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Chapter IV - The Great Compromise
The Great Compromise
Uneasy delegates who felt the Virginia Plan had gone too far proposed an alternative on June 15. Their New Jersey or Small-State Plan proposed to modify the Articles of Confederation rather than to completely renovate the government. While this proposal gave Congress the power to regulate commerce, levy taxes, name a plural executive without veto power and establish a supreme court, it demanded that the states continue to be represented in a unicameral legislature.
Both of these innovative plans generated intense debates. Finally, the Connecticut delegates suggested a third plan, known as the Great Compromise, which called for proportional representation in the lower house and equal representation in the upper house. This plan also required that both houses approve legislation before it could become law and gave the national executive limited veto power. The Great Compromise thus prevented domination of government by either house or the executive.
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