Constitutional Government & Its Limits — Problem set, Grade 7
Five focused units, a three-session source workshop, chapter review, and chapter quiz.
Review the key ideas
From the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution
Between 1781 and 1786 Congress asked the states for about $15 million and received about $2.4 million — roughly one dollar in six — while some $40 million of domestic debt went unpaid. A government that can ask but not collect is the problem the Constitution was written to solve.
Federalism, Three Branches & Checks on Power
The Constitution assumes officials will be ambitious and selfish, and builds a machine in which that is safe. Madison’s argument was not that good people would hold office but that ambition must be made to counteract ambition — so no branch can finish anything alone.
Representation, Constitutional Compromises & Exclusion
The Convention deadlocked for six weeks over whether states or people should be represented, and settled it with the Great Compromise: one chamber by population, one with two seats each. Then it decided how to count people who were owned, and settled on three-fifths — which gave enslavers extra seats for the people they enslaved.
The Bill of Rights & Constitutional Change
The Constitution was ratified on a promise. Several states agreed only on the understanding that a bill of rights would follow, and Madison — who had argued one was unnecessary — drafted it anyway. Ten amendments were ratified in 1791; a twelfth from the same batch finally passed in 1992, 202 years later.
Ratification Debate: Power, Rights & New York
New York ratified the Constitution by thirty votes to twenty-seven, having opened its convention with a clear majority against. The Federalist Papers were written for this fight — eighty-five essays in New York newspapers — and the state still came within three votes of staying out.
Problem 1
Answer and explanation
The shortfall is 100−60=40 units. Dependence on state contributions can create a coordination problem when receipts do not match obligations. The numbers do not show whether delay, lack of resources, disagreement, or another cause explains the difference. Dated correspondence and payment records would test that question.
Subtract receipts from the obligation.
Distinguish a request from authority and collection.
Identify the missing evidence about causes and possible responses.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Connect relevant evidence with an explained claim or calculation.
- Represent particular perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify an assumption, evidentiary limit, or distinction that qualifies the conclusion.
Problem 2
Answer and explanation
They deliberately valued state authority and restraints on concentration. Explain those aims together with the practical costs of the chosen arrangement.
Problem 3
Answer and explanation
A reaches 20, but B has only 19. The override does not succeed under the supplied rule, which requires both chambers. The example shows interaction between legislative and executive action. It is a simplified arithmetic model, not a full account of every real voting procedure.
Calculate two-thirds of 30 as 20.
Check both chambers separately.
Connect the result with the stated procedure.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Connect relevant evidence with an explained claim or calculation.
- Represent particular perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify an assumption, evidentiary limit, or distinction that qualifies the conclusion.
Problem 4
Answer and explanation
No. A state is part of the federal relationship, while legislative, executive, and judicial branches describe institutions within a governing level.
Problem 5
Answer and explanation
The initial bill reflects congressional action; the veto supplies an executive check; the override permits Congress to enact the measure through the required supermajorities. The sequence shows divided authority and interaction. The case does not establish whether the policy is wise or how often overrides succeed; those require separate evidence.
Identify legislative passage.
Identify executive objection.
Identify the constitutional override mechanism.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Connect relevant evidence with an explained claim or calculation.
- Represent particular perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify an assumption, evidentiary limit, or distinction that qualifies the conclusion.
Problem 6
Answer and explanation
Under the Articles, Congress depended on states supplying requested funds; it lacked the later Constitution’s independent federal taxing authority. A federal taxing power changed the institution responsible for raising revenue and reduced that particular dependence. It also raised questions about accountability and possible abuse, rather than guaranteeing sound financial decisions.
Problem 7
Answer and explanation
Date A concerns the protection’s formal constitutional basis, while Date B concerns a particular application and remedy. A violation does not erase the text’s existence, and ratification does not prove universal compliance. Additional decisions, enforcement records, and affected people’s accounts are needed to evaluate practical change.
Identify recognition in text.
Identify the alleged violation.
Identify interpretation and access to remedy.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Connect relevant evidence with an explained claim or calculation.
- Represent particular perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify an assumption, evidentiary limit, or distinction that qualifies the conclusion.
Problem 8
Answer and explanation
Federalism concerns the allocation of authority between national and state governments; separation of powers concerns legislative, executive, and judicial functions. A dispute may ask whether a state or Congress has authority and whether an executive action follows a valid law. These are related questions about different divisions of power.
Problem 9
Answer and explanation
A links national revenue authority with shared capacity; B links distant power with accountability risks and proposed limits. These arguments can be compared without assuming every supporter or critic agreed. Revenue and administrative records could test capacity; rights disputes and enforcement could test protection. Neither summary establishes public unanimity.
Identify fiscal coordination and accountability as different concerns.
Connect each argument with a mechanism.
Avoid treating an essay as a survey or future result.
Response criteria
- Describe the historical context and institutions accurately.
- Connect relevant evidence with an explained claim or calculation.
- Represent particular perspectives without stereotypes or invented testimony.
- Identify an assumption, evidentiary limit, or distinction that qualifies the conclusion.
Problem 10
Answer and explanation
Both sides offered arguments about effective government and protection against misuse. Compare the specified mechanisms, concerns, and evidence rather than assign one value to each label.