US Constitution

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General Information

  • it was created by 74 framers, from 12 colonies, following the declaration of independence, 1776 
  • created at the 'federal convention in Philadelphia, 1786
  • it was a reaction to an 'Oligarchic' system in Europe, led to desire to limit the power of government 
  • the colonies had considerable experience of politics from before and after the delcaration of Indipendence 
  • distinctive political systems had started to develop along with written constitutions, this influenced the structure of the US Constitution
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Structure

  • it is written and codified- it is written on one single document
  • being codified means it is very difficut to change, requires a 2/3 majority in the Senate and Reps, Presidential approval and 3/4 approval of state legislatures
  • it's a federal constitution- power is spread out between national governments and smaller ones, powers are specified within the Constitution
  • there are 7 articles in the US Constitution- one each for the three branches of Government, one on how the states relate to each other and to the federal government, one describing the amendement process, one establishing the constitution as the Supreme law of the land, and one describing how it would be ratified and take effect
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Article 1

Congress/Legislative power

  • establishes a bicameral structure
  • each state has a number of reps based on population, re-election every 2 years
  • Senate has 2 per state, 1.3 replaced every 2 years
  • states decide how to choose their reps/senators
  • holds the power to draft and pass legislation
  • borrow money for nation
  • declare war and raise a military
  • has the power to check and balance the other two federal branches- Executive and Judiciary
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Article 2

Executive Branch

  • President/VP four year term

Powers include:

  • making treaties with other nations
  • appointing federal judges, department heads and ambassadors
  • determining how to best run the country and run military operations
  • Commander in Chief
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Article 3

The Judiciary

  • outlines the powers of the federal court systems
  • determins that the Court of last resort is the Supreme court and the US Congress has the power to determine the size and scope of those below it 
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Article 4

The States

  • New states can be admitted by Congress

This article defines the relationship between states and federal government 

  • assures a Republican form of Government in each state
  • protects the nation and the people from Foreign/domestic violence 
  • determines how new states can join the union
  • all the states are equal to each other and should respect each others laws and judicial decisions made by other states
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Article 5

Amendment

  • can be proposed by 2/3 vote in both House of Congress or 2/3 of the state legislatures request a Convention to propose an amendment
  • in either case ratification required by 3/4 of state legislatures
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Article 6

US Constitution is supreme law of the land

  • all states have to adhere to it
  • all officials swear an oath to adhere to it, state and federal 
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Article 7

Ratification

  • detials all the people who signed the Constitution, representing the original 13 states
  • ratification of Constitution required support of 9 states 
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