Now, the ugly part. Southern states wanted to count enslaved people for representation, but not for taxes. Northern states found this hypocritical and hypocritical is putting it lightly.
They made a deal: count an enslaved person as three-fifths of a human being. It was a brutal, racist compromise that gave the South more power in Congress. It protected slavery for decades, and it was America’s original sin written into law.
What Happened at the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
No sugar-coating that one. It was awful, and it shaped the next 80 years of American history.
The President Problem
They also argued about the president. Should one guy have that much power? What if he turns into a king? Hamilton wanted a president for life—he was wild like that. Most people thought that was insane.
They settled on a four-year term. And the Electoral College? That was a weird compromise because they couldn’t agree on letting Congress or the people pick the president directly. So they invented a middleman. Classic.
By September, they had a document: the Constitution. It was full of compromises, loopholes, and brilliant ideas. It also completely ignored women, Native Americans, and most poor people. Progress is never perfect, but this was a start.
