Malcolm Rivera
The US Constitution is a document that outlines the fundamental principles of the US government and its people. It is the oldest written constitution still in use today and is also one of the shortest, with 7,591 words including amendments. The Constitution is based on several core principles, including federalism, limited government, popular sovereignty, republicanism, and separation of powers. The preamble to the Constitution, though not law, introduces the document's purpose and outlines the intentions of its framers. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and any law repugnant to it is void.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Checks and balances | Separation of powers |
| Federalism | Limited government |
| Popular sovereignty | |
| Republicanism | |
| Separation of powers | Executive |
| Legislative | |
| Judicial | |
| Power to pardon |
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Checks and balances
The US Constitution is the oldest and one of the shortest written constitutions in effect today. It establishes the fundamental principles of the US government and is considered the 'supreme Law of the Land'.
One of the key principles of the US Constitution is checks and balances. Checks and balances are mechanisms that distribute power throughout a political system, preventing any one institution or individual from exercising total control. They are of particular importance in tripartite governments, such as that of the United States, which separate powers among legislative, executive, and judicial branches.
Checks allow political institutions to limit one another's power by blocking, delaying, or criticising decisions. They prevent the unconstrained exercise of power and ensure that policy is tested and behaviour is supervised, improving the overall quality of decision-making. Checks also ensure that a wide variety of views and interests are represented in the democratic process, including those of the minority. For example, in the US, the legislative branch can reverse decisions of the Supreme Court by initiating constitutional amendments. Similarly, the legislative veto, which was exercised by the US Congress from 1932, allowed Congress to override the authority of the executive branch by making specified acts subject to the disapproval of the majority vote of one or both houses.
Balances ensure that a wide variety of views and interests are represented in the democratic process. This includes structures like federalism, or broader features of democratic functioning such as the existence of multiple political parties. In the US, federalism takes the form of a system of government in which power is divided between the federal government and several states, with the Constitution granting and denying powers to each.
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Federalism
The Founding Fathers established a new national government while preserving a key role for the states in the constitutional system. They viewed federalism as a way of bringing government closer to the American people. Federalism gives state governments substantial power to promote the health, safety, and welfare of their residents. It allows states to shape policies that serve their communities and empowers them to write laws that fit their specific needs.
The Supreme Court has frequently invoked constitutional provisions to determine whether Congress has exceeded its powers and infringed upon state sovereignty. For example, the Supremacy Clause in Article VI establishes federal law as superior to state law, and the Commerce Clause grants Congress the power to regulate intrastate commerce and enforce regulations such as vaccine mandates.
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Separation of powers
The United States Constitution establishes a federal separation of powers, dividing the powers of the federal government between three separate branches of government: the legislative, the executive, and the judiciary. This structure was intended to prevent tyranny by a single branch, promote effective governance, and preserve the liberty of US citizens.
The Legislative Branch, established in Article I of the Constitution, includes Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate). This branch holds the power to create laws, which are then presented to the president for approval. In turn, Congress can restrict the president's actions and terminate appointments through impeachment.
The Executive Branch, established in Article II, includes the President, their cabinet members, and various federal agencies. The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, has the power to make treaties and appointments, and is responsible for ensuring the faithful execution of laws made by Congress.
The Judicial Branch, established in Article III, includes the United States Supreme Court and its lower Federal Courts. This branch interprets the laws and decides on their constitutionality.
Each branch has its own powers and limitations, which act as checks and balances on the others. This separation of powers allows each branch to perform its tasks effectively and independently, while also enabling them to "check" the actions of the other branches, ensuring that no single branch holds all the political power.
The Founding Fathers were influenced by the writings of French political philosopher Montesquieu, who advocated for a separation of powers structure. This doctrine was important to the colonists as they sought to break free from what they viewed as the tyranny of the British monarchy, where they had no say in governance.
While the separation of powers is a fundamental principle in the US Constitution, some US states in the 18th century did not observe a strict separation. For example, in New Jersey, the governor also functioned as a member of the state's highest court and as an officer of the legislature. In contrast, many southern states explicitly required a separation of powers, including Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia.
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Popular sovereignty
The Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution protects the power of the people to choose their government, which is at the heart of popular sovereignty and the foundation of democracy. Recognizing this overlooked portion of the Tenth Amendment could alter the current legal doctrine surrounding voting rights by treating free, fair, and accessible elections as a matter of competing sovereign powers rather than individual voting rights.
The US Constitution is exceptional among written constitutions for its age and brevity. It is the oldest constitution currently in effect and is among the shortest at 7,591 words, including amendments. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, enumerating the nation's basic values and answering fundamental questions about the nation's core principles and who should serve as the final interpreter of the Constitution.
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Republicanism
The concept of republicanism in the US Constitution refers to the core values that citizens in a republic have or ought to have. These values include liberty and inalienable individual rights, recognising the sovereignty of the people as the source of all authority in law, rejecting monarchy, aristocracy, and hereditary political power, virtue and faithfulness in the performance of civic duties, and vilification of corruption. These values are based on those of Ancient Greco-Roman, Renaissance, and English models and ideas.
The US Constitution, through its terms, makes three related assurances to the states: a guarantee of a republican form of government, protection against foreign invasion, and upon request by the state, protection against internal insurrection or rebellion. The Guarantee Clause, as it is known, has been interpreted by the Supreme Court and scholars as guaranteeing the right of the people to choose their own officers for governmental administration and pass their own laws through representative bodies, whose legitimate acts may be considered those of the people themselves. This interpretation aligns with the concept of popular sovereignty, a key principle of republicanism, where the people are the source of all political power.
The Founding Fathers wanted republicanism because they were concerned about the potential power of the singular executive branch of government—the president. They sought to limit this power through checks and balances, such as the power to pardon, which was intended to allow the president to pardon rebels in the nation's early days for the sake of national reconciliation. The concept of republicanism in the US Constitution is also connected to the idea of federalism, where power is divided between the state and federal governments, with the federal government having only the powers granted to it in the Constitution and the states having powers over areas like controlling how elections are run.
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