It is no small wonder how quick men are to forget their past troubles and the causes of those troubles. It seems as though many of my fellow countrymen are the latest to suffer from this said lapse in memory. As we came to this Convention, I confess my goals were simple- to reform the existing Articles of Confederation. Though there certainly have been failings of the Articles of Confederation, many of these failures can easily be rectified through amendments strengthening the Continental Congress over the states. Having now heard the beginning proposal- that of the Virginia Plan- I feel compelled to remind my fellow countrymen of not only the dangers of a bicameral legislature, but also the successes found in our unicameral legislature as created by the Articles of Confederation.
Eleven short years ago, myself and a number of other patriots met to declare independence from a government we felt no longer represented our interests. The government of Great Britain had devolved into tyranny, with both a belligerent Crown and parliament. Our former motherland failed to deliver to us our natural rights and trampled upon our liberties as English citizens. I remind you, fellow countrymen, that one of the main bodies responsible for these injustices was that of the parliament- a bicameral body of legislature. During this Convention, I have heard it mentioned that a bicameral government is the best way to protect the people from tyranny. To that I ask simply, where was parliament’s protection when tyrannical motions began to form in its chambers? It is delusion to think that bicameralism is the best way to protect ourselves from tyrannical legislation when we have just finished fighting a war whose cause laid in the terrible motions passed by a bicameral legislature.
This Virginia Plan reveals a predisposition to fall back upon the form of government with which we are most familiar. My fellow countrymen, I understand your problem. As the writer Thomas Paine put it, “it is difficult to get over local or long-standing prejudices” (Common Sense, Game Book pg. 111). That being said, we cannot allow ourselves to fall upon tradition at this critical junction in our nation’s history. As Mr. Paine continued “if we will suffer ourselves to examine the component parts of the English constitution, we shall find them to be the base remains of two ancient tyrannies” (Common Sense, Game Book pg. 111).
Bicameral government allows for a noble class to overrule the voice of the people. It unnecessarily complicates government and prevents the operation of an effective legislation. Bicameralism, with its added mixture of government, also allows for corruption to sneak it. Borrowing once again the words of Mr. Paine, “Simple government with elected representatives is less prone to corruption than mixed government with nobles and a king.” (Common Sense, Game Book pg. 110) Though we may not have a King, I wonder if bicameralism is a step in that direction. An upper house would certainly set up the possibility of a nobility. Unicameralism, on the other hand, closely aligns with the simple government structure proposed by Mr. Paine. Bills are able to be passed, and it is much clearer to the populace about where the ideas for these bills originate. Their elected representatives have control over the entire process.
On the subject of bills, it has also been said that a bicameral legislature can serve to quash tyrannical motions through thorough review in each of its two chambers. Let us not forget that a bicameral legislature is, as said by the Republicus paper, “as likely to check a good bill as a bad one” (Founders’ Constitution, vol. 1, pp.373-74; under “Bicameralism,” #21). Parliament, with its two houses, clearly was unable to distinguish between a bill that would help its people and a bill that would hurt them. There is simply no rational reason to expect the creation of a bicameral legislature to achieve its primary purpose- protection of the populace.
One of the major benefits of Unicameralism is its efficient lawmaking. By simply having one house, our legislature is able to respond to issues in a timely fashion. After reforming the Articles of Confederation to give the legislature more power, we will find that the troubles currently plaguing our government- such as our struggling economy and military woes- will find their resolutions much more expediently. If we add a second house, we risk rendering the legislature ineffective. How can we expect forming another house to make our government more efficient? This second chamber will simply be another roadblock for legislation; legislation that must be implemented in a timely manner. For the sake of our populace, we have an obligation to respond to their wants and needs. Unicameralism is, simply put, our best option to serve the people.
Unicameralism has not failed our country. Indeed, some of our greatest achievements to date can be credited to our current form of government. After all, the Articles of Confederation saw us through the Revolutionary War. They guided us during our wilderness years while anarchy threatened the land. As we fought tyranny, we trusted the Continental Congress to keep things running- a venture they were largely successful in. Unicameralism allowed for the Congress to make the rulings they needed to. It held the nation together when the enemy was trying everything in their power to turn the states against each other. The current failings of the government lie not in our unicameral legislature but rather in the circumstances within which it exists. We are recovering from a terrible war- the issues of delinquent states in their monetary payments are much more attributable to the up and down nature of the current economy than to Congress. The uprisings in Massachusetts are clearly the result of a Federal government lacking power, and not due to a poorly constructed legislature. With a bit of reform, we will find our unicameral Congress, now equipped with the tools it needs to rule, more than capable of responding to these challenges facing our nation.
As this Convention progresses, it is my sincere hope that my fellow delegates remember the past injustices of bicameralism. While we attempt to build this new republic, unicameralism gives us a strong blueprint from which to work. We have seen unicameral legislatures throughout history have great success. It is our natural form of government. The United States of America is heading for uncharted waters. Our unicameral legislature will give us a strong foundation from which to grow.
References
- Coby, John P. “Thomas Paine’s Common Sense.” America’s Founding Game Book, Smith College, 2016, pp. 109–112.
- Storing, Herbert J. “Republicus.” Bicameralism: Republicus, University of Chicago, press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch12s21.html.