CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

7 Articles – Set up the Government, First 10 Amendments = Bill of Rights

-----------------------

Article 1 – Legislative Branch – They MAKE the laws (CONGRESS)

• Powers include: declaring war, coining money, collecting taxes, all laws needed to carry out their job.

Two houses – Bicameral -

1. House of Representatives (435 members) – based on population – 2 year terms

• Qualifications – 25 years old, citizen for 7 years, must live in state that elected you.

• Presiding Officer – Speaker of the House

• They start impeachment process

• All Money (revenue) bills start in the House

2. Senate – (100 members) – equal representation for each state (2) – 6 year terms

• Qualifications – 30 years old, citizen for 9 years, must live in the state that elected you.

• Presiding Officer – Vice President of the United States (votes when there is a tie)

Article 3 – Judicial Branch – They INTERPRET the laws (SUPREME COURT)

• Supreme Court is highest court – followed by Federal Courts, then State Courts.

• Trial of all crimes are to be by a jury

• Treason is the only crime defined in the Constitution – making war or helping someone make war or giving aid to the enemy. No person shall be convicted of treason unless there are two eye witnesses to the same act or a confession in open court. Congress will set the punishment.

Article 2 – Executive Branch –ENFORCE the laws (PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES)

• Powers – Most are not specific, but there are a few:

o Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy

o Grant pardons

o Make treaties – but needs 2/3 vote of Senate for approval

o Make appointments (ambassadors, judges etc) approval by the Senate

o Fill vacancies

• TERM – 4 years

• QUALIFICATIONS – 35 years old, natural born US citizen – must have lived in the US for 14 years.

• VOTING FOR PRESIDENT – Popular vote – each state will have as many electoral votes as they have representatives in Congress. Popular vote election held on the 1st Monday in November every 4 years. Electors meet in mid-December at their State Capitals to cast their electoral vote.

• SUCCESSION TO PRESIDENT – If the Presidency becomes vacant, the Vice-President becomes President. If neither the President nor the Vice President is able to serve, the Congress as the right to choose the successor. (The 25th Amendment practically assures that there will always be a Vice President to succeed the President)

BILL OF RIGHTS

The First Ten Amendments

|Amendment I |Guarantees and protects freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. |

|Amendment II |Gives state militias the right to bear arms or keep weapons |

|Amendment III |Says that providing lodging for soldiers in private homes (quartering) is only permissible with the consent |

| |of the owner |

|Amendment IV |Prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures, and requires a warrant if there is probably cause or reason to|

| |believe that a search will produce evidence of a crime. |

|Amendment V |Outlines legal rights of people in criminal proceedings. Before being brought to trial for a felony, a |

| |person must be charged with a specific crime. Persons may not be tried twice for the same crime. A person |

| |can not be forced to give testimony against himself in court. Persons accused of a crime are entitled to |

| |due process – that is, a fair hearing or trial. The government may not seize private property for public |

| |use without paying the owner a fair market price. |

|Amendment VI |Protects the rights of people in criminal cases and guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial. The |

| |accused must be told the charges against him and must be allowed to have a lawyer. |

|Amendment VII |Preserves the right of trial by jury in civil cases or cases involving parties contesting private matters. |

|Amendment VIII |Forbids unreasonably high bail to be set by courts. Also, punishment may not be cruel or unusual (such as |

| |torture). |

|Amendment IX |Provides that the people retain certain rights, even though the Constitution does not specifically list them|

|Amendment X |Says that powers not given to the federal government belong to the states. This amendment limits the power |

| |of the federal government. |

Civil War Amendments:

13th – Abolished slavery (1865)

14th – Defines citizenship as all persons born or naturalized in the US (1868) – Slaves get official citizenship

15th – Declares that the right to vote cannot be denied because of race (1870) – Slaves (now citizens) have the right to vote.

Article 7 – Ratification of the Constitution

• 9 of the 13 states had to approve or ratify the Constitution in order for it to become our government and the law.

•

Article 6 – Supremacy of the National Law

• If there is a conflict between a state law and a national law, the national law will be enforced

•

Article 5 – Amending the Constitution

• 2/3 of Congress or 2/3 of States are needed to approve and to ratify the amendment

•

Article 4 – State and Federal Government

• Sets the principles of the federal system

• Tells how new States can be admitted to the Union

•

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

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

Google Online Preview   Download