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Inaugurated in the fall of 2009, Encounter Broadsides are a series of timely pamphlets and e-books from Encounter Books. Uniting an 18th century sense of public urgency and rhetorical wit (think The Federalist Papers, Common Sense) with 21st century technology and channels of distribution, Encounter Broadsides offer indispensable ammunition for intelligent debate on the critical issues of our time. Written with passion by some of our most authoritative authors, Encounter Broadsides make the case for ordered liberty and the institutions of democratic capitalism at a time when they are under siege from the resurgence of collectivist sentiment. Read them in a sitting and come away knowing the best we can hope for and the worst we must fear.
Introduction
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Before the Constitution, the Articles of Confederation had established just a simple unicameral legislature. All the national legislative, executive, and judicial powers, such as they were, were in the hands of Congress. It was government by committee, and it was a mess. There was broad agreement that any remodel or replacement of the Articles would include an executive branch of government. What that might look like, however, was an open question.
Indeed, there was a moment of awkward silence at the Constitutional Convention when the topic first came up. Delegates had started work on Monday, May 28, and the Virginia Plan was introduced the next day. It was the first draft of what would become the new Constitution, and it called for “a National Executive … to be chosen by the National Legislature.” The delegates debated federal powers on Wednesday and the composition of Congress on Thursday, then turned to the executive on Friday.
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