The year 1776 was a time of revolution, independence, and patriotism. The American colonists had severed the umbilical cord with the Motherland and had declared themselves “free and independent states”.1 The chains of monarchy had been broken and a new government had been formed. Eschewing totalitarian government, the Second Continental Congress drafted a document called the Articles of Confederation that established a free union of the states. It was an attempt at self-government that ended in failure. The Articles of Confederation had many flaws including a weak central government that had no power to tax, regulate commerce, required equal representation and a unanimous vote to amend the Articles, and had only one legislative branch. As a result, the United States lacked respect from foreign countries. These defects were so serious that a new government had to be drafted and as a result the Constitution was born. This document remedied the weaknesses of the federal government and created a strong and fair one, but still governed by the people. Fiscal power is the key to successful government. If a government wants to act it needs the means to do so. The Articles denied taxing power to Congress and placed it in the hands of local governments. Congress could only ask the states for money. Not surprisingly, states have not responded with the requested money. This was a serious problem because the United States had an incredible amount of debt due to the Revolutionary War. If the money cannot be collected, how will the debts be paid? Some in Congress believed the problem could be solved by printing more money. However, this strategy only led to inflation, which further weakened the economy…… mid-paper……and centuries.Works Citedhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_%28United_States%29Http ://www2. mvusd.k12.ca.ushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxing_and_Spending_Clause#Constitutional_text http://constitutionality.us/NoLimits.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commerce_Clausehttp ://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_%28United_States%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution http://shsgov1.tripod.com/conrephr/sld008.htm http://law.jrank. org/pages/4462/Articles-Confederation.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution http://www.studyguidezone.com/mcat_verbalreasoning.htm http://www.enotes.com/government-checks - balances/constitutional-role-judicial-branch http://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/esl/standards_resources/video/lang-socialstudies_branches_gov.pdf