US History

U.S. History Study Guide

©2018 of 194 7.9 The Great Compromise This dispute threatened to break up the convention. At this point Benjamin Franklin played an important role in reconciling the often heated delegations by suggesting the sessions of the convention henceforth begin with prayer, amongst other suggestions. He was able to use his famous wit to calm the tensions, saying "When a broad table is to be made and the edges of planks do not fit, the artist takes a little from both, and makes a good joint. In like manner here, both sides must part with some of their demands." Eventually, with Franklin's diplomatic skills, the convention arrived at the “Great Compromise.” The Great Compromise provided for a president, a senate with all states represented equally (by two senators each), and a House Representative with representation according to population. 7.10 The Three-Fifths Compromise Another crisis involved the North-South disagreement over the issue of slavery. Here another compromise was reached. Slavery was neither endorsed nor condemned by the Constitution, but counting them as a part of the population was highly debated due to the question of how slaves could be property and a person. The delegates came up with the Three-Fifths Compromise where each slave was to count as three fifths of a person for purposes of apportioning representation and taxation on the states. The federal government was prohibited from stopping the importation of slaves. 7.11 Electing a President The third major area of compromise was the nature of the presidency. This was made easier by the certainty that George Washington would be the first president and the undisputed trust that he would not abuse the powers of the office or set a bad example. The result was a strong presidency with control of foreign policy and the power to veto Congress’ legislation. Should the president commit a crime, Congress would have the power to impeach him. Otherwise the president would serve for a term of four years and be re-electable without limit. 7.12 Electoral College As a check to the possible excesses of democracy, the president was to be elected by an electoral college, in which each state would have the same number as it did senators and representatives combined. The person with the second highest total in the Electoral College would be the vice president. If no one gained majority in the Electoral College, the president would be chosen by the House of Representatives. Achieve Page 84