The framers' coup : the making of the United States Constitution

Americans revere their Constitution. Few, then, would describe the writing of it as a process fraught with highly improbable circumstances, coincidences, compromises, and largely unexpected outcomes. As (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/289513.Benjamin_Franklin) Benjamin Franklin keenly observed, any assembly of men, no matter how talented, bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe thatinevitablythey also had interests. Based on prodigious research and told largely through the voices of the participants, Michael Klarman's The Framers' Coup: The Making of the United States Constitution tells the story of how the Framers' interests shaped the constitution, and what that means for our use of the document today. The Philadelphia convention could easily have been a failure, or not happened at all. Without the heroic efforts of (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/63859.James_Madison) James Madison , George Washington's last-minute decision to attend, and the countless negotiations in the midst of debate and gridlock, the constitution we know today may never have been ratified. Had anything gone wrong and the convention been dissolved without consensus, any number of events may have occurred, such as a civil war, or reversion to monarchy. Klarman's narration of these events is full of colorful characters and riveting stories: the rebellion by debtor farmers in Massachusetts; the deal that induced John Hancock to support ratification; the secretive dealings of (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/51287.Alexander_Hamilton) Alexander Hamilton and (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/63860.John_Jay) John Jay at the New York ratifying convention that produced an improbable victory. The constitution, he shows, was not created by rousing national consensusan impractical concept at the timebut by the personal preferences of its creators. Moreover, the convention produced a constitution very different from what most Americans anticipated. How did the Framers convince Americans to approve a scheme so unrepresentative of national opinion? And to what extent should Americans rely on it today? Towards the end of his life, (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1673.Thomas_Jefferson) Thomas Jefferson noted that each generation has "a right to choose for itself the form of government it believes most promotive of its own happiness," and that constitutions should not be deemed, "too sacred to be touched." As Jefferson would have recognized, and as Klarman depicts in this captivating retelling of one of America's most famous stories, the Constitution is and has always been used as a tool to defend particular interests, and its sanctity should not go unchallenged. Americans revere their Constitution. Few, then, would describe the writing of it as a process fraught with highly improbable circumstances, coincidences, compromises, and largely unexpected outcomes. As[Benjamin Franklin](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/289513.Benjamin_Franklin)keenly observed, any assembly of men, no matter how talented, bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe that—inevitably—they also had interests. Based on prodigious research and told largely through the voices of the participants, Michael Klarman's__The Framers' Coup: The Making of the United States Constitution__tells the story of how the Framers' interests shaped the constitution, and what that means for our use of the document today.The Philadelphia convention could easily have been a failure, or not happened at all. Without the heroic efforts of[James Madison](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/63859.James_Madison), George Washington's last-minute decision to attend, and the countless negotiations in the midst of debate and gridlock, the constitution we know today may never have been ratified. Had anything gone wrong and the convention been dissolved without consensus, any number of events may have occurred, such as a civil war, or reversion to monarchy. Klarman's narration of these events is full of colorful characters and riveting stories: the rebellion by debtor farmers in Massachusetts; the deal that induced John Hancock to support ratification; the secretive dealings of[Alexander Hamilton](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/51287.Alexander_Hamilton)and[John Jay](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/63860.John_Jay)at the New York ratifying convention that produced an improbable victory. The constitution, he shows, was not created by rousing national consensus—an impractical concept at the time—but by the personal preferences of its creators. Moreover, the convention produced a constitution very different from what most Americans anticipated. How did the Framers convince Americans to approve a scheme so unrepresentative of national opinion? And to what extent should Americans rely on it today?Towards the end of his life,[Thomas Jefferson](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1673.Thomas_Jefferson)noted that each generation has "a right to choose for itself the form of government it believes most promotive of its own happiness," and that constitutions should not be deemed, "too sacred to be touched." As Jefferson would have recognized, and as Klarman depicts in this captivating retelling of one of America's most famous stories, the Constitution is and has always been used as a tool to defend particular interests, and its sanctity should not go unchallenged. Based On Prodigious Research And Told Largely Through The Voices Of The Participants, Michael Klarman's The Framers' Coup Narrates How The Framers' Clashing Interests Shaped The Constitution--and American History Itself. ... Not Only Does Klarman Capture The Knife's-edge Atmosphere Of The Convention, He Populates His Narrative With Riveting And Colorful Stories. ... The Framers' Coup Is More Than A Compendium Of Great Stories, However, And The Powerful Arguments That Feature Throughout Will Reshape Our Understanding Of The Nation's Founding. Simply Put, The Constitutional Convention Almost Didn't Happen, And Once It Happened, It Almost Failed. And, Even After The Convention Succeeded, The Constitution It Produced Almost Failed To Be Ratified. Just As Importantly, The Constitution Was Hardly The Product Of Philosophical Reflections By Brilliant, Disinterested Statesmen, But Rather Ordinary Interest Group Politics. Multiple Conflicting Interests Had A Say, From Creditors And Debtors To City Dwellers And Backwoodsmen. The Upper Class Overwhelmingly Supported The Constitution; Many Working Class Colonists Were More Dubious. Slave States And Nonslave States Had Different Perspectives On How Well The Constitution Served Their Interests. Ultimately, Both The Constitution's Content And Its Ratification Process Raise Troubling Questions About Democratic Legitimacy. The Federalists Were Eager To Avoid Full-fledged Democratic Deliberation Over The Constitution, And The Document That Was Ratified Was Stacked In Favor Of Their Preferences. And In Terms Of Substance, The Constitution Was A Significant Departure From The More Democratic State Constitutions Of The 1770s. Definitive And Authoritative, The Framers' Coup Explains Why The Framers Preferred Such A Constitution And How They Managed To Persuade The Country To Adopt It. We Have Lived With The Consequences, Both Positive And Negative, Ever Since-- Publisher's Website. Flaws In The Articles Of Confederation -- Economic Turmoil In The States And The Road To Philadelphia -- The Constitutional Convention -- Slavery And The Constitutional Constitution -- Critics Of The Constitution: The Antifederalists -- The Ratifying Contest -- The Bill Of Rights -- Conclusion. Michael J. Klarman. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 815-824) And Index. Most Americans revere their Constitution yet know relatively little about its origins. Indeed, until now, nobody has written a comprehensive history of the Constitution's making. Based on prodigious research and told largely through participants' voices, Michael J. Klarman's The Framers' Coup: The Making of the United States Constitution fills that void. 00Klarman's narrative features colorful characters and riveting stories, such as the rebellion by debtor farmers in Massachusetts that contributed enormously to the Constitution's creation, George Washington's agonized deliberations over whether to attend the Philadelphia convention, Patrick Henry's demagogic efforts to defeat ratification in Virginia, and the political machinations of Alexander Hamilton and John Jay at the New York ratifying convention that produced an improbable victory for ratification Cover 1 The Framers’ Coup 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 Contents 8 Preface and Acknowledgments 10 Introduction 16 1. Flaws in the Articles of Confederation 26 2. Economic Turmoil in the States and the Road to Philadelphia 88 3. The Constitutional Convention 141 4. Slavery and the Constitutional Convention 272 5. Critics of the Constitution: The Antifederalists 320 6. The Ratifying Contest 412 7. The Bill of Rights 561 8. Conclusion 611 Notes 648 Bibliography 830 Complete Illustration Information 840 Index 848