Amending The Constitution: Founding Fathers' Vision

The Founding Fathers of the United States Constitution made it difficult to amend the document, ensuring its longevity. The process of amending the Constitution is outlined in Article V, which states that an amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds majority vote in both houses of Congress or by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of state legislatures. Once proposed, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of state legislatures to become part of the Constitution. The Founding Fathers passed the first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, which were ratified in 1789 and included the Fifth Amendment, guaranteeing several rights such as the right to a grand jury, protection against double jeopardy, and due process of law.

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The Founding Fathers passed the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, which includes the right against double jeopardy

The Founding Fathers of the United States include those who wrote and signed the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution, as well as certain military personnel who fought in the American Revolutionary War, and others who greatly assisted in the nation's formation. The Founding Fathers were not unified on the issue of slavery and continued to accommodate it within the new nation. The first five U.S. presidents are regarded as Founding Fathers for their active participation in the American Revolution: George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison. Other Founding Fathers include Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and Benjamin Franklin.

James Madison, a Founding Father, introduced a list of amendments to the Constitution on June 8, 1789, to win support in both houses of Congress and the states. He focused on rights-related amendments, ignoring suggestions that would have structurally changed the government. The House passed a joint resolution containing 17 amendments based on Madison's proposal. The Senate changed the joint resolution to consist of 12 amendments, and on October 2, 1789, President Washington sent copies of the 12 amendments to the states for approval. By December 15, 1791, three-fourths of the states had ratified 10 of these amendments, now known as the "Bill of Rights." The first ten amendments to the Constitution make up the Bill of Rights, which was strongly influenced by the Virginia Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason, as well as English documents such as the Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights. Madison wrote the amendments to limit government power and protect individual liberties.

The Fifth Amendment is one of the ten amendments that make up the Bill of Rights. It includes the Double Jeopardy Clause, which provides that no person shall be subject to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb for the same offence. The Double Jeopardy Clause applies to both the federal and state governments and generally covers criminal punishment. In certain cases, civil penalties may qualify if they are punitive. The Clause applies in juvenile court proceedings that are formally civil, as in Breed v. Jones, where the Supreme Court decided that double jeopardy applies when an individual is tried as a juvenile and then again as an adult for the same offence.

Article V outlines the procedure for altering the Constitution, including proposing and ratifying amendments

Article V of the United States Constitution outlines the procedure for altering the document, including the proposal and ratification of amendments. The process of amending the Constitution is intentionally difficult and time-consuming. The Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787, including the first 10 amendments, which were adopted in 1791 as the Bill of Rights.

Amendments can be proposed in two ways. The first is by Congress, with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The second method is by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of state legislatures. However, none of the 27 amendments to the Constitution have been proposed by constitutional convention. Once proposed, an amendment must be ratified by three-quarters of state legislatures, or by ratifying conventions in three-quarters of states. This second method has only been used once in American history, for the ratification of the Twenty-First Amendment in 1933.

The Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process, although neither Article V of the Constitution nor 1 U.S.C. 106b describe the process in detail. The Archivist's role is to follow procedures and customs established by the Secretary of State and the Administrator of General Services, who previously performed these duties. Once the Archivist has received the required number of authenticated ratification documents, they draft a formal proclamation certifying that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is published in the Federal Register and U.S. Statutes at Large, serving as official notice to Congress and the nation that the amendment process has been completed.

Article V also makes certain subjects unamendable. For example, no amendment could be made prior to 1808 that would have affected the Constitution's limitations on Congress's power to restrict the slave trade or levy certain taxes on land or slaves. Additionally, no amendment can deprive states, without their consent, of equal suffrage in the Senate.

The amendment process is challenging and time-consuming, requiring a two-thirds majority vote in Congress

The process of amending the US Constitution is deliberately challenging and time-consuming. The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution "to endure for ages to come", and so the framers made it difficult to amend. The Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787, including the first 10 amendments, which were ratified in 1789 and adopted two years later as the Bill of Rights.

Amendments may be proposed by Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. This is a challenging threshold to meet, requiring broad bipartisan support. The President does not have a constitutional role in the amendment process, and so the joint resolution does not go to the White House for signature or approval. Instead, the original document is forwarded directly to the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) Office of the Federal Register (OFR) for processing and publication.

The OFR adds legislative history notes to the joint resolution and publishes it in slip law format. It also assembles an information package for the states, which includes formal "red-line" copies of the joint resolution and copies in slip law format.

Once a proposed amendment has been passed by two-thirds of both houses of Congress, it must then be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states (38 out of 50 states). This is another challenging and time-consuming step in the process, requiring broad support across a significant majority of states. When a state ratifies a proposed amendment, it sends the Archivist of the United States an original or certified copy of the state action, which is immediately conveyed to the Director of the Federal Register. The OFR examines ratification documents for facial legal sufficiency and an authenticating signature. If the documents are in good order, the Director acknowledges receipt and maintains custody of them.

The OFR retains these documents until an amendment is adopted or fails, and then transfers the records to the National Archives for preservation. A proposed amendment becomes part of the Constitution as soon as it is ratified by three-fourths of the states. The OFR then drafts a formal proclamation for the Archivist to certify that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is published in the Federal Register and U.S. Statutes at Large and serves as official notice that the amendment process has been completed.

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The Archivist of the United States administers the ratification process, which includes examining and certifying amendments

The Archivist of the United States is responsible for administering the ratification process of amendments to the Constitution. The Archivist, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), carries out this duty under the provisions of 1 U.S.C. 106b. While the Archivist has delegated many of the ministerial duties to the Director of the Federal Register, they still follow the procedures and customs established by the Secretary of State and the Administrator of General Services, who previously performed these duties until NARA became an independent agency in 1985.

The ratification process begins when a State ratifies a proposed amendment and sends the Archivist an original or certified copy of the State action. The Archivist then conveys this to the Director of the Federal Register for examination. The Director examines the ratification documents for facial legal sufficiency and an authenticating signature. If the documents are in order, the Director acknowledges receipt and maintains custody of them.

Once the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) verifies that it has received the required number of authenticated ratification documents, it drafts a formal proclamation for the Archivist to certify that the amendment is valid and has become part of the Constitution. This certification is published in the Federal Register and U.S. Statutes at Large, serving as official notice to Congress and the Nation that the amendment process is complete.

The Archivist's role in the ratification process is primarily administrative, ensuring that the constitutional amendment process is carried out in accordance with the law. The Archivist does not make any substantive determinations regarding the validity of State ratification actions. However, their certification of the facial legal sufficiency of ratification documents is considered final and conclusive.

The Constitution has been amended 27 times since 1787, including the Bill of Rights, with each amendment impacting all Americans

The United States Constitution has been amended 27 times since 1787, with the Bill of Rights being the first 10 amendments, ratified in 1791. The authority to amend the Constitution is derived from Article V of the Constitution, which outlines the proposal and ratification process.

The process of amending the Constitution is complex and time-consuming. A proposed amendment must be passed by a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, or by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the state legislatures. To date, all 27 amendments have been proposed by Congress and none by a constitutional convention. Once proposed, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states (38 out of 50 states) to become part of the Constitution.

The first ten amendments, collectively known as the Bill of Rights, were adopted and ratified simultaneously in 1791. These amendments include fundamental rights such as freedom of speech, religion, and assembly, as well as protections against unreasonable searches and seizures, and the right to bear arms.

Since then, several significant amendments have been made, including the Reconstruction Amendments (the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments) which abolished slavery, guaranteed equal protection under the law, and granted citizenship and voting rights to African-American men, respectively. Other notable amendments include the 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote, and the 26th amendment, which lowered the minimum voting age from 21 to 18.

Each amendment to the Constitution has had a significant impact on the rights and freedoms of all Americans, and the process of amending the Constitution ensures that any changes reflect the values and needs of the nation.

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