The Battle for Fair Representation in United States

The articles of confederation 

The declaration of independence was coined to counter the governing system of the British monarchy under King George III. The 1977 the articles of confederation created an alliance between the 13 United States colonies while allowing each state to retain its sovereignty and independence. The confederation created a non-presidential system of government where each state had its own constitution regulated through congress (Lutz, 1990) . Congress was in charge of common government functions such as security, making treaties, controlling commerce between states and the regulation of taxes. However the challenges of this federal system of government meant that congressmen had to rely on the federal state to apportion taxes collected from western farm lands. These federal allocated taxes became difficult to collect and consequently made it difficult for state governments to run its basic functions and fund the military. 

The branches of government 

A democratic system of government requires institutions to be put in place to reduce the abuses of power by one single individual or office. For example, the Virginia and New Jersey proposals suggested the introduction of three branches of government. Large states such as Virginia wanted more than one representative into congress due to the large size of their population (Farris, 2011) . The presidential system of government was proposed composing congress and the judiciary. The judiciary, legislature and executive were supposed to work together to safeguard the freedom and security of their citizens. The legislative powers were left to congress that was tasked with the duty of making and passing laws (Hydén & Mease, 2004) . The executive branch of the government under the control of the federal precedency was supposed to controls the armed forces to ensure peace and stability of the 13 states. The judicial branch were left with the duty of being impartial in solving disputes to ensure citizens were complying to the laws of the land. These three state offices were meant to regulate how the government relates to its citizens through service delivery and policy formulation. 

The great compromise and the three fifths compromise 

The great compromise solved the battle for fair representation in United States by balancing the voting powers of small and large states. In my opinion not all political problems can be solved through compromise. Political human rights issues such as slavery, the right to life and free speech should not be solved through compromise. However certain contentious issues that threatened the unity of certain nations require the affected parties to sit down and deliberate on the issues affecting their constituents. The great compromise was a one form of compromise that led to a mutual understanding and a deliberation of issues between two opposition state parties. 

In September 1787 delegates met in Philadelphia to consider revising the articles of confederation. A disagreement ensued over the appropriation of taxes and the ability to allow people without property like women and slaves to vote (Pope & Treier, 2011) . A compromise was reached when a two chambered legislature was created. The bicameral system of legislature became a lawmaking institution composed of two houses; senate and the House of Representatives. Large states like Virginia and New Jersey increased their number of districts and representatives into the two houses though a legislative voting system. The three fifths compromise on the other hand allowed slaves to be counted as citizens. This meant that slaves were allowed three fifths representations in government therefore giving them rights to vote and be taxed. 

3. Large groups find it difficult to agree on one idea 

Most disagreements that cause divisions within the legislature include policy changes that affect the average American citizen. Issues such as abortion, immigration laws and minimum wage have become hot topics in United States today. While some conservatives believe immigrants are beneficial to the local labor industry. The republicans believe immigrants have bought insecurity and high levels of unemployment in United States. Immigration and deportation laws in my home town Texas has led to the separation of many parents form their children. This has led to broken families and numerous suicide cases. The immigration laws should be amended to better manage the increased cases of illegal migrants who have established young families within the country. 

References 

Farris, M. P. (2011). Was the Constitution Illegally Adopted. Grove City CJL Pub Pol'y , 2 , 1. 

Hydén, G., & Mease, K. (2004). Making sense of governance: empirical evidence from sixteen developing countries . Lynne Rienner Publishers. 

Lutz, D. S. (1990). The Articles of Confederation as the background to the federal republic. Publius: The Journal of Federalism , 20 (1), 55-70. 

Pope, J. C., & Treier, S. (2011). Reconsidering the Great Compromise at the Federal Convention of 1787: Deliberation and agenda effects on the Senate and slavery. American Journal of Political Science , 55 (2), 289-306.