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- P. George Stewart (
gurugeorge) wrote,
Why the Constitution came to be
When the war ended in 1783, certain special interests had incentives to create a new 'merchant state,' much like the British state people had rebelled against. In particular, holders of war scrip and land speculators wanted a central government to pay off scrip at face value and to legalize western land holdings with disputed claims. Also, manufacturers wanted a high tariff as a barrier to foreign goods, but competition among states made this impossible without a central government.
My bold. Isn't that last sentence just delicious?