Main Ideas of Foundational Documents

Declaration of Independence

• declared American independence from Britain

• Natural rights

Articles of Confederation

• confederation of states with a limited central govt

• Sovereign states

• No president or judiciary

• Weak government overall

Brutus I

• antifederalist

• Encourages people to reject constitution

• Establishes necessity for a bill of rights

Fed 51

• proposed 3 branches

• Each branch should be self sufficient

• Checks and balances between branches

• Legislative branch split into house and senate

Fed 70

• encourages unified executive branch

• Executive energy is important (decision, activity, secrecy, dispatch)

• Governmental balance achieved if each branch has enough autonomous power

• Encourages duration (long enough presidential term)

US constitution

• outlines the government structure

• 3 branches with checks and balances

• Federal government

• Rule of law

• Bill of rights and amendments

Fed 78

• judiciary needs strengthening

• Lifelong tenure for justices

• Without independent judiciary, rights reserved to constitution amount to nothing