United States Constitution

Examples of United States Constitution in the following topics:

• The Limits of Democracy

  • As the new political value system of republicanism was forming, many framers of the United States Constitution worried about democracy's limitations.
  • The Federalist Papers form a collection of 85 articles and essays by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, promoting ratification of the United States Constitution.
  • In 1787, while the Constitution was being drafted, individual states were making separate agreements with European and Native American nations apart from the Continental Congress.
  • Without the Convention's proposed central government, the framers feared that the United States under the Articles of Confederation would fail to keep the country intact.
  • Several ideas in the Constitution were new, associated with the combination of consolidated government, along with federal relationships with constituent states.

• The Ratification Debate

  • The process of ratifying the proposed United States Constitution led to prolonged debate between Federalists and Anti-Federalists.
  • On September 17, 1787, the the delegates at the Philadelphia Convention finalized the new United States Constitution.
  • Each state was to hold a convention to debate, and ratify or reject, the Constitution.
  • The United States was now technically under the jurisdiction of the new Constitution, but the economically dominant state of New York and the populous state of Virginia, among others, had still not ratified it.
  • After the Constitution was ratified, most delegates of the 1st United States Congress found themselves in agreement that a bill of individual rights was a necessary addition to the founding documents of the new nation.

• The State Constitutions

  • In the United States, each state has its own constitution.
  • Both the federal and state constitutions are organic texts: they are the fundamental blueprints for the legal and political organizations of the United States and the individual states that comprise the Union, respectively.
  • The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, provides that "[t]he powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. " The Guarantee Clause of Article 4 of the Constitution states that "[t]he United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government. " These two provisions give states the wide latitude to adopt a constitution, the fundamental documents of state law.
  • The organized territories of the United States also have constitutions of their own if they have an organized government through an Organic Act passed by the federal Congress.
  • The United States Virgin Islands, an unincorporated organized territory, does not have its own constitution; instead it operates under various federal statutes.

• Congress of the Confederation

  • The Congress of the Confederation was the governing body of the United States from 1781 to 1789.
  • The Congress of the Confederation was the governing body of the United States of America, in force from March 1, 1781, to March 4, 1789.
  • It was composed of delegates appointed by the states' legislatures.
  • The Congress of the Confederation was succeeded by the Congress of the United States, as provided for in the Constitution, proposed September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia at the Constitutional Convention.
  • The last meeting of the Continental Congress was held March 2, 1789, 2 days before the Constitutional government assumed power.

• "We the People"

  • The United States Constitution established a system of government that aims to derive its power from the people.
  • The United States is a union of states, each with its own individual powers.
  • The United States is a union that does not completely fit either definition.
  • However, each state's sovereignty is limited by the US Constitution, which is the supreme law of both the United States as a nation and each state.
  • The Preamble of the Constitution of the United States begins with the often-quoted phrase, "We the People."

• Conclusion: The Development of the Constitution

  • Drafting and ratifying the United States Constitution was a long and arduous process that shaped the future of the new nation.
  • Ultimately, the Constitution only narrowly won approval in the nine necessary states.
  • By excluding slaves, free blacks, Native Americans, and Asians from citizenship, the act laid the foundation for the United States as a republic of white men.
  • Many state constitutions mandated that only male property owners or taxpayers could vote.
  • Through several debates and a long ratification process, the Constitution became the supreme law of the United States of America.

• "The People"

  • The government of the United States is understood by the Constitution to be created for and by the people.
  • The United States is a union of states.
  • The Constitution of the United States spells out the powers of the federal government and of the "several states".
  • The phrase "People of the United States" has sometimes been understood to mean "citizens".
  • Constitution is superior to that of the states.

• Settlement of the New Land

  • The United States began continental expansion immediately after the Constitution of 1789 through war, treaty, land deals, and settlement.
  • From independence, the United States expanded rapidly to the west and south.
  • Alaska was added to the United States in 1867 as part of a land deal with the Russian Empire.
  • By the 1900s, the United States had achieved its main present boundaries on the North American continent proper .
  • Identify key dates in the history of the United States' territorial expansion

• Hamilton's Achievements

  • Alexander Hamilton's broad interpretation of Constitutional powers has influenced multiple generations of political theorists.
  • Though the Constitution was ambiguous as to the exact balance of power between national and state governments, Hamilton consistently argued in favor of greater federal power at the expense of the states, especially in his efforts to strengthen the national economy.
  • Hamilton's economic policies as the Secretary of the Treasury influenced the development of the United States federal government from 1789-1800.
  • His constitutional interpretation of the Necessary and Proper Clause set precedents for broad federal authority that are still upheld in courts and are considered an authority on constitutional interpretation.
  • Identify several of Alexander Hamilton's key accomplishments and the constitutional principle that made them possible

• Hamilton's Legacy

  • He knew the Atlantic trade very well and used that knowledge in setting policy for the United States.
  • In the aftermath of ratification, George Washington became the first President of the United States in 1789 and appointed Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury.
  • The United States began to become mired in debt.
  • The United States had been unable to pay its debts in the 1780s and was therefore considered a credit risk by European countries.
  • Instead, he believed that the United States should emulate Britain's strong central political structure and encourage the growth of commerce, trade alliances, and manufacturing.