Bill of Rights, Six Basic Principles, & Articles

First Amendment (1791)

Freedoms of:

speech

assembly

petition

press

religion

Second Amendment (1791)

Right to:

Bear Arms

Third Amendment (1791)

Freedom FROM:

Quartering troops in times of peace

Fourth Amendment (1791)

Freedom FROM:

Unreasonable search & seizure

Fifth Amendment (1791)

• Eminent Domain

• Double Jeopardy 

• Self-Incrimination

• Right to a Grand Jury

• Due Process

Sixth Amendment (1791)

The Right To:

• a speedy and public trial in all criminal cases

• trial by jury in all criminal cases

• counsel

Seventh Amendment (1791)

• trial by jury in all civil cases

Eighth Amendment (1791)

Freedom FROM:

• cruel and unusual punishment

Ninth Amendment (1791)

Unenumerated Rights to the People

Tenth Amendment (1791)

Unenumerated Rights to the States

Article I

Legislative branch

Article II

Executive Branch

Article III

Judicial Branch

Article IV

State Relations

Article V

Amendment Process

Article VI

Supremacy of the Government

Article VII

Ratification Process

Six Basic Principles: Popular Sovereignty

• The principle that the people are the only source for all governmental power. 

• The government rules through leaders elected by the people to represent the people. 

  • The Preamble notes that the Constitution is created by “We the People”. 

• Ex: Voting

Six Basic Principles: Limited Government

• Government may only do those things the people have given it the power to do. 

  • Government must obey the law. 

  • Much of the Constitution spells out limit on the power of the government.

    • EX: 5th amendment- due process law 

      •  Gov must obey laws, gov does not have absolute power

Six Basic Principles: Separation of Powers

• The Constitution divides power among the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches. 

  • Congress makes laws 

  • Executive enforces laws

  • Judicial interprets laws

• Why important? 

  • It keeps a strong central government from being too powerful 

  • Too much power in one branch could lead to abuses of that power.

Six Basic Principles: Checks and Balances

• Each branch of the federal government can check the other two. 

  • EX: 

    • The President can veto bills passed by Congress, but Congress can override it

    • The Senate can reject presidential appointees or refuse to ratify a treaty 

    • Congress can vote to impeach a federal official 

    • The federal courts can rule acts unconstitutional. 

• The use of checks is rare 

  • Compromise is more common 

  • Conflicts more likely when Congress and the presidency are controlled by different parties. 

• Checks and balances are weakened by political parties

Six Basic Principles: Judicial Review

• Judicial Review is NOT in the Constitution

  • Added by a court case called Marbury vs. Madison in 1803

    • Main Players:

    • John Adams

      • Second US president

      • Founding father

    • Thomas Jefferson

      • Third US president

      • Democratic republican

• The Courts can decide if a government action is constitutional. 

  • The power of judicial review is held by all federal courts and most state courts. 

  • What do the courts rule on? 

    • Presidential Acts

    • Congressional Laws 

    • State Acts/laws

Six Basic Principles: Federalism

• the division of power among a central government (federal) and several regional governments (state)

  • States and national gov share power 

• COMPROMISE

  • Problem- how to build a new, stronger, more effective National Government while preserving the existing States and the concept of local self-government. 

• It corrected the weaknesses of the Article of Confederation without replacing them with a British-style monarchy