The Constitution: Amendments and the System of Checks and Balances
The Constitution: Amendments and Checks and Balances
Voter Eligibility and Amendments
Original Constitutional Guidelines: The Constitution, in its initial form, provided no specific guidelines for voter eligibility. It left this primarily to the states.
Limited Electorate: At the time of its adoption, only a small percentage of the adult population could vote. Women and enslaved people were explicitly excluded, reflecting the societal norms and power structures of the era.
Expansion of the Electorate: Out of the constitutional amendments that have been adopted since the Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments), five have focused specifically on expanding the right to vote.
Key Amendments related to Voter Eligibility
The Fifteenth Amendment (1870):
Prohibition of Racial Discrimination: This amendment prohibited discrimination based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude in determining voter eligibility.
Effectiveness: Despite its passage in , its practical effect was limited for nearly a century due to various discriminatory practices (like literacy tests, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses) at the state level. It took the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to truly enforce the intent of this amendment and dismantle widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans.
The Nineteenth Amendment (1920):
Women's Suffrage: This amendment granted women the right to vote across the United States.
Prior State Action: It is important to note that some states had already extended voting rights to women prior to the national amendment, demonstrating a gradual shift in social and political attitudes.
The Twenty-third Amendment (1961):
Washington, D.C. Voting Rights: This amendment granted residents of Washington, D.C., the right to vote in presidential elections, allocating them electoral votes as if they were a state.
The Twenty-fourth Amendment (1964):
Prohibition of Poll Taxes: This amendment prohibited the use of poll taxes in federal elections. Poll taxes were a common mechanism used, particularly in Southern states, to disenfranchise poor citizens, disproportionately affecting African Americans and low-income white citizens, by requiring a payment to vote.
The Twenty-fifth Amendment (1967):
Presidential Disability and Vice Presidential Vacancies: This amendment established clear procedures for dealing with situations involving presidential disability and vacancies in the office of Vice President. It details how the Vice President assumes the presidency or acts as president, and how a new Vice President is chosen.
The Twenty-sixth Amendment (1971):
Lowering the Voting Age: This amendment lowered the national voter eligibility age to years old. This change was largely influenced by the Vietnam War, as it was argued that if individuals were old enough to be drafted and fight for their country, they should be old enough to vote.
The Twenty-seventh Amendment (1992):
Congressional Salaries: This amendment prevents any law that changes the salary of members of Congress from taking effect until after the start of the next set of Congressional terms. Originally proposed in as part of the Bill of Rights, it was ratified over two centuries later.
Amendment Process
Dual Routes for Amendment: The U.S. Constitution provides two alternative routes for proposing amendments and two alternative routes for ratifying them, creating a deliberately difficult process to ensure thoughtful consideration and widespread consensus.
Methods for Proposing Amendments
Congressional Proposal: An amendment can be proposed by a vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
National Convention: An amendment can also be proposed by a national convention, which is called by Congress upon the request of of the state legislatures.
Methods for Ratifying Amendments
State Legislative Ratification: An amendment proposed by either method must be ratified by of the state legislatures. Currently, this means out of the states must approve the amendment.
State Convention Ratification: Alternatively, an amendment can be ratified by conventions held in of the states.
Historical Usage: The second method for proposing amendments (national convention) has been used only once in U.S. history. This occurred for the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment (the Prohibition amendment), demonstrating its rare and specific application.
Checks and Balances
Purpose: The system of checks and balances is a fundamental principle of the U.S. government designed to prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful, ensuring a separation of powers and promoting accountability.
Legislative Branch (Congress) Checks
Checks on the Executive Branch (President):
Override Veto: Congress can override a presidential veto with a vote in both the House and the Senate.
Impeachment and Removal: Can impeach (formally accuse) and remove the President from office for "high crimes and misdemeanors."
Refuse Appointments: The Senate has the power to refuse to confirm presidential appointments (e.g., cabinet members, ambassadors, federal judges).
Refuse to Ratify Treaties: The Senate must ratify treaties negotiated by the President with a vote.
Conduct Investigations: Congress has the power to conduct investigations into the actions of the executive branch.
Refuse Funding: Congress controls the national budget and can refuse presidential requests for funding for specific programs or initiatives.
Checks on the Judicial Branch (Federal Courts):
Change Court Size: Congress has the power to change the size of federal courts, including the number of justices on the Supreme Court.
Reject Nominees: The Senate can reject the President's nominees for Supreme Court justices and other federal judges.
Impeach and Remove Judges: Congress can impeach and remove federal judges from office.
Propose Constitutional Amendments: Congress can propose constitutional amendments, which can effectively overturn Supreme Court decisions (e.g., the Amendment overturning Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co.).
Executive Branch (President) Checks
Checks on the Legislative Branch (Congress):
Veto Acts of Congress: The President can veto bills passed by Congress, preventing them from becoming law.
Call Special Sessions: The President can call Congress into special sessions to address urgent matters.
Carries Out and Interprets Laws: The executive branch is responsible for implementing and interpreting laws passed by Congress through executive agencies and directives.
Vice-President's Tie-Breaking Vote: The Vice President serves as President of the Senate and can cast a tie-breaking vote when senators are equally divided.
Checks on the Judicial Branch (Federal Courts):
Nominates Justices and Judges: The President nominates Supreme Court justices and all other federal judges, who must then be confirmed by the Senate.
Pardon Power: The President can pardon individuals convicted of federal crimes, offering a check on judicial sentencing.
Refuse Enforcement of Court Decisions: While rare and often controversial, a President can, to some extent, influence the enforcement of Court decisions, although this is generally viewed as defying the rule of law (e.g., Andrew Jackson's supposed response to Worcester v. Georgia).
Judicial Branch (Federal Courts) Checks
Checks on the Legislative Branch (Congress):
Declare Laws Unconstitutional (Judicial Review): The Supreme Court (and lower federal courts) can declare laws passed by Congress to be unconstitutional, thus nullifying them. This power, known as judicial review, was established in Marbury v. Madison ().
Chief Justice Presides Over Presidential Impeachment: When the House of Representatives impeaches a President, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over the impeachment trial in the Senate.
Checks on the Executive Branch (President):
Declare Executive Actions Unconstitutional: The Supreme Court can declare executive orders, presidential actions, and treaties to be unconstitutional.
Chief Justice Presides Over Presidential Impeachment: As with legislative checks, the Chief Justice presides over impeachment proceedings against the President, providing a judicial oversight role in the process.