CHAPTER 6

CONSTITUTIONAL
LAW

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 “The first 10 amendments in the U.S. constitution are
known as (A) Supremacy Clause, (B) judicial review
doctrine, (C) Articles of Confederation, (D) Bill of
Rights”.

The U.S. Constitutional is the first governing document

in world history that creates representative democracy,
expressly limits the powers of government, and grants
specific rights to the people. But it was not the first
foundational governing document in American history.
The Articles of Confederation loosely governed the
colonies, and then the states, from 1777, until the
Constitution was ratified in 1789. The Articles of
Confederation lacked some elements that were put into
the constitution, including an executive branch, a
judicial branch, a national army, and the power to tax.
THE CONSTITUTION’A STRUCTURE
At the Constitutional convention in 1787, the framers
decided to create a federal constitution that would
provide for direct and indirect representation, and would
have separation of powers by giving independent
authority to each of the three branches of government.
Those branches of government are the legislative branch,
executive branch, and judicial branch. The constitution
consists of seven articles, which are the separate,
original parts of the constitution, and 27 amendments,
which modify or invalidate earlier parts of the
constitution. The constitution’s structure provides for
federalism, which allows state governments to retain
their individual governing powers, even though the
federal government is given broad powers.

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THE BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT
Article I of the constitution is directed to the
establishment of the federal Congress. The federal
legislature is bicameral, which means that there are two
champers, or houses of representation. The House of
Representatives has 435 members. Members of the
House of representatives serve two-year terms, and the
number of representatives in the House is based on each
state’s population. The Senate has 100 senators who
serve six-year terms. Each state gets two senators.
“Article I” gives the power to make laws to the
Congress. Either chamber of Congress may begin a
legislative bill, with the exception that taxing legislation
must start in the House of Representatives. Congress’s
express powers are the specifically stated powers of
Congress and are found in Article I, Section 8/ Include
in those powers are the power to declare war and the
power to regulate interstate commerce. Congress also
has the power to make all laws necessary and proper to
carry out its express powers, sometimes called its elastic
powers.
Article II creates the executive branch, which is headed
by the U.S. President. The president’s responsibilities
carrying out the laws passed by the Congress, directing
all federal military forces, and appointing all federal
judges. The president also appoints the heads of the
executive departments of the government, called the
cabinet. The cabinet includes the Department of State,
the department of Defense, and the Department of
Treasury. The president also makes treaties, which are
legally enforceable agreements with foreign
governments.

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Article III of the constitution creates the U.S. Supreme
Court. Its jurisdiction is primarily appellate, but it also is
given original jurisdiction over certain legal matters,
such as the case that would arise if a state were to sue
another state. Beyond being the highest court in the
federal judicial system, the Supreme Court is the highest
and most powerful court in the country because Article
VI of the constitution has a clause) (a distinct part of a
constitutional section known as the Supremacy Clause,
which makes federal law preeminent when federal and
state law conflict. And due to the doctrine of judicial
review, the Supreme Court has the power to declare acts
of Congress and acts of the executive branch
unconstitutional.
CHECKS AND BALANCES
In order to prevent one branch of government from
becoming too dominant, the constitution creates a
system of check and balances, which allows each branch
to counteract the powers of the other branches. For
instance, the president can veto a bill rather signing it
into law. Veto is Latin for “I forbid,” and if the president
strikes down a piece of legislation through a veto, or
refuses to sign it (called a pocket veto), the Congress can
override the veto with a two-third majority vote. The
Senate can refuse to vote for the president’s judicial or
cabinet appointees. And the Supreme Court can declare
federal legislation unconstitutional.
AMENDMENTS
In order to make changes to the constitution, as later
generations would desire, Article V of the U.S.
Constitution provides for a process to amend the
constitution. A total of 27 amendments have been
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passed, although the first 10 amendments, known as the
Bill of Rights, were passed simultaneously in 1791. The
Bill of Rights provided freedoms to Americans, such as
the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of religion,
freedom of speech, and freedom of press clauses. The
Bill of Rights also puts certain restrictions on the federal
government, such as the Fourth Amendment’s
Prohibition on warrantless searches or the Eighth
Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual
punishment. Later amendments have made slavery
illegal, granted equal protection to former slaves,
granted women the right to vote, and reduced the voting
age to 18.