
The Constitution is a framework for government, outlining the powers of the federal government and defining what the government is and how it works. It is not meant to protect anyone, nor does it give citizens rights. However, it does protect people from the power of the government by restricting its ability to take away natural rights. The protections of the Bill of Rights, for example, protect citizens from all levels of government, but not from private entities.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To restrict the government's ability to take away natural rights |
| Powers | To expressly state the powers of the federal government |
| Protection | From all levels of government |
| Exclusions | No protection from private entities, such as a person or business |
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What You'll Learn
- The Constitution doesn't give citizens rights
- The Constitution protects people from the power of the government
- The Constitution defines what the government is and how it works
- The Constitution protects citizens from all levels of government
- The Constitution doesn't protect citizens from private entities

The Constitution doesn't give citizens rights
The Constitution does not give citizens rights. Instead, it is a framework for government, defining what the government is and how it works. It is a charter that outlines the powers that the federal government has. The purpose of the Constitution is to restrict the ability of the government to take away the rights that citizens are born with.
The Constitution does not give citizens rights, but it does protect people from the power of the government. The protections of the Bill of Rights, for example, protect citizens from all levels of government. This is called the "Incorporation of the Bill of Rights". However, it is important to note that the Constitution does not protect citizens from private entities, such as a person or business.
The Constitution is not meant to protect anyone, but it does provide certain protections. For example, the Constitutional protections on free speech and equal protection under the law apply to everyone, as there is no language specifying that they only apply to citizens. However, there are limits to these protections. For instance, the Constitution cannot protect Iranians from the Iranian government because it does not have authority over that government. Additionally, some Constitutional protections can be overridden according to the doctrine of "strict scrutiny", as defined by the Supreme Court.
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The Constitution protects people from the power of the government
The Constitution is a framework for government, defining what the government is and how it works. It is not meant to protect anyone, nor does it give citizens rights. Instead, it expressly states the powers that the federal government has.
However, the Constitution does protect people from the power of the government. The Founders believed in natural rights, so the Constitution was created to restrict the government's ability to take away those rights. For example, the Bill of Rights protects citizens from all levels of government. This is called the "Incorporation of the Bill of Rights".
There are some limits to Constitutional protection. For instance, the Constitution can't protect Iranians from the Iranian government because it doesn't have authority over that government. Some Constitutional protections, like free speech, can also be overridden according to the doctrine of "strict scrutiny", as defined by the Supreme Court. Additionally, protections like the 4th amendment deprivation of life without due process are modified in armed conflict or battlefield situations.
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The Constitution defines what the government is and how it works
The Constitution is a framework for government. It defines what the government is and how it works. Think of it like a charter for a club, a town, or a guild. It determines who the officers will be, how they're chosen, what jobs they have, and how decisions are made. Its job isn't to "protect people from the government", but it does protect people from the power of the government. The Constitution restricts the government's ability to take away the natural rights that people are born with.
The Constitution doesn't give citizens rights, but it does protect citizens from all levels of government. This is called the "Incorporation of the Bill of Rights". It doesn't, however, protect citizens from any private entity, such as a person or business.
There are some limits to Constitutional protection. For instance, the Constitution can't protect Iranians from the Iranian government because it doesn't have authority over the Iranian government. Some Constitutional protections, like free speech, can also be overridden according to the doctrine of "strict scrutiny", as defined by the Supreme Court.
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The Constitution protects citizens from all levels of government
The Constitution is a framework for government, defining what the government is and how it works. It is not meant to protect anyone, nor does it give citizens rights. Instead, it expressly states the powers that the federal government has. However, it does protect people from the power of the government, restricting its ability to take away the natural rights that the Founders believed people were born with.
The protections of the Bill of Rights protect citizens from all levels of government. This is called the 'Incorporation of the Bill of Rights'. It does not, however, protect citizens from private entities, such as a person or business.
Constitutional protections, such as free speech and equal protection under the law, apply to everyone. There are, however, some limits on Constitutional protection. For example, the Constitution cannot protect Iranians from the Iranian government because it does not have authority over the Iranian government. Additionally, some protections, such as free speech, can be overridden according to the doctrine of 'strict scrutiny', as defined by the Supreme Court.
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The Constitution doesn't protect citizens from private entities
The Constitution does not protect citizens from private entities. It is a "framework for government", a charter that defines what the government is and how it works. It does not give citizens rights, but it does protect people from the power of the government. The Constitution restricts the government's ability to take away the natural rights that the Founders believed everyone was born with.
The protections of the Bill of Rights, for example, apply to citizens against all levels of government. This is called the "Incorporation of the Bill of Rights". However, these protections do not extend to private entities, such as individuals or businesses. For instance, a business can force you to be silent and restrict your speech without violating your freedom of speech, as this freedom only protects you from the government.
There are also some limits to the Constitution's protection from the government. For example, the Constitution cannot protect Iranians from the Iranian government because it does not have authority over that government. Additionally, some Constitutional protections can be overridden according to the doctrine of "strict scrutiny", as defined by the Supreme Court. Finally, protections like the 4th amendment deprivation of life without due process are modified in armed conflict or battlefield situations.
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Frequently asked questions
No, the Constitution does not give citizens rights. It is a framework for government, defining what the government is and how it works.
The Constitution does not protect citizens from the government per se, but it does restrict the government's ability to take away citizens' natural rights.
No, the Constitution does not protect citizens from private entities such as businesses or individuals.
The Constitution does not have authority over foreign governments, so it cannot protect non-citizens from their own governments. However, the protections of the Constitution generally apply to everyone within its jurisdiction, regardless of citizenship.

























