Changes

The attendees thereby did not limit their actions to fixing the Articles of Confederation.  This same debate rages today by calls for a constitutional convention to balance the budget (1980s) or, more recently, to protect traditional marriage.  There is no way to limit what a constitutional convention does.  This debate over whether a constitutional convention can be called for limited issue continues today, with many saying that there is never a way to limit a constitutional convention.  The only real protection for such convention is that its proposal must still be ratified by the states.

The attendees thereby did not limit their actions to fixing the Articles of Confederation.  This same debate rages today by calls for a constitutional convention to balance the budget (1980s) or, more recently, to protect traditional marriage.  There is no way to limit what a constitutional convention does.  This debate over whether a constitutional convention can be called for limited issue continues today, with many saying that there is never a way to limit a constitutional convention.  The only real protection for such convention is that its proposal must still be ratified by the states.

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.