Читать книгу Political Science For Dummies - Marcus A. Stadelmann - Страница 99

In 1774, 12 of 13 colonies (Georgia refused to attend) agreed to set up a united legislature, the Continental Congress. The Continental Congress turned into a national legislature during the Revolutionary War and became the new central government after the War of Independence against Great Britain had been won.

In 1781, the Continental Congress passed the Articles of Confederation, creating a confederation between the 13 former colonies. After the states ratified the Articles of Confederation, the Continental Congress renamed itself the Congress of the Confederation and became a weak national legislature. It had no real powers, including the power to tax or the power to create a national army. The real power remained within the 13 states.

The confederate form of government caused immediate problems for the new country:

 No power to tax: Without the power to tax, the Continental Congress couldn’t establish a large military, needed with the British, Russian, and Spanish empires still in North America.

 Unable to redeem war bonds: With the war over and the national government unable to tax, nobody redeemed the bonds. Many patriotic people who bought war bonds to support the war for independence lost their life savings when they couldn’t redeem the bonds. Not surprisingly, people complained.

 Trade issues: Trade became a problem, with the states treating each other like they were foreign countries. How can a united country be established when its members impose trade restrictions against each other?