Supporters of the U.S. Constitution objected most to which feature of the government established by the Articles of Confederation?

Supporters of the U.S. Constitution objected most to which feature of the government established by the Articles of Confederation?

• A. The acceptance of war debts incurred before the existence of the Articles.
• B. The absence of a statement of fundamental rights and liberties.
• C. The central government's control over the conduct of foreign relations.
• D. The inability of the central government to establish a national commercial policy.

Answer: (D)

The key issue here is the weakness of the central government to coordinate the economy through a unified trade policy. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could not regulate commerce between states or with other countries, and states often laid their own tariffs and trade rules. That meant no consistent national policy to promote trade, negotiate favorable terms with foreign powers, or create a common currency and market. Supporters of replacing the Articles with a new framework argued that a strong national government needed the power to regulate commerce to ensure economic unity and national strength. Granting Congress the authority to regulate interstate and international trade and to levy taxes directly addressed that failing, creating a more cohesive and powerful nation. The other concerns mention issues that existed but were not the central target of the push for a new constitution. Debts from the Revolutionary War were a financial problem, but not the structural flaw cited as the primary reason for abandoning the Articles. The absence of a Bill of Rights and debates over foreign relations were important, but the most decisive and widely criticized flaw was the lack of a national commercial policy.

The key issue here is the weakness of the central government to coordinate the economy through a unified trade policy. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could not regulate commerce between states or with other countries, and states often laid their own tariffs and trade rules. That meant no consistent national policy to promote trade, negotiate favorable terms with foreign powers, or create a common currency and market. Supporters of replacing the Articles with a new framework argued that a strong national government needed the power to regulate commerce to ensure economic unity and national strength. Granting Congress the authority to regulate interstate and international trade and to levy taxes directly addressed that failing, creating a more cohesive and powerful nation.

The other concerns mention issues that existed but were not the central target of the push for a new constitution. Debts from the Revolutionary War were a financial problem, but not the structural flaw cited as the primary reason for abandoning the Articles. The absence of a Bill of Rights and debates over foreign relations were important, but the most decisive and widely criticized flaw was the lack of a national commercial policy.