In 1776, before the Declaration of Independence, Congress appointed a committee to draft a written constitution for the new autonomous nation. As a result, the Articles of Confederation were written and adopted by Congress in 1777; however, the Articles were not collectively accepted by all states until 1781. When the nation was under the Articles, it provided the states with an overall weak and ineffective government. Through the inability to enforce laws or create a strong foreign influence, the Articles of Confederation proved to be an unsuccessful approach to establish the recently independent nation.
             The Articles had many flaws that caused chaos in addition to controversy among the American people. One major flaw was the articles inability to enforce laws.
             The Articles of Confederation had such minute power it could hardly govern its people. As shown through a letter from Rhode Island Assembly to Congress on November 30, 1782, many Americans that disagreed with the Articles rejected and disobeyed them. Several Americans did not pay taxes solely because they did not approve the Articles. Because this form of government could not collect taxes, this, in turn, made the Articles not only politically insufficient but financially weak as well. At one point, as Delegate Joseph Jones declared, the Articles of Confederation put the United States badly in debt and could not pay the troops that fought so courageously for their freedom during the Revolution.
             With the inability to command, coerce, enforce, or act directly upon any individual citizen in America, the Articles of Confederation also lacked authority over foreign powers. Although the war had already ended by March 7, 1785, there were still British garrisons occupying forts and posts within U.S soil, as well as attacks being made on American merchants by the British. Because the Articles had no effective power to make, the remaining British forces in America le...