American Government Simulation

 

It is 1783 and the American colonies have just won the war.  The Treaty of Paris has just been signed acknowledging American independence from Great Britain.  In the wake of the American victory most states established state governments similar to the colonial governments they were replacing.  It was in this context that the United States was born and with it its government.  While the states were drafting their constitutions, Congress developed a plan to unite the states and establish its own legal authority.  In 1777, congress completed the Articles of Confederation and proposed it to the states for their ratification.

 

Your Task:

 

You will be broken into groups representing the Thirteen American colonies and you are going to frame a new constitution and a new government using the Articles of Confederation and other proposals put forth that will lead your country into the next century and the centuries to come.

 

The Thirteen Colonies (Twelve will be in attendance as Rhode Island did not participate):

 

  1. Delaware
  2. Pennsylvania
  3. New Jersey
  4. Georgia
  5. Connecticut
  6. Massachusetts
  7. Maryland
  8. South Carolina
  9. New Hampshire
  10. Virginia
  11. New York
  12. North Carolina

 

Step One: You are going to complete research on your particular colony and the situation following the war. 

 

Things to consider:

  1. How much autonomy do you think the states should have?
  2. How many levels of government should there be?
  3. Who are American citizens?
  4. The question of religion?
  5. What are your priorities?
  6. What kind of government would you like to see at the national level?

 

Historical Documents:

  1. The Virginia Plan – James Madison
  2. The New Jersey Plan
  3. The Connecticut Compromise
  4. The issue of how to count slaves and the proposal to tax their importation.
  5. The Bill of Rights

 

 

Step Two: A Congress is already in existence which will act as a national government.  The question for you is how do you want it to act?  Your job is to decide how the government will look and how it will work with the states to provide a government that is fair for everyone involved in the union.  At the end of this exercise, you should have drafted a new constitution for the new United States of America.

 

In order to do this you will need to:

  1. Identify weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation
  2. Consider what you need to do to create a stronger union
  3. Work together with the other states to come to a consensus as to what the final draft should look like

 

Summary of the Articles of Confederation

 

Even though the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution were established by much of the same people, they were still very different. They contain 13 articles, a conclusion, and a signatory section.

Article Summaries:

  1. Establishes the name of the confederation as "The United States of America"
  2. Explains the rights possessed by any state, and the amount of power to which any state is entitled
  3. Establishes the United States as a league of states united "...for their common defense, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them..."
  4. Anyone can pass freely between states (excluding fugitives from the law) and be entitled to the rights established by the state into which he or she travels. If a crime is committed in one state and the perpetrator flees to another state, he will be transported to and tried in the state in which the crime was committed.
  5. Allocates one vote in Congress to each state, which was entitled to a delegation of between two and seven members. Members of Congress were appointed by state legislatures; individuals could not serve more than three out of any six years.
  6. Limits the powers of states to conduct foreign relations and to declare war.
  7. When an army is raised for common defense, officers below the rank of general will be named by the state legislatures.
  8. Expenditures by the United States will be paid by funds raised by state legislatures, and apportioned to the states based on the real property values of each.
  9. Defines the rights of the central government: to declare war, to set weights and measures (including coins), and for Congress to serve as a final court for disputes between states.
  10. Defines a Committee of the States to be a government when Congress is not in session.
  11. Sets rules for new states requiring nine state approval, pre-approves Canada, if they apply for membership.
  12. Reaffirms that the Confederation accepts war debt incurred by Congress before the articles.
  13. Declares that the articles are perpetual, and can only be altered by approval of Congress with ratification by ALL state legislatures.

 

It is not realistic to expect you to draft a Constitution that is as all-encompassing as the true American Constitution so for the purposes of this simulation I want you to focus on the following:

 

  1. Type of government
  2. Levels of government
  3. Responsibilities and powers of government – Who prints money?  Who declares war?  Right to assign taxes etc.
  4. Manner of elections
  5. Checks and Balances – Important – who can veto who?
  6. Cooperation
  7. Trade among the States
  8. Foreign Relations

 

Day 1

 

Ø      Research Day – convene in your state and do research to see what you think should be discussed and worked on

 

Day 2

 

Ø      Continue on Research

Ø      Lobby with other States to see what recommendations should be tabled in the meeting

 

Day 3 & 4

 

Ø      Conference to be led by George Washington

Ø      Iron out a new constitution

Ø      We will use an LCD and Word despite the fact that the founding fathers did not have this technology