The Constitution

Chapter 2

Here’s What We’ll Cover…

•Structure of the Constitution•Main principles of government• Judicial Review (Marbury Case)•Amending the Constitution•You get to change the Constitution!

Outline the Constitution

To get started…

Structure of the Constitution• Preamble• Articles• 1: Congress• 2: Executive• 3: Judicial• 4: Relationship among

the states (same rights in each state)• 5: Supremacy clause

• Amendments

Basic Constitutional Principles• Social Contract & Popular Sovereignty• Limited Government• Representative Government• Written Constitution• Separation of Powers• Checks & Balances• Federalism• Judicial Review

Separation of Powers & Checks & Balances• Pessimism of writers: men

are NOT angels• These are RESTRAINTS of

power• Best check: elections• Separation prevents each

branches from getting TOO powerful• Disperse the power!• What if one branch

ENCROACHES on the other?• A: Checks and balances!• Each branch has SOME

authority over the others

That’s the good, what’s the bad?

•Political parties (can unify, can divide)•Partisanship•Divided Government (Congress usually watches the President very carefully)

Judicial Review• We give this special consideration because it gives the

Judicial Branch the FINAL WORD on the Constitution• Judges = Guardians of the Constitution (THEY give it

meaning)—can they be wrong?• Laws passed by Congress or state laws that involve the US

Constitution are subject to REVIEW by the Supreme Court (must bring a case)

The Amendment Process

109th Congress Proposed Amendments

• To ensure reproductive rights of women

• To force the Congress and President to agree to a balanced budget, with overspending allowed only in the case of a three-fifths vote of Congress

• To ensure that all children who are citizens have a right to a "free and adequate education"

• To specifically permit prayer at school meetings and ceremonies

• To allow non-natural born citizens to become President if they have been a citizen for 20 years

• To specifically allow Congress to regulate the amount of personal funds a candidate to public office can expend in a campaign

More Proposed Amendments• The "Every Vote Counts" Amendment -

providing for direct election of the President and Vice President, abolishing the Electoral College• To clarify eminent domain, specifically that no

takings can be transferred to a private person except for transportation projects• To allow the President to reduce any

Congressional appropriation, or to disapprove of same (akin to a line-item veto)