The conflicts of the U.S. constitution - Essay Example

? History and political science 29 December History Essay Original intent “is the legal theory advocating recovery of theintention of the framers of the United States constitution as a basis for current constitutional interpretation” (Taylor and Winquist 267). Kommers, Finn, and Jacobson stated that textualism “is based on the unremarkable claim that constitutional interpretation must begin with the written word” (37). Textualism, emphasis on the opinion of possible, judges resolving questions of constitutional law should all be based on language of the constitution. It should help in guiding decision and the text itself, rather than other factors such as original intent (Levy 349). Non-originalists stated that the constitution is a living document “that is meant to deal with conditions unforeseen at the time of its adoption; they look not just to original text, intent, and purpose, but to evolving concepts and norms as well” (Goldford 60). Conflicts arise from disagreements between people. There were conflicts among the founding fathers, and some of these conflicts included slavery. Thomas Jefferson wanted to abolish slavery, but he had so many slaves, which brought conflict among the founding fathers. There were also differences between Madison and Adam; the differences were brought about by the Government’s role in tampering with the passions, and selfish desires of the people. Madison wanted a bottom-up approach, while Adam wanted and had the desire to inculcate virtue (Zummo 83). Adam and Madison had disagreements on how to deal with the problem of self-interest. During 1790s and 1800s, Spain, Britain, and France became major threats to the fledging American Republic. Political analyst, David Hendrickson said that the argument contending the constitution was in effect to the peace pact between sovereign, but divided states and the community (Irwin and Sylla 18). In the 1790s, the United States founded a navy and coast guard to complement its army. Nevertheless, the military policies of United States were controversial during the 1790s. After the formation of these policies there was little conflict, as the military played no role in the territorial and economic expansion of the country, and its increasing role in the world of empires and nations. The federal judiciary played an important role in the system of government checks. The federal Government was to settle a conflict between states and citizens of different states (Irwin and Sylla 18). Another political dispute that arose was between the federalists and Jefferson’s Republicans, through the period of post-revolutionary America (Markovits 161). There can be no original intent if the constitution had disagreements; this is because original intent tries to figure out what the founders wrote on the constitution, meant by the words they used. Disagreements couldn’t have brought the original meaning, but no one would be able to understand the language of the constitution, study the records of the constitution convection, or study the writings of the men who wrote the constitution (“Judicial Branch,” enotes.com). Textualism is a valid source of constitutional advocacy, and helps the judiciary in decision making. Many textualists stated that the primary weight of a constitutional analysis should be given to the text itself; so that an average person can understand the text (Demaske 6). The founders accepted interpretation without actual changes of the document; this is because if judges needed to know the meaning of a particular phrase, they need to check on what the founders meant by that phrase. The constitution is a living document and should be interpreted in light of the society needs and practices today (Sidlow and Henschen 334). One should have the knowledge about the constitution; this is because one can be able to interpret it. It is therefore true to say that America is a great country founded on hypocrisy; this is because the founding fathers were unable to abolish slavery, during the constitutional convection. The framers spent hours debating about the issues of abolition of slave trade (Frassett, revolutionarywararchives.org). People were not ready to stop slavery, they opted for the issue to be left for each individual state to decide whether to abolish it, or continue with it. The constitution protected slavery, but it did not influence any state to abolish slavery. Slavery began in 1607 in Jamestown, Virginia. It later grew in America for three main reasons. First, was the huge need for cheap labor in early America, secondly, “there existed in America, a believe that some people should be property owners, while others should be workers” (Buell 9), and finally, the need for hard workers was increased by the invention of the cotton gin, and growth of large plantations, consequently increasing the practice of slavery. American slavery was a system of cheap labor that was based on ownership of slaves, rather than on consent and contract” (Northrup 459). Slavery mostly applied to the blacks (mostly from Africa). It began as a general system of labor for the British colonies, that would end up in the United States. Slavery was permitted in the colonies during the seventeenth century. A number of reasons have been used to explain the fertility of American slave population and over the time has received attention. First, “the food self-sufficiency of the American mainland is thought to have allowed slave-owners to provide slaves with a larger, healthier and more regular diet, than was practicable for most other new world slave population”( Northrup 461). Secondly, there was the absence of tropical diseases, which was identified as an important contributor to the high growth rates of the slave population (Northrup 461). Thirdly, Americans were largely involved in the cultivation of tobacco, rice and later cotton, which explained a comparatively lower mortality rate, which contributed to the rate of overall population growth (Northrup 461). In conclusion, original intent is a legal theory advocating recovery of the intention of the founding fathers, while textualism is based on unremarkable claim of the constitutional interpretation. The founding fathers came up with the American constitution, but there were problem that came up during their meeting to create the constitution. However, these problems such as slavery and the selfish desire of people were later solved. During the year 1789 and 1880 there were disputes among countries like Spain, and France with American. The constitution is the base of every country and without a constitution a country can’t operate and act according. It can be said that the American constitution was made in a hypocritical way for a number of reasons discussed in this paper. Works Cited Buell, Tonya. Slavery in America: A primary Source History of the Intolerable Practice of Slavery. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc., 2004. Print. Demaske, Chris. Modern Power and Free Speech: Contemporary Culture and Issues of Equality. Plymouth: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2009. Print. Frassett, James. “Slavery and Our Founding Fathers.” revolutionarywararchives.org. n.d. Web. 28 December 2012. . Goldford, Dennis. The American Constitution and the Debate over Originalism. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. Print. Henschen, Beth and Edward Sidlow. America at Odds. 6th ed. California: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2009. Print. Irwin, Douglas and Richard Sylla. Founding Choices: American Economic Policy in the 1790s. London: The university of Chicago Press, 2011. Print. “Judicial Branch.” enotes.com. 2012. Web. 29 December 2012 Kommers, D., Finn, J., and Jacobson Gary. American Constitutional Law: Essays, Cases, and Comparative Notes. 2nd ed. Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2004. Print. Levy, Leonard. Seasoned Judgment: The American Constitution, Rights, and History. New Jersey: Transaction publishers, 1995. Print. Markovits, Richard. Matters of Principle: Legitimate Legal Argument and Constitutional Interpretation. New York: New York University Press, 1998. Print. Northrup, Cynthia. The America Economy. California: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2003. Print Taylor, Victor and Charles Winquist. Postmodernism. New York: Routledge, 2001. Print. Zummo, Paul. Thomas Jefferson's America: Democracy, Progress, and the Quest for Perfection. Ann Arbor: ProQuest LLC, 2009. Print. Read More