The New Jersey and Virginia Plans

A detailed Summary of The New Jersey and Virginia Plans

The New Jersey and the Virginia Plans benefited both the smaller and larger states as two separate individual plans, with two different missions. The Great Compromise was a major progression towards the unification of all states under a new national government. The fear of creating an administration that was too powerful was the basis for foundation of the Articles of Confederation. The Articles proved to provide a weak government that allowed for most of the power to be under the control of the state legislatures.

Under the Articles Congress had no means to prevent war or to provide for national security against foreign invasion. The federal government could not resolve the quarrels between states, regulate interstate trade, collect taxes, or enforce laws. These weaknesses of the confederation distressed political leaders. In response they requested an assemblage in order to revise the Articles and revive the fledgling nation.

In May of 1787, representatives from each state gathered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to find the means of turning the United States government into an efficient and powerful business that conducted affairs in practical ways. The delegates meeting at the Constitutional Convention

in Philadelphia in 1787 were given expressed consent to alter and revise the Articles of Confederation. With the exception of those from New Jersey and Virginia, the delegates intended to revise the Articles. The first issue that they resolved was that of State Representation.

The New Jersey Plan also called for a "Plural Executive" made up of people appointed by Congress who could be removed at the request of a majority of the state governors. The New Jersey plan offered a series of solutions to the growing concern that the national government was too weak under the Articles. Paterson's proposals were supported by those who "discouraged a strong national government". However, Paterson's New Jersey Plan would not be the only alternative to consider.

James Madison, a Princeton graduate from Virginia, also created a plan that offered solutions to the flawed Articles of Confederation. Prior to their arrival at the Philadelphia Convention, Madison and the other Virginian delegates formulated a revised document that would eliminate the Articles of Confederation and create an entirely new document.

William Paterson and his colleagues offered a list of suggestions for revising the Articles of Confederation in his New Jersey Plan. Paterson, a delegate from New Jersey, favored the weak national government that the Articles created. Paterson declared inequality of the rights of the small states against the large states and wished to expand upon the Articles making a more representative and well-organized government. The New Jersey Plan suggested the Congress maintain its unicameral house system, with states equally re

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Approximate Word count = 1110
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: History