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Unit 2 – Constitution Mr. Borkowski Fall, 2014 Preamble to the Constitution establish justice ensure domestic tranquility provide for the common defense promote the general welfare secure the blessings of liberty 6 Fundamental Principles in the Constitution popular sovereignty separation of powers checks and balances federalism supremacy of national laws civilian control of government Popular sovereignty – wise people will vote (not directly) white males with property white males over 21 – mid-1800s 15th Amendment – black males – 1870 19th Amendment – women – 1920 24th Amendment – outlawed poll taxes and restrictions 26th Amendment – 18 year olds – 1971 Separation of Powers power is divided among 3 branches of government – to prevent a concentration of power Legislative branch – lawmaking – Article I, Sec. 1 Executive branch – enforcement of laws – Article II, Sec. 1 Judicial branch – interpretation of laws (judgment) – Article III, Sec. 1 Separation of Powers Division of Power People in control Legislative Congress Senate and House 6 yr and 2 yr Executive President 4 year term 2 max. Judicial Supreme Court Lifetime term By President Constituency group of people served by an elected official President – all potential voters in the U.S. Senator Richard Burr – all voters in N.C. Sheriff Bill Schatzman – all voters in Forsyth Co. Rep. Virginia Foxx – all voters in 5th Congressional District – parts of Davie, Watauga, Wilkes, Yadkin, Forsyth Counties Forsyth County Commissioner David Plyler – voters of District B in Forsyth Co. Checks and Balances – Since power is separated among the three branches, each branch has checks on the others. Congress makes laws – the President can veto those laws and the Supreme Court can declare those laws unconstitutional. Congress can override the President’s veto and the entire legislative branch can amend the Constitution making their law constitutional. The President appoints (hires) people for executive offices and the Supreme Court – Congress confirms (approves) virtually all Presidential appointments. Federalism – shared power between national and state governments Delegated Powers AKA Enumerated, Expressed – Article I, Sec. 8 – powers are outlined to the national government – Ex. Armed forces. Concurrent Powers – shared by states and national government – Ex. Court system, taxes, highways Reserved Powers – anything not granted to national and not denied states are reserved for states – 10th Amendment Federalism – how? Cooperative federalism – obligations of the national and state governments are mixed. There are no clear cut powers, like a marble cake. Dual federalism – powers of national and state governments are clear cut, you can tell the difference, like a layer cake. Nationalism vs. States’ Rights Nationalism Union during Civil War Favors strong, central, national government Generally, the ruling authority States’ Rights Confederacy during Civil War Dixiecrats (1948) Independents (1968) Ronald Reagan (1980s) Implied Powers the national government can do whatever is “necessary and proper” to fulfill its duties “elastic clause” > implied powers Loose vs. Strict Construction Loose construction – reading more into the Constitution than what is written – “I know that’s what it says but that’s not what it means.” Strict construction – reading the Constitution and interpreting it ONLY as it is written – “The founding fathers wrote that, that is what they meant.” Supremacy of National Laws the national governments laws are superior to state governments’ when they conflict – McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) Process of Amending the Constitution – two steps Proposal (Two ways) 2/3 vote of both houses of Congress Constitutional Conventions called in 2/3 of states 2/3 = 34 Ratification (Two ways) State legislatures in ¾ of states approval Ratifying Conventions in ¾ of states approval ¾ = 38 Recent attempts Equal Rights Amendment – proposed but never ratified 27th Amendment – congressional pay raises only after current term Voting rights in D.C. – representation in Congress Cooperation among states “full faith and credit” – official documents are valid in all states – Ex. Driver’s licenses, marriage licenses Extradition – criminals of another state must be returned to that state Informal methods of changing the constitution legislative action executive action Supreme Court decisions Political Parties Custom – cabinet Other Constitutional Issues Bill of attainder – find someone guilty of a crime and punish them without a trial – outlawed by Constitution Writ of Habeus Corpus – person cannot be held without knowing what the charges are, etc. – req. by Const. Ex Post Facto Laws – “After the fact” – you can be charged with a crime prior to the law being passed – outlawed by Constitution Inherent powers – powers which belong to the national government just because it is the national government – Ex. Foreign policy, immigration Eminent domain – government can purchase private property for public use