The Test Bro

Article I - sets up Congress with two houses

Senate Requirements - must be 30 yrs old, a U.S. citizen for at least nine years, and a resident of the state they represent

House Requirements - must be 25 yrs old, a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state they represent

Article II - sets up the executive branch

President Requirements - must be 35 yrs old, a natural-born U.S. citizen, and must have been a resident of the United States for at least 14 years

Formal powers of the President - commander in chief, veto, pocket veto, negotiate treaties appointment of federal judges, grant pardons, and enforce federal laws

Informal powers of the President - executive orders, signing statements, executive agreements, executive privilege

Article III - set up the judicial branch

Article IV - defines relationship between states and federal government (outlines federalism)

Article V - defines process to amend the Constitution

Amendment proposal - 2/3 by national convention or congress

Amendment ratification - ¾ by state conventions or state legislature

Article VI - supremacy clause

Article VII - how to ratify the Constitution itself (9/13 states)

Declaration of Independence - a historic document proclaiming the thirteen colonies' intent to separate from British rule, outlining the principles of individual rights and the government's responsibility to protect these rights.

Articles of Confederation problems - power was to the states, wasn’t able to tax, didn’t have a military, couldn’t regulate commerce, needed all 13 states to agree to ratify anything, no federal courts

Brutus No. 1 - anti-federalist paper that argued against the proposed Constitution, claiming it would lead to a centralized government that threatened individual liberties and state sovereignty

Federalist No. 10 - advocating for a strong national government and arguing that a large republic would be able to better protect individual freedoms and prevent tyranny

Federalist No. 51 - addresses the separation of powers within the national government, emphasizing that each branch should be independent to prevent any one group from gaining too much control

Federalist No. 70 - focuses on the importance of a single president, arguing that it is essential for maintaining justice and protecting against potential abuses of power

Federalist No. 78 - discusses the power of judicial review, asserting that the judiciary must be independent to effectively guard against legislative and executive overreach

Letters from a Birmingham Jail - by Martin Luther King Jr., defending the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism and criticizes the inaction of moderate white churches

1st amendment - Freedom of Speech, Religion, expression, press, petition

2nd amendment - right to bear arms

3rd amendment - no quartering troops in times of peace

4th amendment - no unreasonable search or seizure

5th amendment - no double jeopardy, establishes grand jury, no self incrimination, due process

6th amendment - guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury, and the right to counsel (criminal cases)

7th amendment - guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury, and the right to counsel (civil cases)

8th amendment - no cruel or unusual punishment

9th amendment - more rights to the individual than what is listed

10th amendment - powers not left to the federal government are to be left to the states and people

13th amendment - abolishment of slavery

14th amendment - citizenship rights, equal protection under the law, due process (including the states this time)

15th amendment - right to vote not denied by race

16th amendment - income tax

17th amendment - popular election of senators

18th amendment - prohibition

19th amendment - right to vote not denied by gender

20th amendment - presidential succession

21st amendment - repeals prohibition

22nd amendment - two term limit on Presidency

23rd amendment - DC gets a vote in electoral college for Presidency

24th amendment - abolition of poll taxes

25th amendment - presidential disability succession

26th amendment - right to vote at 18

27th amendment - congressional compensation (can’t raise pay midterm)

McCulloch v Maryland clause - necessary and proper clause + supremacy clause

McCulloch v. Maryland to know - implied power of congress to set up and run national banks, and states cannot tax federal banks

United States v. Lopez Clause - commerce clause

United States v. Lopez to know - about Gun Free Schools Zones Act that dealt with guns on school campuses and ruled that congress cannot regulate intrastate commerce

Engel v. Vitale clause - establishment clause (1st amendment)

Engel v. Vitale to know - short voluntary prayer at the start of school days at a school in NY where ruling declared that mandatory school prayer is unconstitutional

Wisconsin v. Yoder clause - free exercise clause (1st amendment)

Wisconsin v. Yoder to know - amish didn’t want to send kids to school past age 12, but state required till age 16 ruled that this was a constitutional violation

Tinker v Des Moines clause - 1st amendment, freedom of speech

Tinker v. Des Moines to know - kids wore armbands to school to protest Vietnam war and were suspended, this was unconstitutional and deemed symbolic speech protected by the constitution

New York Times v. United States clause - 1st amendment, freedom of press

New York Times v. United States to know - pentagon papers were leaked and govt wanted to prevent release, but unconstitutional to prevent unless national security risk

Schenck v. United States clause - 1st amendment, freedom of speech

Schenck v. United States to know - addressed the limits of free speech, particularly during times of war, establishing the "clear and present danger" test to determine if speech could be restricted

Gideon v Wainwright clause - 6th amendment (selective incorporation)

Gideon v. Wainwright to know - guy convicted without an attorney in a state case, guaranteed the right to counsel for defendants in criminal cases (selective incorporation case)

Roe v. Wade clause - 9th amendment

Roe v. Wade to know - woman's constitutional right to privacy and giving constitutionality to abortions

McDonald v Chicago clause - 2nd amendment (selective incorporation)

McDonald v Chicago to know - city ban on handguns, courts ruled 2nd amendment also applies to states through selective incorporation

Brown v. Board clause - Equal protection clause

Brown v. Board to know - declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional

Citizens United v. FEC clause - 1st amendment, freedom of speech

Citizens United v FEC to know - independent political spending by unions and corporations is a form of free speech

Baker v. Carr clause - equal protection clause

Baker v. Carr to know - declared federal courts are able to hear cases about state districting and apportionment after Tennessee failed to redistrict to keep fairness

Shaw v. Reno clause - Equal protection clause

Shaw v. Reno to know - race can be a factor in redistricting but cannot be the sole factor; think can’t redistrict to hurt a group, so can’t redistrict to help one either

Marbury v. Madison clause - supremacy clause

Marbury v. Madison to know - established principle of judicial review

bills of attainder - declaring guilty without trial

ex post facto laws - laws that retroactively change the legal consequences of actions that were committed before the laws were enacted

writ of habeas corpus - right for people detained to know the charges against them