In 1787, the Constitutional Convention sought to reform the Articles of Confederation. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison opposed private central banks, warning of their potential to manipulate currency and deprive citizens of property. Gouverneur Morris, once supportive of the Bank of North America, criticized its owners’ motives and warned against the dominance of the wealthy.

Despite these objections, Alexander Hamilton and allies convinced the Convention to exclude Congress’s power to issue paper money, prioritizing fears of Revolutionary War inflation over the earlier success of colonial script. This omission allowed private banks to retain control over America’s money supply.

View the video and summary at “10. The Constitutional Convention”
and then discuss it below.