Constitution

Study Notes/Review

“Government” according to the Declaration

Government’s Purpose: To secure rights Government’s Power: Obtained by the

people Government’s Actions: If government acts

like a tyrant, people have right to abolish and create a new one

Self-evident Truths

We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Revolutionary War

The Revolutionary War was fought against Great Britain

Father of the Declaration

The father of the Declaration of Independence is Thomas Jefferson

Declaration’s Purpose is to declare war & independence

Father of the Constitution

The father of the Constitution is James Madison

Original Colonies

There were 13 original colonies

First U.S. President

The first President of the United States was George Washington

1789- George Washington becomes President

Articles of Confederation

The Continental Congress wrote the first Constitution called the Articles of Confederation

Preamble

A preamble is an introductory and explanatory statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy.

The Preamble of the U.S. Constitution lists reasons for writing the Constitution.

It has 6 goals.

Preamble Goals

Form a more perfect Union Establish Justice Insure domestic Tranquility Provide for the common defense Promote the general Welfare Secure the Blessings of Liberty to

ourselves and our Posterity

Congress

The HOUSE of REPRESENTATIVES can be found in Article I, Section II

The SENATE can be found in Article I, Section III

A 2/3 vote is required for Congress to override a law the President has vetoed.

Legislative Branch

Major Duty = Makes Laws 2 Houses = Congress Congress = House + Senate

House Senate + = Congress (Major Body)

Senate

The Senate has 100 members (There are 2 Senators from every state & 50 states!)

A Senator serves a 6 year term A Senator must be 30 years of age, a resident

of the state, a citizen for 9 years A Senator may serve as many as elected terms 1/3 of the Senators are elected every two years

(2+2+2=6) 1/3+1/3+1/3=100 Senators The presiding officer of the Senate is the Vice-

President

Senators per State

Each state has 2 Senators

Are Senators from the House or Senate?

Who are Illinois Senators?

How many Senators does California have?

House of Representatives

The House has 435 members (Add #’s from the Electoral College)

A Representative serves a 2 year term Must be 25 years of age, a resident of the

district, a citizen for 7 years A Representative may serve as many as

elected terms Each state must have at least 1 Rep. The House starts impeachment proceedings

and the official is tried by the Senate

Representatives per State

Each state has a certain number of Representatives per state based on that state’s population

Are Representatives from the House or Senate?

If Illinois has 21 electoral votes, how many representatives does IL have?

How many representatives does California (55) have?

Legislative Branch

House favors more populated states Senate favors less populated states

***In the Articles of Confederation large and small states had equal power, so when the

Constitution was created they wanted small and large states to be represented

individually by both houses***

Legislative Branch

Every 2 years we have a new Congress

The present number of Congress is __113_____

The Elastic Clause has been used by Congress in writing laws about things not directly mentioned in the Constitution

Legislative Branch

In which house of Congress do Revenue bills start???

Revenue Bills start in the HOUSE!

Legislative Branch

Congress’ power can be roughly divided into three groups.

MONEY DEFENSE MISCELLANEOUS

Government Powers

Elastic ClauseThis means Congress has the power to make all laws necessary to carry out the spirit of the ConstitutionThese powers are called “implied,” they are not written in the constitutionExample: The power to regulate TV stations or aviation (didn’t exist when the constitution was written!)

Speaker of the House

The House has Speaker for chief officer

John Boehner

Executive Branch

The Executive Branch includes The President, Vice President

and The Cabinet.

Ok, so now your President…

You are now working for the Executive Branch of gov’t.

The major duty of the Executive Branch is to enforce laws. (I always knew you were bossy)

Article II (L1E2J3)

5 Duties of President

Legislation Appointment Judicial Functions Domestic and Military Administration Foreign Affairs Fuzzy Dogs Like Apple Juice

President/Vice President Criteria

35 Years Old Resident for 14 yrs, in U.S. Natural born citizen President limited to 2 terms Each term is 4 years

President/Vice President Criteria

The President is limited to 2 terms, but it “Does Not Say” in the Constitution how many terms for the Vice President.

Each term is 4 years

This information can be found in Article II (L1E2J3)

Cabinet Members/Departments

The Cabinet members are your “peeps” to help you accomplish all of your goals…

You have 15 Cabinet members to help you run the 15 departments in the Executive Branch.

This is like how the school departments (Sci, SS, Math, LA, etc.) help the Principal & Asst. Principals run the school!

President of the United States

Barack Obama

Vice-President of the United States

Joe Biden

Ok, it was fun being President…

But now you die, who will take your place? And in what order?

1. Vice-President2. Speaker of the House3. President Pro-Tempore of the Senate4. Secretary of State

What is the Electoral College?

The Electoral College consists elected representatives (electors) who formally elect the President and Vice President of the United States.

Rather than directly voting for the President and Vice President, United States citizens vote for electors.

Electoral College by State

Each State has a certain number of electoral votes

Electoral votes for each state are determined by the number of Representatives + the number of senators

Total Electoral Votes

435+100+3=_____ There are 538 Electoral Votes Why? 435= Representatives (population) 100= Senators (2 per state) 3=? Which Amendment allows 3 votes?

Running for President?

Overall, a state’s population determines how many electoral votes a state receives.

Whichever presidential candidate gets the most popular votes in a state, wins all of the electoral votes of that state.

If no one receives an absolute majority of electoral votes for president, the House of Representatives will cast the deciding vote.

How many votes do you need to win?

You need…

538 Electoral votes 270 to win! (If you are running

against another candidate) 538 divided by 2 is 269) 270 will win the election!

Cabinet Departments

Your “peeps” do a lot of work for you so they have many departments! Choose 5 to remember…

State, Defense, Interior, Agriculture, LaborCommerce, Treasury, Health and Human

Services, Education, Housing and Urban Development,Transportation, Energy, Veteran’s Affairs, Homeland Security, Justice

Judicial Branch

The judicial branch is found in what article of the Constitution?

ARTICLE 3 What is the major duty of the judicial

branch INTERPRET LAWS What is the age, residency, and citizenship

requirements for federal judges ? DOES NOT SAY!

Judicial Branch

The PRESIDENT appoints a Supreme Court Justice and the SENATE approves the appointment

There are 9 Supreme Court Judges Supreme Court judges may be

IMPEACHED for bad behavior The three Federal Courts are

SUPREME, APPEALS, and DISTRICT

Constitutional Amendments

Changes made to the original Constitution

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery

                                      

1st Amendment

Guarantees freedom of assembly and petition

                                      

3rd Amendment

Limits the quartering of soldiers

                                      

6th Amendment

Gives the accused the right to be represented by a lawyer

                                      

2nd Amendment

Provides for the right to bear arms

22nd Amendment

This amendment changed the number of times a President can be elected

                        

25th Amendment

This amendment states the order of succession of the President should he die

                                                

4th Amendment

People are protected against unreasonable searches

5th Amendment

Provides for your right to “not testify against yourself”

                                      

8th Amendment

People argue about the Constitutionality of Capital Punishment because of this amendment’s clause concerning “cruel and unusual punishment”.

                                      

14th Amendment

Guarantees citizenship, due process and equal protection under the law

                                      

15th Amendment

Guarantees former slaves voting rights

                                      

16th Amendment

Gives the federal government power to collect income tax

18th Amendment

Made alcohol illegal to sell and transport

7th Amendment

Trial by jury cases

9th Amendment

This amendment states that the basic rights of the people cannot be denied, even those not named in the Constitution

                                                

10th Amendment

Power of states and people

18th Amendment

The only amendment to be repealed was the 18th amendment (Prohibition).

                                      

Bill of Rights

The part of the Constitution that gives the most protection to the individual citizens

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments of the Constitution

The Bill of Rights was added in 1791, 3 years after the Constitution was ratified

The 23rd Amendment…

Voting in the District of Columbia (1961)

Prior to the passage of the amendment, residents of Washington, D.C. were unable to vote for President or Vice President as the District is not a U.S. state.

23rd Amendment

Gave people in the District of Columbia the right to vote for President

“DC 23”

                                      

19th Amendment

Gave women the right to vote

26th Amendment

Gave 18 year olds the right to vote

12th Amendment

If no candidate receives an absolute majority of electoral votes for President the House of Rep. will cast the deciding vote.

Governor of Illinois

Bruce

Rauner

Illinois State Senator

Mark Kirk

(Republican)

Illinois State Senator

Dick

Durbin(Democrat)

Government Powers

Enumerated Powers Enumerated /expressed powers are specifically listed (expressed, written) in the Constitution.Example: The power to declare war

Government Powers

The powers given to the Federal Government are called:

Delegated

Government Powers

The powers given to the State Government are called:

Reserved powers/State powers Ex: Establish schools Provide for state militia Regulate labor, industry, and business within the state

Reserved

Federalists

Believed in a strong federal government

Anti-Federalists

Preferred to protect the rights and the powers of the individual states

Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists

2/3The vote that is required for

Congress to override a law that the President has

vetoed.

Additional Facts

The Constitution has a Preamble 7 Original Articles And 27 Amendments Enumerated powers are the powers

specifically listed in the Constitution.

Branches of Government

L = Legislative

Makes Laws = Article 1 E = Executive

Enforces Laws = Article 2 J = Judicial

Interprets Laws = Article 3

Constitution

Constitution- becomes the law of the land and went into effect in 1788

Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights went into effect in 1791

The part of the Constitution that gives the most protection to the individual citizens

Amending the Constitution

Article 5

of the Constitution tells how to amend the Constitution

Good Luck!

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