Introduction to the US Constitution

The 7 Articles of the US Constitution:

Article 1 - The Legislative Branch

  • Sets out that legislative powers are held by Congress, which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives

  • sets out the composition of both chambers, the process of law making and the key powers of Congress

Article 2 - Executive Branch:

  • sets out that the executive power is held by the President, who is elected every 4 years and can be removed through impeachment

  • sets out hoe the president is elected and the powers of the president

Article 3 - Judicial Branch

  • sets out that judicial power is held by the Supreme Court and lower courts

Article 4 - Relationship Between the States

  • sets out the relationship between the states, as well as the relationship between the states and the federal government

  • sets out the powers of the states, as well as the procedure for how new states can join the united states

Article 5 - Amending the Constitution

  • sets out the process for amending the constitution

  • makes each state equally represented

Article 6 - Prior Debts, National Supremacy Clause, and Oaths of Office

  • includes various provisions, including the Supremacy Clause

Article 7 - Ratification Process

  • sets out the procedure for the constitution should ratified → 9/13 colonies were required to agree

Nature of the US Constitution:

Vagueness of the Constitution:

  • Article I – the Elastic Clause → utilises the term ‘necessary and proper’ which is undefined and vague

  • Undefined executive powers → The President is Commander-in-Chief, but the Constitution does not clearly outline the limits of military action therefore: Biden’s 2024 strikes against Iranian-backed militias in Syria, Trump’s 2025 actions in Venezuela

  • Ambiguous language over the rights of citizens Terms → such as “liberty” and “due process” are not defined. This has allowed the Supreme Court to interpret rights differently over time, for example: Dobbs v Jackson (2022) overturned Roe v Wade by arguing abortion was not explicitly protected

Codification:

  • written down all in one document

  • sets out the structure and rules of the governance of the United States.

  • The individuals and institutions that govern the US derive their authority from the constitution.

  • The Supremacy Clause (Article VI) sets out that the Constitution is 'higher law' than any other legislation passed in the US

  • As a result, other legislation can be struck down and unmade by the judiciary if it is deemed unconstitutional

Entrenchment:

  • The US Constitution is entrenched because there is a set process to change the constitution, making it difficult to change

  • the amendment process requires supermajorities and the consent of multiple parts of the US political system.

  • This means that it is specially protected and that there have been very few amendments to the constitution since it was first introduced.

Constitutional Framework:

The Legislative branch:

The Executive branch:

The Judicial branch:

Amendment Process:

around 12,000 prposed, only 27 were successfull

Stage One - Proposal

  • Through a ⅜ vote in both houses of Congress.

Stage Two - Ratification

  • Through a majority vote in ¾ of state legislatures.

  • This has been used successfully 26 times.

The Consequences of the Difficult Amendment Process

Difficulty in ensuring constitution remains up to date → difficult amendment process leading to changes to society not reflected in the constitution. struggles to keep up with modern issues: technology, social change.

  • requires for ¾ states, 2/3 congress for approval

  • 17 amendments passed in the over 200 years since the Bill of Rights.

  • Equal Rights Amendment: would have recognised the rights of men and women equally, only got Virginia support in 2020, nearly 50 years after the deadline

Outdated aspects of the Constitution still existing → the senate has been changes from an appointed to an elected house (reflected change), the Electoral College has returned a different winner to the popular vote

  • former Supreme Court Justice Stevens identified 6 areas of the constitution that he felt needed amending, including the second amendment.

Ignoring minority interests → need for supermajorities means rights of the minority could be ignored

  • struggle for voting rights: 2021, 19 states pass legislation on restricting voting rights

  • Defence of Marriage Act 1996: defined marriage federally as between a man and one woman, while SCOTUS has since invalidated this, the chances of an amendment protecting gay rights is slim

Power given to the Supreme Court → supreme court has a vast power to alter the constitution, and is unelected and unaccountable to the people, lacks IMR + CMR is limited.

  • supreme court has hardly any checks and balances on its power

  • Dobbs v. Jackson [2022] overturned Roe v. Wade [1973]

Advantages to the Amendment Process:

Broad support → broad support is needed to pass an amendment. crucial in a vast and diverse country.

  • while there has been a political push for gun control, a 2018 yougov poll shows that only 1 in 5 Americans wanted to scrap the 2nd amendment.

  • However, broad support can lead to a collective bad action: after the Sand Hooke shooting 2012, Obama attempted to bring in new gun restrictions such as background check on all firearm sales (Universal Background Checks) but was denied.

Prevents short-lived trends becoming amendments → because the amendment process is so specific it prevents short lived trends from being passed

Protects the Constitution and its principles → the challenging amendment process protects the key principles of constitutional democracy

  • the amendment process should require bipartisanship through supermajorities.

Prevents tyranny of large states or single parties → the amendment process ensures that each state has a democratic recognition and is equally represented (Article 5)

  • the most populous 5 states hold over 37% of the population.

  • The amendment process ensures these states cannot amend the constitution to suit themselves

The key features of the US Constitution and evaluation of their effectiveness today:

Federalism:

In the constitution → 10th Amendment protects states’ rights, need for state approval in the amendment process, equal representation of the states in the Senate.

Working → 2021, 9 states passed laws to restrict voting rights while 25 states passed laws to expand voting rights.

Failing → Supreme courts are binding on state approval, Obergefell V Hodges (2015), same-sex marriage was legalised in all states

Separation of powers:

In the constitution → Articles 1, 2, and 3 outline individual powers of each branch

Working → Vise President Kamala Harris had to leave the Senate to join the Executive branch

Failing → The Paris Agreement on climate change has not been put before the Senate despite Obama USA signing up to the agreement

Checks and balances:

In the constitution → Numerous powers within Articles 1, 2 and 3 provide checks and balances

Working → President Biden 2021: Build Back Better agenda which consisted of American Rescue Plan, American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan. Biden managed to get the Rescue Plan passed

Failing → President Biden’s first 100 days, passed 64 executive orders, 24 reversed Trump’s executive orders

Bipartisanship:

In the constitution →

Working →

Failing →

Limited government:

In the constitution → Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances, Amendment giving state powers, The Bill of Rights giving citizens’ rights

Working → Trump V Vance (2020), Supreme Court struck down presidential immunity on Trump

Failing → President Biden recognised that his eviction moratorium was unconstitutional during Covid-19, he issued it anyway.