Omar Bennett
The United States Constitution is a document that outlines the country's national government and its structure, consisting of legislative, executive, and judicial branches, each with its own powers and responsibilities. It establishes a system of checks and balances to prevent tyranny and protect individual liberties. The Constitution also divides power between the federal government and state governments, ensuring that authority is distributed across different levels. The document is designed to be difficult to amend, requiring a two-thirds majority in Congress and ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures. This anti-majoritarian feature safeguards against the granting of excessive powers to the government and protects the rights of minorities. The Constitution's longevity and influence are evident in its ability to endure and remain effective despite societal changes, shaping American politics and policies over the years.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Creating a national government | Consisting of a legislative, an executive, and a judicial branch |
| With a system of checks and balances among the three branches | |
| Dividing power between the federal government and the states | |
| Protecting individual liberties of citizens | |
| Providing a system of limited government | |
| Protecting personal freedoms and civil rights | |
| Making amendments difficult | To prevent a majority from granting tyrannical powers to the government |
| To prevent a majority from taking away the rights of minorities | |
| To prevent those in office from extending their terms in office | |
| Providing judicial review | To examine federal legislation, federal executive, and state branches of government |
| To decide their constitutionality and strike them down if found unconstitutional | |
| To explain the meaning of the Constitution as it applies to particular cases |
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What You'll Learn
Establish a system of checks and balances
The US Constitution divides the government into three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judiciary. The purpose of this separation of powers is to ensure that no one branch becomes dominant and accumulates too much power. This system of checks and balances is designed to guard against tyranny and corruption.
Each branch has specific powers and responsibilities, and they work together to create a balance. For instance, the legislative branch makes laws, but the executive branch, led by the President, can veto those laws. Similarly, the legislative branch can make laws, but the judiciary can declare them unconstitutional. The judiciary interprets and applies the law, but it cannot overturn primary legislation, and parliament can always change the law if it disagrees with the interpretation.
Checks and balances also operate within parliament itself, through a bicameral system. The upper house, or Senate, acts as a revising chamber with limited veto powers, providing a check on the executive and the lower house.
The people of the United States also have powers given to them by the Constitution, allowing them to have their own checks and balances on the Federal government. They can bar a constitutional amendment if 3/4 of the states refuse to ratify it. They can also vote for their representatives and senators, indirectly influencing the judicial branch.
Overall, the system of checks and balances is designed to improve the quality of decision-making, ensure minority perspectives are represented, and prevent the unconstrained exercise of power by any one branch of government.
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Protect individual liberties
The US Constitution was written in 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by delegates from 12 or 13 states, to replace the Articles of Confederation with a new form of government. The first draft set up a system of checks and balances that included a strong executive branch, a representative legislature, and a federal judiciary. However, it was criticised for its vagueness and lack of specific protection against tyranny. Critics argued that it did not include a bill of rights and failed to protect individual liberties and freedoms.
The Bill of Rights, which comprises the first ten amendments to the US Constitution, was added to address these concerns and guarantee essential freedoms while limiting government power. James Madison, often called the Father of the Constitution, drafted the amendments and introduced them to Congress in 1789. He believed that without explicit protections, the newly formed federal government could become as oppressive as the monarchy the colonies had fought to escape.
The Bill of Rights was strongly influenced by the Virginia Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason, as well as English documents such as the Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, the English Bill of Rights, and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties. It sets out to protect civil liberties by outlining specific prohibitions on governmental authority. For example, the First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech and religion, while the Fourth Amendment protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. The Sixth Amendment provides additional protections for people accused of crimes, such as the right to a speedy and public trial, and the right to be represented by a lawyer.
The Bill of Rights has been transformed from a "parchment barrier" to a protective wall that shields individuals' unalienable rights from government overreach. It plays a pivotal role in defending civil liberties, particularly when facing unlawful arrests, excessive force, or other abuses of power by law enforcement. In many cases, state law offers even greater protections for individual civil liberties than federal law.
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Divide power between federal and state governments
The United States Constitution divides power between the federal government and the states. The Constitution's framework was a reaction to the tyranny of British rule, and the tyranny of a single monarch. The Constitution's authors were wary of centralized power and loyal to their states, so they created a powerful central government.
The Constitution divides the government into three branches: the executive, legislative, and judicial. The executive power is invested in the President, the legislative power is given to Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate), and the judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court and other federal courts created by Congress.
The Constitution provides a system of checks and balances designed to prevent the tyranny of any one branch. Most important actions require the participation of more than one branch of government. For example, Congress passes laws, but the President can veto them. The executive branch prosecutes persons for criminal violations, but they must be tried by the courts. The President appoints federal judges, but their appointment must be confirmed by the Senate.
The Constitution also establishes a federal system of national law, with considerable effort going into developing a spirit of comity between the federal government and the states. Federal court jurisdiction is rare when a state legislature enacts something under federal jurisdiction. The Supreme Court will decide Constitutional issues of state law only on a case-by-case basis and only by strict Constitutional necessity, independent of state legislators' motives, policy outcomes, or national wisdom.
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Provide a framework for judicial review
The United States Constitution outlines a national government consisting of a legislative, an executive, and a judicial branch, with a system of checks and balances among the three branches. The judicial branch is vested in the federal courts, which include the Supreme Court and other federal courts created by Congress.
Judicial review is the power of the Court to examine federal legislation, federal executive, and all state branches of government, to decide their constitutionality and strike them down if found unconstitutional. While no part of the Constitution expressly authorises judicial review, the courts' power to exercise judicial review over the actions of Congress or the executive branch has been established through precedent.
The Supreme Court's power of judicial review has been preserved over the years, with the Court developing a system of doctrine and practice that self-limits this power. The Court exercises considerable control over its business by choosing which cases to consider.
The Constitution provides a framework for judicial review by outlining the structure and powers of the judicial branch, including the authority to interpret and apply the law to specific cases. This includes the power to punish, sentence, and direct future action to resolve conflicts.
The process of amending the Constitution is deliberately difficult, requiring a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress and ratification by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states. This makes the Constitution an anti-majoritarian document, preventing a majority from easily granting or taking away rights or altering the structure of the government.
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Outline the US judicial system
The US judicial system is a federal court system with a three-tiered structure. The US Constitution, which came into force in 1789, established the Supreme Court and authorized Congress to pass laws creating a system of lower federal courts. The Judiciary Act of 1789 created the first inferior federal courts.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the US, with the power to hear appeals from lower courts. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in cases involving ambassadors, public ministers, and consuls, and those in which a state is a party. In all other cases, the Supreme Court has appellate jurisdiction. The Supreme Court can choose which cases to hear and generally operates under discretionary review.
Below the Supreme Court are 13 appellate courts, known as the US Courts of Appeals. These courts hear appeals from the lower courts and determine whether the law was applied correctly in the trial court or federal administrative agency.
The lowest level of the federal court system is made up of 94 district or trial courts, known as the US District Courts. These courts are responsible for resolving disputes by determining the facts and applying the law to those facts.
The US judicial system is a "common law" system, which means it relies heavily on court precedent in formal adjudications. Judicial determinations in earlier court cases are critical to the court's resolution of a matter, even when a statute is at issue. This is known as "case law" or "judge-made law".
The federal judiciary also includes specialized tribunals established by Congress within the executive branch to assist the president in executing their powers. Judges in these tribunals are referred to as administrative law judges (ALJs) and are considered part of the executive branch, although they exercise quasi-judicial powers.
The US Marshals Service, an executive branch agency, is responsible for providing protection for the federal judiciary and transporting federal prisoners. The judiciary has been criticized for its low workplace protections and lack of transparency regarding gifts and potential conflicts of interest for judges.
Jefferson's Support for Ratifying the Constitution
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