What were the main arguments for and against the Constitution?

Asked by: Rahsaan Heaney  |  Last update: September 7, 2025
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Anti-Federalists argued for the value of limited central government, whereas Federalists maintained that natural rights to life, liberty, and property would be best protected under a strong central government.

What were the major arguments against the Constitution?

Anti-Federalists argued that the Constitution gave too much power to the federal government, while taking too much power away from state and local governments. Many felt that the federal government would be too far removed to represent the average citizen.

What are the two most important arguments they made against the U.S. Constitution?

The Anti-Federalists

One faction opposed the Constitution because they thought stronger government threatened the sovereignty of the states. Others argued that a new centralized government would have all the characteristics of the despotism of Great Britain they had fought so hard to remove themselves from.

What were the 3 major issues at the Constitution?

Debates erupted over representation in Congress, over slavery, and over the new executive branch.

What were the arguments for and against the Constitution and the Bill of Rights?

The birth of the Bill of Rights was controversial: Anti-Federalists demanded a concise constitution, which clearly delineated the people's rights and the limitations of the power of government. Federalists opposed the inclusion of a bill of rights as unnecessary.

The Constitution, the Articles, and Federalism: Crash Course US History #8

31 related questions found

What were their major arguments in favor of the Constitution?

Federalists defended the Constitution's strengthened national government, with its greater congressional powers, more powerful executive, and independent judiciary. They argued that the new government supported the principles of separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism.

What was the main argument against the Bill of Rights?

Many delegates believed a bill of rights would be unnecessary because all the states had their own. There was a strong belief that individual rights were implied in the document they had already created.

What was the main issue of the Constitution?

A chief aim of the Constitution as drafted by the Convention was to create a government with enough power to act on a national level, but without so much power that fundamental rights would be at risk.

What were the major debates over the Constitution?

5 Issues at the Constitutional Convention
  • Representation. Large and small states fought over representation in Congress. ...
  • State vs. Federal Powers. ...
  • Executive Power. Having fought a war against tyranny, Americans were suspicious of executive power. ...
  • Slavery. ...
  • Commerce.

What are 3 main ideas about the Constitution?

First it creates a national government consisting of a legislative, an executive, and a judicial branch, with a system of checks and balances among the three branches. Second, it divides power between the federal government and the states. And third, it protects various individual liberties of American citizens.

What were the 2 most debated issues about the new constitution?

The major debates were over representation in Congress, the powers of the president, how to elect the president (Electoral College), slave trade, and a bill of rights.

What was the single biggest argument against the new constitution?

The Supremacy Clause generated significant controversy during debates over the Constitution's ratification. Anti-Federalist opponents of the Constitution argued that the Clause would make the national government overly powerful and infringe on state sovereignty.

What were the 3 main arguments the Anti-Federalists made against the new U.S. Constitution?

3. What arguments did the anti-federalists make against ratifying the Constitution? A argument there were three basic issues, whether the Constitution would maintain the republican government, the national government would have too much power, and the bill of rights was needed in the Constitution.

Who was against the Constitution and why?

The Anti-Federalists fought hard against the Constitution because it created a powerful central government that reminded them of the one they had just overthrown, and it lacked a bill of rights.

What were the major objections to the Constitution?

It soon circulated widely and became the basic template for Anti-Federalist opposition to the Constitution, concisely articulating many of the complaints that would reverberate throughout the ratification struggle: the House of Representatives was too small to represent such a large nation; the President was ...

What was a major criticism of the Constitution?

Five of their most significant objections to the Constitution are summarized in the excerpts that follow: that replacement of the Articles of Confederation was unnecessary; that the new government would give rise to a privileged aristocracy; that a stronger central government would obliterate the states; that a large, ...

What were the arguments against the Constitution?

The Anti-Federalists opposed the ratification of the 1787 U.S. Constitution because they feared that the new national government would be too powerful and thus threaten individual liberties, given the absence of a bill of rights.

Which two sides debated over the Constitution?

two sides emerged:the federalists and the anit-federalists. Identify each groups points of view on ratification.

Why was there no Bill of Rights in the Constitution?

James Madison and other supporters of the Constitution argued that a bill of rights wasn't necessary because - “the government can only exert the powers specified by the Constitution.” But they agreed to consider adding amendments when ratification was in danger in the key state of Massachusetts.

What are some problems with the Constitution?

Identifying Defects in the Constitution
  • Congress Can Not Improve Poor Attendance by Delegates. ...
  • Congress Pleads with the States to Contribute Money to the National Treasury. ...
  • Congress is Unable to Control Commerce Between America and Foreign Nations.

What does the Constitution argue for?

For over two centuries the Constitution has remained in force because its framers successfully separated and balanced governmental powers to safeguard the interests of majority rule and minority rights, of liberty and equality, and of the federal and state governments.

What were the flaws in the original Constitution?

It brilliantly articulated the idea of fundamental equality — human equality. It beautifully articulated the notion that government's power flows from the people, and that government serves the people. But it was fundamentally flawed in preserving and propping up slavery, that ultimate form of inequality.

What were the arguments for and against including a Bill of Rights in the Constitution?

Antifederalists argued that a bill of rights was necessary because, the supremacy clause in combination with the necessary and proper and general welfare clauses would allow implied powers that could endanger rights. Federalists rejected the proposition that a bill of rights was needed.

Why is the 10th amendment misunderstood?

United States (1992), the Court reaffirmed that the Tenth Amendment is a “truism” and “essentially a tautology.” The Court stated that the impact of the Amendment is “not derived from its text.” Indeed, by its terms, the Tenth Amendment applies to powers “not delegated to the United States by the Constitution.” The ...

What was the disagreement about the creation of the Bank of the United States?

Such an institution clashed with Jefferson's vision of the United States as a chiefly agrarian society, not one based on banking, commerce, and industry. Jefferson also argued that the Constitution did not grant the government the authority to establish corporations, including a national bank.