CHAPTER REVIEW

Rapid Review Guide

To achieve the perfect 5, you should be able to explain the following:

• The 1787 meeting on amending the Articles of Confederation turned into a historical session where the Constitution of the United States was drafted.

• The importance of James Madison in the formulation of the Constitution cannot be overemphasized.

• The format of the bicameral legislature, the branches of power established at the federal level, and the division of powers between federal and state governments made the U.S. Constitution a unique document for its time.

• The division between Federalists and Antifederalists demonstrated that very different visions of America and the scope of the federal government existed in the United States at this time.

• The Bill of Rights established the basic freedoms that Americans cherish today.

• During the Washington administration, very different visions of America were expressed by Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson; the ideas of Hamilton helped spur American economic growth during the Washington administration.

• The United States had a great deal of trouble convincing the British and the French that the United States was a major power during this era.

• Many critics viewed the Alien and Sedition Acts of John Adams as gross overextensions of the power given to the federal government by the Constitution.

Time Line

1787: Constitutional Convention ratifies U.S. Constitution

1788: U.S. Constitution ratified by states

1789: Washington sworn in as first president

1790: Hamilton issues plans proposing to protect infant U.S. industries

1791: Establishment of First National Bank Ratification of the Bill of Rights

1793: Democratic-Republican clubs begin to meet

1794: Whiskey Rebellion begins

1795: Jay’s Treaty with England/Pinckney’s Treaty with Spain

1796: John Adams elected president, Thomas Jefferson vice president (each from a different political party)

1798: XYZ affair

Sedition Act of John Adams issued

Kentucky and Virginia Resolves

1800: Convention of 1800

Thomas Jefferson elected president

Review Questions

1. The Connecticut Plan presented to the Constitutional Convention of 1787

A. proposed a one-house legislature based on population

B. proposed a two-house legislature based on proportional representation

C. proposed a one-house legislature based on proportional representation

D. proposed a two-house legislature, with one house based on proportional representation

E. proposed a balance of power between executive, legislative, and judicial branches

(Correct Answer: D. The Connecticut plan, also called the Great Compromise, was ratified by the delegates. Under this plan representation in the House of Representatives would be by population, while in the Senate all states would have equal representation.)

2. The Kentucky and Virginia Resolves

A. expressed support for the new U.S. Constitution

B. expressed opposition to the government actions in putting down the Whiskey Rebellion

C. stated that individual states do not have to enforce laws the states consider unconstitutional

D. were written to support John Adams’ support of the Sedition Act

E. were written in opposition to the economic policies of Alexander Hamilton

(Correct Answer: C. After the passage of the Sedition Act, legislatures in Kentucky and Virginia passed resolutions stating that states do not have to enforce laws they consider to be unconstitutional.)

3. Many in America felt that the English and the French failed to treat the United States as a major power in this era; all of the following are evidence of that except

A. the Convention of 1800

B. the treatment of American ships by the French during the 1890s

C. Jay’s Treaty

D. the treatment of American ships by the British during the 1890s

E. the XYZ Affair

(Correct Answer: A. As a result of the Convention of 1800, the French agreed to compensate the United States for ships seized during the previous decade. Events mentioned in all of the other choices demonstrate that the French and English had little respect for American rights in diplomatic matters and on the high seas during this era.)

4. Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton had different views on all of the following except

A. whether America should be a commercial or agrarian society

B. the amount of power the federal government should have

C. the tariff policy of the United States

D. the importance of a National Bank

E. their belief in the power of the U.S. Constitution

(Correct Answer: E. Both believed in the power of the Constitution, although their interpretation of the Constitution was different. Jefferson believed in a strict interpretation of the Constitution, while Hamilton believed in a broad interpretation.)

5. Under the Electoral College system

A. voters directly elect the president of the United States

B. state legislatures elect the president of the United States

C. voters approve electors, who elect the president of the United States

D. it is possible to win the popular vote and lose the election in the Electoral College

E. C and D above

(Correct Answer: E. As demonstrated in the presidential election of 2000, it is possible to get the most number of votes nationwide but to lose the presidential election in the Electoral College. This also occurred in the presidential election of 1876.)