through such agencies—separate from the political process and independent of the electorate—that government can pursue its necessary ends. November 2, 1886 I suppose that no practical science is ever studied where there is no need to know it. The very fact, therefore, that the eminently practical science of administration is finding its way into college courses in this country would prove that this country needs to know more about administration, were such proof of the fact required to make out a case. It need not be said, however ...

  • Section 1: The Apple of Gold and The Frame of Silver

     |  The Apple of Gold/Frame of Silver

    Section 1: The Apple of Gold and The Frame of Silver I The Apple of Gold and The Frame of Silver ...

  • Section 2: Natural Rights and The American Revolution

     |  Natural Rights/American Revolution

    Section 2: Natural Rights and The American Revolution II Natural Rights and The American Revolution ...

  • Section 3: The Founders on Religion, Morality, and Property

     |  Religion, Morality, and Property

    Section 3: The Founders on Religion, Morality, and Property III The Founders on Religion, Morality, and Property ...

  • Section 4: Government under the Articles of Confederation

     |  Articles of Confederation

    Section 4: Government under the Articles of Confederation IV Government under the Articles of Confederation: The Problem of Legislative/Majority Tyranny ...

  • Section 5: Rethinking the Nature of Union and the Structure of Government

     |  Rethinking Union and Government

    Section 5: Rethinking the Nature of Union and the Structure of Government V Rethinking the Nature of Union and the Structure of Government ...

  • Section 6: The Three Branches of Government

     |  Three Branches of Government

    Section 6: The Three Branches of Government VI The Three Branches of Government ...

  • Section 7: The Founders on Slavery, the Rise of the Positive Good School, and the Roots of the Secession Crisis

     |  Roots of the Slavery Crisis

    Section 7: The Founders on Slavery, the Rise of the Positive Good School, and the Roots of the Secession Crisis VII The Founders on Slavery, the Rise of the Positive Good School, and the Roots of the Secession Crisis ...

  • Section 8: Crisis of Constitutional Government

     |  Crisis of Constitutionalism

    Section 8: Crisis of Constitutional Government VIII Crisis of Constitutional Government ...

  • Section 9: Secession and Civil War

     |  Secession and Civil War

    Section 9: Secession and Civil War IX Secession and Civil War ...

  • Section 10: The Progressive Rejection of the Founding

     |  Progressive Rejection of the Founding

    Section 10: The Progressive Rejection of the Founding X The Progressive Rejection of the Founding ...

  • Section 11: Institutionalizing Progressivism - The New Deal and the Great Society

     |  New Deal and Great Society

    Section 11: Institutionalizing Progressivism - The New Deal and the Great Society XI Institutionalizing Progressivism: The New Deal and the Great Society ...
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Items 121-139 of 139