THE CONSTITUTION: Preamble + Articles I, II, and III

Preamble

This introductory statement to the Constitution explains that government’s legitimacy and power come from the people. It lists the goals of creating a more perfect union, establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility, providing for common defense, promoting general welfare, and securing liberty for future generations. It underscores the principle of popular sovereignty and sets the stage for the document’s purpose in protecting the rights declared in the nation’s founding documents.

Article I, Section 1: Legislative Branch - A Bicameral U.S. Congress

All legislative power is vested in a national Congress composed of two separate chambers; one that represents the people directly and one that represents each state equally.

Article I, Section 2: The House of Representatives

This section establishes the lower chamber. It details that its members are directly elected by the people every two years and must meet three minimum qualifications: a specified minimum age, a minimum period of U.S. citizenship, and residency in the state from which they are elected. It also mandates a decennial census to determine representation and originally included a method for counting slaves (three‑fifths of “all other persons”). Additionally, it assigns the House the sole authority to bring impeachment charges.

Article I, Section 3: The U.S. Senate

This section defines the composition and qualifications of the upper chamber. Every state is granted two members, regardless of population, who serve staggered six‑year terms. Initially, senators were chosen by state legislatures (later changed to popular election). The section also requires that a senator meet specific criteria (minimum age, citizenship duration, and state residency) and designates the Vice President as the chamber’s presiding officer with tie‑breaking power.

Article I, Sections 4-6: Issues Concerning Both Chambers of Congress

A group of related provisions that govern both chambers’ procedural matters: it allows state legislatures to determine election times and procedures (subject to congressional modification), assigns each house the power to judge the elections and qualifications of its own members, permits each house to set its rules and discipline its members (including expulsion by a two‑thirds vote), and grants certain privileges like immunity from arrest while in session and restrictions on holding additional government office.

Article I, Section 7: Bills for Raising Revenue and How a Bill Becomes Law

This section establishes the legislative process for bills, particularly those raising revenue. It mandates that all bills designed to raise taxes originate in the lower chamber. A bill must be passed in identical form by both chambers, then transmitted to the President, who has a fixed period to act (by either signing or vetoing). It also explains that a presidential veto can be overridden only by a two‑thirds vote in each chamber, noting that partial or itemized vetoes are not permitted.

Article I, Section 8: Delegated or Enumerated Powers of Congress (including the Necessary and Proper Clause)

This lengthy section lists the specific powers granted to Congress. It covers a wide range of authorities including levying taxes, borrowing money, coining currency, regulating commerce both interstate and international, establishing lower courts, declaring war, and creating patents and copyrights. It concludes with a clause that permits Congress to enact all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out its enumerated powers, often referred to as the “elastic clause.”

Article I, Section 9: Limitations on Congress’ Power

This section sets limits on Congressional authority. It prohibits Congress from interfering with the migration or importation of certain persons (a provision originally intended to delay outlawing the slave trade), restricts suspension of the writ of habeas corpus except in emergencies, and forbids Congress from passing bills of attainder, ex post facto laws, or levying taxes on exports in a discriminatory manner. It also prevents congressional spending without legal appropriations, granting titles of nobility, and receiving emoluments from foreign governments without consent.

Article I, Section 10: Limitations on the States

This section details what actions states are forbidden to take without Congress’ consent, ensuring uniformity and protecting national interests. It prohibits states from entering treaties or alliances, coining money, enacting bills of attainder or ex post facto laws, interfering with contracts, and granting titles of nobility. It also restricts state taxation on imports/exports and regulates state maintenance of military forces in peacetime or engaging in war without proper authorization.

Article II, Section 1 – The Executive Branch: Presidential Term, Election, Qualifications, Vacancy, Compensation, and Oath of Office

This section vests all executive power in one individual and defines the term of office for the President and Vice President. It sets a fixed term, establishes an indirect election via an Electoral College, and specifies the three strict qualifications required for one to serve. It also outlines what happens if the office becomes vacant and guarantees a fixed presidential compensation along with the requirement for an oath of office.

Article II, Section 2 – Powers of the President

This section outlines the chief executive’s principal powers. It designates the President as the Commander in Chief of both the armed forces and the state militias (when in federal service). The section also grants the President the power to issue pardons, negotiate treaties (with the requirement for Senate approval or via executive agreements), and make key appointments (such as ambassadors and Supreme Court justices) with the advice and consent of the Senate.

Article II, Sections 3 and 4 - Duties of the President and the Impeachment Process

These sections detail the President’s broader administrative duties, including providing Congress with an annual report on the State of the Union, the authority to convene or adjourn Congress under extraordinary circumstances, and the receipt of foreign ambassadors. Additionally, they set forth the grounds and procedures for removing the President (and other civil officers) from office—including impeachment for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors”—with the respective roles of the House and Senate in this process.

Article III, Section 1 – The Judicial Branch

The Constitution assigns judicial power exclusively to one national court—the U.S. Supreme Court—and to any inferior courts that Congress may establish. Congress controls these lower courts and sets the number of Supreme Court Justices (initially six, later fixed at nine by law). Justices and lower court judges serve for life under "good behavior" and cannot have their salaries reduced while in office.

Article III, Sections 2 and 3: Jurisdiction of the Courts, Trial by Jury, Treason

This section delineates the scope of judicial jurisdiction. It grants the Supreme Court original jurisdiction in cases involving diplomats and disputes between states, and appellate jurisdiction over nearly all other cases (subject to congressional regulation). It requires that, except for impeachment cases, all criminal trials be conducted by jury in the state where the offense occurred. Additionally, it defines treason as levying war against the U.S. or providing aid to its enemies, with conviction requiring two witnesses to the overt act or a confession in open court.

Article IV, Sections 1 and 2: Horizontal Federalism: State to State Obligations

This section mandates that each state must (1) recognize and enforce the public acts, judicial proceedings, and records of every other state (full faith and credit), (2) extend to citizens of other states the same privileges and immunities as to its own citizens, and (3) extradite fugitives charged with crimes. It also originally included a clause forcing the return of escaped persons held in service (later rendered inoperative for slaves by the Thirteenth Amendment).

Article IV, Sections 3 and 4: Admission of New States and Obligations of National Government to States

Grants Congress sole authority to admit new states to the Union, with the limitation that new states cannot be formed from territory within an existing state or by merging states without their consent; Congress may also impose conditions on statehood. Also obligates the national government to guarantee each state a republican form of government (guarantee clause) and to protect states against invasion and, when necessary, domestic violence.