The Constitutional Convention, held in Philadelphia in May of 1787, led to the ending of the Articles of Confederation and the birth of the Constitution. It cannot be argued that the Constitution was the result of the failures of the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation undoubtedly had good virtues but was concerned primarily with limiting the powers of the national government. Under it, Congress was given power to declare war, borrow money and trade but it left out two of the most import

Along with dual-federalism, another method is set up in the Constitution to split the power within the federal government itself. This second principle is known as °The Separation of Powers.± The importance of this is mentioned by James Madison, ° There can be no liberty where the legislative and executive powers are united in the same person' or if the power of judging be not separated from the legislative and executive powers±, (Lowi, 100). Besides from creating three different branches, the secret to making this work is the fact that each of the branches can participate in the other two by the means of °checks and balances.± Some examples of this is the power of the veto by the president, the power of the Congress to override it with two-thirds vote, impeachment, the power of the president to appoint members of the Supreme Court, authority of the Congress to approve it and one of the most important but assumed powers: the judicial review.

national government stepped in and expanded, it did not alter the basic framework. The national government grew tremendously larger but the states continued to be central to the American government. ° This contrast between national and state governments is all the more impressive because it is basically what was intended by the framers of the Constitution. There is probably no better example in the world history of consistency between formal intentions and political reality±, (Lowi, 75).

ional government has expanded, but only minimally at the expense of the states±, (Lowi, 81).

Although the national government had the °commerce clause± to build on, for most of the nineteenth century, federal power remained restricted and limited due to the attention of the tenth amendment: states¯ rights. Cases such as United States v. Lopez are examples of this measure and thus alleviate the fear that the Anti-federalist once held of national power. Contrary to what the Anti-Federalist believed would happen, the power of the states have actually increased due to the devolution of some of the national powers. Congress has actually given the states responsibility to implement federal programs such as welfare. The Supreme Court has also been less strict with the states involving criminal justice, civil rights and abortion regulations. Another important trend is the role that states actually play in Congress, making legislative decisions. Although the national government has expanded enormously, the integrity of the states was never in danger, ° ' The nat!

And although the government is split into three branches, the framers of the Constitution made the Congre

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Approximate Word count = 1769
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)