Changes

Dangers aside, the delegates proceeded to write a new constitution.  They divided themselves into various committees to make the overall task more manageable.  But what form of government would be sufficiently effective without being corrupted by power?  Two plans attempted to answer this question.

Dangers aside, the delegates proceeded to write a new constitution.  They divided themselves into various committees to make the overall task more manageable.  But what form of government would be sufficiently effective without being corrupted by power?  Two plans attempted to answer this question.

The first was submitted by [[Edmund Randolph]] and was called the [[Virginia Plan]], or the "Large States Plan," because it was favored by the states having larger populations.  Our three branches of government -- legislative, executive, and judicial -- originated in the Virginia Plan.  Unlike the Articles of Confederation, this plan gave government the power to directly enforce laws.  The Virginia Plan assigned delegates to both houses of Congress (a "bicameral" legislature) based on a state's population, and the legislature selected the chief executive (president) and the judges under this Plan.  The Virginia Plan contributed much to the finished Constitution, although Edmund Randolph himself refused to sign it in the end.

The first was written by Virginia delegate James Madison and submitted by [[Edmund Randolph]] (then the Governor of Virginia), and was called the [[Virginia Plan]] or the "Large States Plan," because it was favored by the states having larger populations.  Our three branches of government -- legislative, executive, and judicial -- originated in the Virginia Plan.  Unlike the Articles of Confederation, this plan gave government the power to directly enforce laws.  The Virginia Plan assigned delegates to both houses of Congress (a "bicameral" legislature) based on a state's population, and the legislature selected the chief executive (president) and the judges under this Plan.  The Virginia Plan contributed much to the finished Constitution, although Edmund Randolph himself refused to sign it in the end.

In June 1787, William Paterson next proposed the [[New Jersey Plan]], which was more favorable to the states having smaller populations, and which departed less from the Articles of Confederation.  This plan was favored by the less-populated states because each state was represented equally in Congress.  This allowed small states to have an equal amount of power.  The Virginia plan, in contrast, would have allowed the more-populated states much more power than small ones because representation in Congress was based on population.

In June 1787, William Paterson next proposed the [[New Jersey Plan]], which was more favorable to the states having smaller populations, and which departed less from the Articles of Confederation.  This plan was favored by the less-populated states because each state was represented equally in Congress.  This allowed small states to have an equal amount of power.  The Virginia plan, in contrast, would have allowed the more-populated states much more power than small ones because representation in Congress was based on population.