Constitutional Principles and Democratic Ideals



Constitutional Principles and Democratic Ideals

From the Preamble of the Constitution:

A More Perfect Union: unified country; strong central gov’t, but with states rights.

Justice: fair application of laws, due process.

Domestic Tranquility: Peace in the U.S.; harmony among people and states.

The Common Defense: protection against aggression from other countries.

The General Welfare: well-being of the people; basic needs met; health & prosperity;

security; comfort, happiness.

Liberty: following one’s own free will; freedom of choices, self-determination.

From the Articles of the Constitution:

Popular Sovereignty—the power of the people; government governs only with permission of the people it governs.

Limited Government—government may only do what it has been given power to do. It must follow the law, particularly the constitution.

Separation of Powers—within the federal government, power is distributed between the 3 distinct branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Checks and Balances—each brand of the government is subject to restraints enforced by the other two branches. Each branch can override another and make sure they stay in line.

Judicial Review—Judicial review is the power of the courts to declare unconstitutional, illegal, and void any action that violates a part of the constitution.

Federalism—power is also divided between federal and state or regional governments; 10th amendment: powers reserved to the states.

Representative Gov’t—this is a republic; we elect legislators, councilmen, etc. to carry out our will in decision-making.

From the Amendments:

Individual Rights—several amendments establish human rights, civil rights, right to due process: Freedom of religion, speech (expression), the press, to peaceably assemble, to petition the gov’t. To bear arms (in order to form a militia).

Legal rights---Protection from unreasonable search and seizure, Right to retain life, liberty and property w/out due process of law, Right to a speedy & public trial w/ an impartial jury…; Protection from cruel and unusual punishment.

States’ Rights—Powers not given to the fed. gov’t in the constitution are reserved to the states or to the people.

Voting—president is elected by Electoral votes; women & non-whites adults can vote; no one has to pay a fee to vote; elected officials have limited terms.

Principles not listed in the Constitution, but considered democratic ideals related to other documents or Supreme Court interpretations:

Right to Privacy (9th amendment, 3rd amend.)

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Declaration; 5th amendment)

Separation of Church and State (1st amend., letter of Madison and Jefferson)

The right to immigration (14th amend; election qualifications)

Freedom of Expression (1st amend.)

All [men] are created equal (Declaration; 14th, 15th, 19th amendments)

Presumed innocence until proven guilty (previous English law; right to jury/to remain

silent)

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download