Chapter 2 Am Nat Gov

8/4/2019 Chapter 2 Am Nat Gov

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Chapter 2

The Constitutional

Framework

PSC 201 American National

Government


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The Declaration of Independence

When in the Course of human events, it becomes

necessary for one people to dissolve the politicalbands which have connected them with another,and to assume among the powers of the earth, theseparate and equal station to which the Laws ofNature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decentrespect to the opinions of mankind requires that

they should declare the causes which impel themto the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that allmen are created equal, that they are endowed bytheir Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that

among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit ofHappiness.--That to secure these rights,Governments are instituted among Men, derivingtheir just powers from the consent of the governed,--That whenever any Form of Governmentbecomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right

of the People to alter or to abolish it, and toinstitute new Government, laying its foundation onsuch principles and organizing its powers in suchform, as to them shall seem most likely to effecttheir Safety and Happiness.

(http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/declaration_transcript.html )
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The Constitution of the

United States of America

We the People of the United States, inOrder to form a more perfect Union,establish Justice, insure domestic

Tranquility, provide for the commondefence, promote the general Welfare,and secure the Blessings of Liberty toourselves and our Posterity, do ordain

and establish this Constitution for theUnited States of America.

(http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-

experience/charters/constitution.html )
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Important history

Declaration of Independence

Inspiration for Constitution and D of I

Inspired by John Locke

Magna Carta

Common law

Colonial legislatures


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The Articles of Confederation

No executive branch existed.

Congress was a unicameral body with thepower to:

establish executive departments, declare war,conduct foreign policy

ask for revenues, borrow and coin money, andequip and staff a navy

each state only had one vote, and all actionsrequired the consent of nine states

No national system of courts existed.

Major weaknesses: no power to levytaxes, regulate commerce, or enforce itslimited powers.


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Drafting the Constitution

Annapolis 1786

Philadelphia 1787

Hot

Conspiratorial

Civil disobedience

Major compromises

Great Compromise

3/5ths Compromise


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The Constitutional

Framework

The national government.

A government divided between threebranches: legislative, executive, and

judicial.

This created the principles of separationof powers and checks and balances.

Each of the three branches are constitutionallyequal and independent of each other whilepreventing any single branch from becoming toopowerful.

Separation of powers is misleading: Althoughseparated, their powers and functions overlap.

Although Congress makes laws, the presidentsubmits legislation as well and vetoes bills passed byCongress.

Congress responds to the executive process throughthe creation of federal agencies and advises on andconsents to executive appointments.

Congress also appropriates money to run the federalgovernment and may delve deeply into the operationsof executive agencies.


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The Constitutional

Framework - Evolving

Through judicial review, the courtsdecide whether laws passed areconstitutional.

The notion of three separate-but-equal

branches has eroded in the 20thcentury.

Power has been concentrated in thehands of the president.

Congress's power to declare war hasdiminished since World War II.

Congressional frustration over thepresident's ability to wage war withoutcongressional approval led to the

passage of the War Powers Resolution in1973.


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The men who wrote it

The men who wrote theConstitution and theDeclaration ofIndependence haveeverything to lose by doingso.

True?

False?


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What it Says

The legislative branch:

Article I vests all legislative powers in aCongress.

Qualifications and methods of electing

House and Senate members. Authorizes the House to impeach the

president and the Senate to try the case.

Empowers the vice president to presideover the Senate.

Provides that all tax legislation mustoriginate in the House.

Says that the president may sign or vetolegislation, and both houses of Congress

override.


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What it Says

Lists the powers of Congress (Article 1Section 8).

Section 9 also protects citizens' rights tohabeas corpus, saying a person is

protected from illegal imprisonment. Article 1 Section 9 also forbids Congress

from passing bills of attainder (punitivelegislation aimed at a specific person),and ex post facto laws (punishing a

person for an act that was not a crimewhen it was committed).


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What it Says

Executive branch (Article II) includes:

Executive power is vested in thepresident.

Electoral college, not direct popular vote,

elects a president, with the number ofelectors for each state equal to the state'snumber of representatives and senators.

Electoral college is later modified by theTwelfth Amendment, requiring that

electors vote separately for president andvice president.

President is commander of armed forces.


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What it Says

President makes treaties with the adviceand consent of the two-thirds of a quorumof the Senate.

President appoints ambassadors, high

officials, and judges with Senate adviceand consent.

President may call Congress into specialsession.


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What it Says

The judiciary (Article III):

Judicial power is vested in a supremecourt and other inferior courts thatCongress may establish.

This article calls for trial by jury. Claim of judicial review stems from "all

cases" phrasing in this article and the"supremacy clause" of the Constitution(which is not in this article).


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What it Says

Provisions of remaining articles:

Article IV governs relations between thestates and the federal government.

Article V covers ways to propose and

ratify amendments. Article VI includes the "supremacy

clause," saying that the Constitution,laws, and treaties of the United States"shall be the supreme Law of the Land."

Article VII says the Constitution will beconsidered ratified when ratified byconventions in nine states.


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The Amendment Process

Two methods for proposal wereprovided for.

Approval by two-thirds of each house ofCongress.

National convention called by Congressat the request of the legislatures in two-thirds of the states.

No amendment has ever been proposedby the convention method.

Proposals must be ratified by one ofthese methods:

Approval by the legislatures in three-fourths of the states.

Special ratifying conventions in three-fourths of the states.


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The Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights (first 10 amendmentsproviding protection from federalpower).

The provisions of the first four are:

(First) Freedom of religion, speech, press,assembly, and petition.

(Second) The right to bear arms.

(Third) Protection against soldiers quartered inhomes.

(Fourth) Protection from unreasonable search andseizure.

The Fifth provides that no person shall bea witness against himself or stand trialtwice for the same crime.

The Sixth calls for a speedy trial and alawyer in criminal cases.


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The Bill of Rights

The Seventh provides for a jury trial, evenin civil cases.

The Eighth bars excessive bail or fines, orcruel and unusual punishment.

The Ninth Amendment provides theenumeration of certain rights but shall notdeny other rights retained by the people.

The Tenth Amendment reserves to thestates, or to the people, powers not

delegated to the federal government.

These ten were designed to protectAmericans against the power of thefederal government. The Constitutiondoes not require state governments toalso abide by the Bill of Rights.


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The Later Amendments

The Eleventh Amendment (1795)protects the states from being sued byprivate citizens or foreigners.

The Twelfth Amendment (1804)

provided that electors must castseparate ballots for president and vicepresident.

Three amendments resulted from the

Civil War: The Thirteenth (1865) forbids slavery and

outlaws involuntary servitude.

The Fourteenth (1868) makes former

slaves citizens. The Fifteenth (1870) bars federal and

state governments from denying peoplethe right to vote.


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The Sixteenth (1913) allowedCongress to create a tax on individualincomes.

The Seventeenth (1913) provides for

direct election of senators by voters,rather than by state legislatures.

The Eighteenth (1919) establishedProhibition by outlawing the

manufacturing, transport, and sale ofalcoholic beverages.

The Nineteenth (1920) guaranteedwomen the right to vote.


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The Twentieth (or "lame duck")Amendment (1933) sets the terms ofthe president and vice president beginon January 20 and the terms of the

new Congress on January 3. The Twenty-first (1933) repealed

Prohibition and the EighteenthAmendment.

The Twenty-second (1951) limitspresidents to two terms plus two yearsof an unexpired term of a predecessor,for a total of ten years.

The Twenty-third (1961) gives citizensof the District of Columbia the right tovote in presidential elections.


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The Twenty-fourth (1964) abolishedthe poll tax as a prerequisite for votingin federal primaries and stateprimaries.

The Twenty-fifth (1967) defines thecircumstances in which a vicepresident may take over the leadershipof the country in case of presidential

disability. The Twenty-sixth (1971) gives persons

18 years old and older the right to votein all elections.

The Twenty-seventh (1992) prohibitsCongress from voting itself a pay raise.


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Other constitutional amendments havebeen suggested:

The House Republicans proposed anamendment that would balance the

federal budget. However, it failed in theRepublican-controlled Senate.

Congress also failed to pass anamendment to limit the terms of itsmembers to twelve years.

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) wasproposed in 1972 and sent to the statesfor approval. At the height of its popularity,it got the approval of 35 states-three short

of what was required. The approval termwas extended by Congress to ten years,but the amendment failed.


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In 1983 an effort to repropose the ERAfailed.

Other proposed amendments have beenoffered to vacate Roe v. Wade, to allow

prayer in public schools, and to institute aline item veto for the president.

In 1996, Congress legislated a line itemveto for the president. This decision,signed by President Clinton, may not

pass constitutional muster since it mightbe seen as violating the Constitution.

Chapter 2 Am Nat Gov

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