Written in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, and later ratified by the thirteen original states in 1788, the Constitution establishes the relationship between the federal (national) government and state governments. It establishes our republican form of government with an elected Executive (President), a bicameral congress (consisting of two legislative branches, a House of Representatives and a Senate), and a judicial system headed by a Supreme Court. The Framers' of the Constitution were influenced in their work by the ancient Athenians, the thinkers of the Enlightenment; Locke and Montesquieu. As well as important political documents such as the Mayflower Compact, England's Magna Carta and Bill of Rights, to name a few. The purpose of the Constitution is written in a one sentence introduction known as the Preamble; it explains that the document proposes to establish a more perfect government, complete with justice, tranquility, and liberty for all men. Based upon the influences mentioned earlier, the Framers' wanted to create a system that clearly defined and limited the powers and scope of the federal government and state governments in relation to the people they governed. Believing that a large, all powerful central government would be a danger to this republican form of government the Framers' came up with two very important features; the separation of powers and checks and balances. The separation of powers is the division of government into independent groups, preventing any one group from having too much power. In this system, the separate groups check, or monitor the each other, having the effect of keeping an even balance of power; this is called checks and balances. Another important featur... ... middle of paper ... ...immense financial burden on the states, and for those reasons the healthcare bill would never have been agreed to by any senator chosen by state officials. Senators today pass out these federal goodies because they know that those same special interests that benefit from these social justice programs will be there for them on election day with lots of campaign cash. In the end, we are the ones, along with our children who are left with this debt for our governments insatiable appetite for spending. Under legislative appointment, senators would be restricted from handing out federal goodies unless it benefitted the people in their states and even then those goodies would have to benefit, according to current rules agreed to by the senate, at twenty-nine other states for them to pass. The current senate rules call for passage by a super-majority; sixty senators.
The framers had four major goals for the constitution. They wanted to create a strong government that would be able to meet the need's of the nation. Yet they wanted to keep the existence of the separate states. They also didn't want to threaten liberty. And lastly they wanted to create a government that everyone could agree upon.
Being very different from the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution gave the foundation for the legislature and kept each branch in check, assuring none would become too powerful. With the large and small states finally in agreement, ratifying the constitution was the next step. September of 1787 the final draft, containing around 4,200 words, was created by the Committee of Style. George Washington was the first to sign the document on September 17th. Although 39 of the original 55 signed the document, the delegates of Massachusetts were unwilling to approve the document. Nine of the thirteen states had to ratify the document in order for it to become law. To help gain popularity for the Constitution, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay made essays. There were 85 total essays and they were distributed in newspapers across the states. Those who supported the document were referred to as Federalist and those who did not support the document were known as Anti-Federalist. The first states to ratify the Constitution were Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Connecticut. Massachusetts still strongly opposed the document, saying that freedom of speech, religion, and press were lacking protection. An agreement was made in February 1788 that the document would be amended to include what was lacking upon ratification. With hesitation,
Constitution established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed rights for its citizens. America’s first governing document, the Articles of Confederation, the national government was weak and states operated like independent countries. The Articles of Confederation gave Congress the power to govern foreign affairs, conduct war, and regulate currency. The delegates, who are known as the “framers” of the Constitution, were a group of well-educated people that included merchants, farmers, bankers and lawyers. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, wrote a series of essays to persuade people to approve the Constitution. “The Federalist Papers”, detailed how the new government would work, and were published under the public in newspapers across the states starting in the fall of
Have you ever wondered what would happen if your worst fears became reality? For the founding father and crafters of the U.S. Constitution those fears have come to roost. What was originally designed to be the foundation of our country, and the law of the land; has now been amended out of existence. The ratification of the 17th Amendment changed the country’s political landscape and weakened the U.S. Constitution by allowing Senators to be directly elected by popular vote instead of by the legislatures of the states they represent. This Amendment was a byproduct of the Democratic Progressive movement. It was believed by some that it would correct the procedural issues and perceived political corruption associated with the election of state Senators to Congress. The Amendment was touted as a permanent solution to these problems, and would ultimately result in making politics and the political process more accessible to the average citizen. However, the 17th Amendment has failed to deliver on its promises, and has produced a Senate that is even less responsive to voters, even more corrupt with campaign contributions and allegiances to large corporations and special interest groups, and fails to truly represent the interests of the states. Moreover, the 17th Amendment removed a crucial check and balance that was purposely designed into the Constitution in order to preserve state’s rights and prevent the abuse of federal powers. The 17th Amendment should be repealed in order to restore the intended power and sovereignty of the state, preserve the original federal distributive powers system, and to prevent the spread of abusive federal powers.
The constitution was a document that embodies the fundamental laws and principles by which the U.S is governed. The constitution states basic rights for its citizens. Delegates signed the constitution on September 17, 1787. There is a total of 27 constitutional amendments. The reasoning for writing it was for a stronger federal government - legislative, executive and judicial. The constitution was a break with a past of ‘unfair’ taxes, wars and ‘unfair’ treatment.
Over the following decade following the Declaration of Independence, the appointed leaders created the U.S. Constitution (1787), which established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens (History.com).
...ny of a branch by setting controls on each branch set by the other branches. Fairly equalizing representation in Congress protected the power of small states overall while preserving that of larger states. However, the framers may have mistakenly given the power to prevent tyranny to the government, not the people. The framers crafted a delicate system, but one that focused on creating strong inter-governmental relations. Since the first Constitution was drafted, power slowly began shifting to the national government. If the branches wished to control more, it would not matter if they controlled each other because they would all move together. The focus on creating a government as far away as possible from despotic in a group of white, mostly wealthy, and educated landowners may have prevented the creation of the sort of tyranny-free system the people wished for.
To drink or no? Ever since the first people stumbled across alcohol (and then each other) this has been a question commonly asked. Statistics show that a majority of domestic violence, automobile accidents, and rape, all involve (many times) alcohol. Whether one thinks consumption is "right" or not has been asked by people for people from time to time. This would be the case of the 18th Amendment of 1919.
The Eighteenth Amendment, or better known as the Prohibition Amendment, was the change to the Constitution that made the, "manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purpose is hereby prohibited" (209). In other words, associating one's self with anything alcoholic, with the exception of medicinally, was illegal. This seemingly un-American amendment was ratified January 16, 1919. Certain groups of people such as the anti-saloon league petitioned the government in favor of prohibition.
The U.S. Constitution has a unique history. Facing drafts and ratifications it was finally created under the founding fathers in 1787. The constitution is the foundation for the government we have today and influences almost every decision that government officials make. However, before the constitution was influencing, it was influenced. The political, economic, and diplomatic crises of the 1780s not only helped shape America, but also the provisions found the constitution.
The document I chose to write about is the United States Constitution. When the thirteen British colonies in North America declared their independence in 1776, they laid down that “governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” The “colonies” had to establish a government, which would be the framework for the United States. The purpose of a written constitution is to define and therefore more specifically limit government powers. After the Articles of Confederation failed to work in the 13 colonies, the U.S. Constitution was created in 1787.
The Constitution is based on ideas from other important historical documents and events. It uses ideas from England’s Magna Carta, which proclaimed the rights of Englishmen, and from Enlightenment developer John Locke. The Constitution consists of a preamble followed by the seven articles and the twenty-seven amendments.
The framers of the Constitution realized that they could not address every single issue of the day. Therefore, they left a few provisions so that they federal government could one day sufficiently resolve these issues. For instance, the framers knew that those who were against ratification were concerned about unrestrained power in the the hands of the federal government. Thus, they created a system of checks and balances. Each of the three branches of government could restrain another branch of government, while being restrained by the other. In addition, the framers of the Constitution knew that debates concerning the relative political power of small states in relation to larger states would occur. Larger states supported the Virginia Plan, while smaller states supported the New Jersey Plan. The framers of the Constitution compromised on a two-house Congress which satisfied both sides of the debate. With these provisions in mind, the framers of the Constitution assumed the state representatives would be able to sufficiently debate those issues that were left unresolved by the Constitution and that the federal government would have the sufficient means of power of reinforcing their eventual decision. Thus, by creating a strong federal government that would be able to debate the prevailing issues of the day, the framers of the Constitution allowed for the
The Constitution of the United States was created on September 17, 1787, but not everyone agreed that it should become the law of the land. Authors of the Constitution, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, published The Federalist Papers to promote ratification of the Constitution by the States. The Federalist were committed to ensuring the Constitution was ratified. However, they were not without opposition. The Anti-Federalist opposed the Constitution and believed that it would cause the new union to fail. Anti-Federalist were politicians and businessmen such as George Mason, Patrick Henry and John Winthrop, but there were many farmers and common people among the group. Their primary objections to the Constitution was that it weakened the State governments, that it lacked a Bill of Rights and that it protected the wealthy at the expense of ordinary Americans.
The Constitution is the greatest document in American history. It has pushed for progressiveness and equality. The Constitution is basically the supreme law of the United States. The Constitution was written to organize a strong national government for the American states. Before the Constitution, the nation's leaders had established a national government under the Articles of Confederation. The Articles gave independence to each state; the states lacked authority, the ability to work together, and to solve national problems. The U.S. Constitution established America's national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens using five big ideas and this shaped today's America.