Question

What economic power did the national government have under the Articles of Confederation?

Answer 1

Pretty sure it’s A. Impose taxes

Answer 2

Answer:

The correct answer is B. Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government had the power of issuing currency.

Explanation:

Since the war against Britain still continued, the settlers did not want to establish another powerful national government. In order to protect its new independence, the Continental Congress created a weak single-chamber structure that protected the freedom of member states. Even if Congress regulated monetary (by issuing currency, until it devaluated so much that the Continental Congress left this task to the states) and military affairs, the Articles did not provide any mechanism to ensure that each state complied with the troops and the money needed. This weakened the army, as was the case in 1781, which George Washington would make apparent in a letter to Massachusetts Governor John Hancock.

The Articles gave support to the Continental Army and allowed the thirteen States to form a union front before European powers. However, as a tool to build an effective government in times of war, it was a failure. Congress could make decisions, but it did not have the power to implement them. The most important power that Congress lacked was the power to collect taxes: it could only request money from the States. These, on the other hand, did not always comply with the demands and Congress did not have the necessary funds for its operation.