Jonah Patel
The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in the world. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled in 1787. The document was then submitted to the Congress of the Confederation, then sitting in New York City, the nation's temporary capital. The Constitution establishes the federal government, dividing it into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III). The Constitution also outlines the rights and responsibilities of state governments and their relationship to the federal government. While the Constitution is a written document, it can only be changed by an extraordinary legislative process of national proposal, followed by state ratification.
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What You'll Learn
- The US Constitution is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution
- The Constitution outlines the separation of powers into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial
- Judicial review is not expressly authorized by the Constitution but has been contemplated and established by the courts
- The Constitution was drafted at the Constitutional Convention and submitted to the Congress of the Confederation in 1787
- The Constitution outlines the requirements and election processes for Senators and Representatives
The US Constitution is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution
The US Constitution is a written and codified national constitution. It is the oldest and longest-standing of its kind in the world. The document was signed on September 17, 1787, and within three days, it was submitted to the Congress of the Confederation, then sitting in New York City, the nation's temporary capital. The Constitution was originally intended as a revision of the Articles of Confederation but instead introduced a completely new form of government.
The US Constitution is made up of several articles that delineate the frame of the federal government. The first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, dividing the federal government into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III). The remaining articles embody concepts of federalism, describing the rights and responsibilities of state governments, the states in relation to the federal government, and the shared process of constitutional amendment.
The US Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and courts established by it can regulate the government under it. Federal courts have jurisdiction over actions by government officers and state law. They may also rule on whether branches of the national government conform to the Constitution. The powers of all departments are limited to the enumerated grants found in the Constitution.
The US Constitution is considered a "written document held as a superior enactment of the people." It can only be changed by an extraordinary legislative process of national proposal, then state ratification.
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The Constitution outlines the separation of powers into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial
The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. The document, originally intended as a revision of the Articles of Confederation, introduced a completely new form of government. The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, dividing the federal government into three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial.
The legislative branch consists of a bicameral Congress (Article I), with powers vested in the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Executive Branch (Article II) consists of the President and subordinate officers. The Judicial Branch (Article III) consists of the Supreme Court and other federal courts.
The Framers' experience with the British monarchy informed their belief that concentrating distinct governmental powers in a single entity would subject the nation's people to arbitrary and oppressive government action. Thus, in drafting the Constitution, the Framers sought to ensure that each branch of the Federal Government would exercise one of the three basic functions of governance: legislative, executive, and judicial. This separation of powers was not rigid, however, and the Framers incorporated a system of checks and balances, whereby one branch could check the powers assigned to another.
Over time, the Supreme Court has elaborated on the separation-of-powers doctrine in several cases addressing the three branches of government. The Court has determined that one branch's actions have infringed upon the core functions of another, and has held that neither branch can encroach upon the powers properly belonging to the other. For example, the Court has ruled that Congress may not exercise an effective veto power over the President's removal of an Executive officer, and that the President may not issue an executive order that usurps the law-making powers of Congress.
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Judicial review is not expressly authorized by the Constitution but has been contemplated and established by the courts
The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled in 1787. Within three days of its signing, the Constitution was submitted to the Congress of the Confederation, then sitting in New York City, the nation's temporary capital.
The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, in which the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III).
Judicial review is not expressly authorized by the Constitution, but the Framers did contemplate the idea, and precedent has since established that the courts could exercise judicial review over the actions of Congress or the executive branch. Judicial review relies on the jurisdictional authority in Article III, and the Supremacy Clause. The justification for judicial review is to be explicitly found in the open ratifications held in the states and reported in their newspapers. John Marshall in Virginia, James Wilson in Pennsylvania, and Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut all argued for Supreme Court judicial review of acts of state legislature. In Federalist No. 78, Alexander Hamilton advocated the doctrine of a written document held as a superior enactment of the people.
The basic theory of American judicial review is that the written Constitution is fundamental law within the states. It can change only by an extraordinary legislative process of national proposal, then state ratification. The powers of all departments are limited to enumerated grants found in the Constitution. Judicial review is now well established as a cornerstone of constitutional law. Courts established by the Constitution can regulate government under the Constitution, the supreme law of the land. First, they have jurisdiction over actions by an officer of the government and state law. Second, federal courts may rule on whether coordinate branches of the national government conform to the Constitution.
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The Constitution was drafted at the Constitutional Convention and submitted to the Congress of the Confederation in 1787
The United States Constitution was drafted at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and submitted to the Congress of the Confederation. The Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia in May 1787, with 55 delegates meeting in the State House (later known as Independence Hall). The delegates closed the shutters and swore secrecy so they could speak freely.
The Constitutional Convention was called due to fears that the young country was on the brink of collapse. America's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no power to enforce these rules, regulate commerce, or print money. State disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the country apart.
The delegates of the Constitutional Convention rejected the Articles of Confederation and instead produced the first written constitution for any nation in the world. The four-page document, signed on September 17, 1787, established the government of the United States. Within three days of its signing, the Constitution was submitted to the Congress of the Confederation, then sitting in New York City.
The Congress of the Confederation had the power to reject the proposal, but they voted unanimously to forward it to the 13 states for their ratification. The state legislatures were tasked with organizing "Federal Conventions" to ratify the document. This process required ratification by just nine of the 13 states, a two-thirds majority.
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The Constitution outlines the requirements and election processes for Senators and Representatives
The United States Constitution, the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution, outlines the requirements and election processes for Senators and Representatives. The legislative branch of the US government, as described in Article I, consists of a Senate and House of Representatives.
The Constitution outlines the election of Senators and Representatives, the process by which laws are made, and the powers that Congress has. The House of Representatives is composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the several states, and the electors in each state must have the qualifications required for electors of the most numerous branch of the state legislature. No person shall be a Representative who has not attained the age of 25 years, been a citizen of the United States for seven years, and who is not, when elected, an inhabitant of the state in which they are chosen.
The Senate of the United States is composed of two Senators from each state, chosen by the Legislature for six years, and each Senator has one vote. The Senators are divided as equally as possible into three classes after the first election. The Constitution also outlines that no Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which they were elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States if the office was created or its benefits increased during that time.
The Constitution further outlines that the times, places, and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each state by the Legislature, but Congress may at any time make or alter such regulations, except for the places of choosing Senators. Each House is the judge of the elections, returns, and qualifications of its members, and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do business. When vacancies happen in the Representation from any state, the executive authority shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies.
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Frequently asked questions
The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. It was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled in 1787, and introduced a new form of government.
The Constitution is the supreme law of the United States. It establishes the framework for the federal government, outlining the separation of powers into three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial. The Constitution also describes the rights and responsibilities of state governments and their relationship to the federal government.
The Constitution was authored by the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention. It was then submitted to the Congress of the Confederation and later to the state legislatures for ratification. Amendments to the Constitution can be proposed through joint resolutions, which require approval from two-thirds of both Houses of Congress. These joint resolutions are then sent to the state legislatures for ratification by three-fourths of the states.
Amendments to the Constitution can be proposed by Congress or by the state legislatures. A proposed amendment must be approved by two-thirds of both Houses of Congress or by three-fourths of the state legislatures. The proposed amendment is then sent to the states for ratification, where ratification by three-fourths of the states is required for the amendment to become part of the Constitution.
