Principles of Government
The Constitution was written establishing a new form of government for the United
States. It is considered the supreme law of land, meaning that no others laws can be considered
above it. The Framers of the Constitution, or original creators and writers of the document,
wanted to make sure that the new government would be a republic in which people would
participate by electing representatives to make governmental decisions for them. They realized
that the citizens of the United States would not tolerate a monarchy, or government ruled by a
king or queen. It was from these negative past experiences that the Framers were able to create
the government we have with us today.
Knowing that the government under the Articles of Confederation gave states too much
power and the central government too little power, the Framers created a federal system of
government in which the powers are divided between the states and central government. This
sharing of powers is known as federalism.
Federalism
Powers of the Federal Government
Powers of the State Government
Power to regulate trade between countries
Power to regulate trade within a state
Power to regulate trade between states
Power to establish schools
Power to declare war
Power to pass marriage laws
Within the Constitution there are three types of powers. Enumerated powers are those
that belong to the federal government and can be found in the constitution. Reserved powers
are kept by the states such as the right to establish laws for marriage, creating schools,
prohibiting gambling and others. These reserved powers are not mentioned in the Constitution,
but according to the Tenth Amendment all powers not granted to the federal government are
given to the states. The third type of power is concurrent power, or powers shared by both the
states and federal government. Two examples of concurrent powers are taxation and borrowing
money.
In order to address concerns about the government becoming too powerful, James
Madison utilized the concept of separation of powers. This idea separated the government into
three parts. One branch is the legislative branch, known as Congress. It is their responsibility to
write and pass laws. The executive branch, or President, is responsible for enforcing the laws of
Congress. The third branch is the judicial branch, known as the Supreme Court, which
interprets, or finds the meaning, of the laws. Each of these branches has their own distinct
powers and has some controls over the other two branches in order to stop them from becoming
too powerful (see diagram on page 228).
Parts of the Constitution
The first part of the Constitution is called the Preamble. The Preamble begins with the
words “We the People of the United States” to show that the people have the right to govern
themselves and that the government gets it powers from the people being governed. The
Preamble also states six goals of the government, (1) to form a more perfect union, (2) to
establish justice, (3) to insure domestic tranquility, (4) to provide for the common defense, (5) to
promote the general welfare, and (6) to secure the blessings of liberty.
The second part of the Constitution is the Articles. The first three Articles outline the
role of the three branches, beginning with Article I, which describes the legislative branch. In
Article I, Congress is given a variety of powers such as those listed on the top of page 205 in the
American Journey textbook. Additional powers include the “Commerce Clause” which is found
in Article I, Section 8, Clause 3, which states that Congress has the power to regulate, or control
trade. This same clause states that the Native American tribes are to be considered independent
nations and can create their own laws with certain limitations. Since the Framers knew that
Congress might have to use, or exercise, powers not actually listed in the Constitution in order to
handle new ideas, the Constitution contains Article I, Section 8, Clause 18, known as the Elastic
Clause, which states that Congress can make laws that are necessary and proper in order to carry
out its powers. A recent example would be the recent bail out of the banks and the auto industry.
Legislative Powers (p. 249 – 254)
Location in the Constitution
Name of Power
Purpose of Power
Article, Section, Clause
Article I, Section 8, Clause 1
Article I, Section 8, Clause 3
Article I, Section 8, Clause 5
Article I, Section 8, Clause 11
Article I, Section 8, Clause 18
Article II of the Constitution describes the qualifications and powers of the Executive
Branch, which consists of the President and the Cabinet. The powers of the President include
negotiating treaties, or agreements, with other countries; carrying out the laws passed by
Congress; and leading the United States military as the commander in chief. The President’s
Cabinet is a group of assistants, called Secretaries, which help the President enforce the laws.
Article III creates the judicial branch. The Supreme Court, known as “the highest court
in the land”, is made up of 9 justices, or judges. Originally the Supreme Court did not have very
much power. However, Chief Justice John Marshall changed that when he declared a law passed
by Congress to be unconstitutional in the case of Marbury v. Madison. This power to declare
laws unconstitutional is known as judicial review.
The other four articles of the Constitution are:
Article IV – Relations between States
Article V – The Amendment Process
Article VI – National Supremacy (The Constitution is the highest law in the land)
Article VII – The Ratification Process
The last part of the Constitution is the Bill of Rights, which are the first ten amendments.
These amendments give protections to citizens and cannot be taken away by the federal
government. The Bill of Rights were inserted into the Constitution after the Anti-Federalists
refused to ratify the document unless certain protections were incorporated into the Constitution.
In a compromise, the Federalists agreed to put in the protections once the Constitution was
approved. Since the Bill of Rights was added in 1791 there have been seventeen additional
amendments approved.
Other Ideas in the Constitution
People such as Thomas Jefferson contributed in many ways to the forming of the
government. Jefferson’s writings in the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom became an
example for the idea of religious freedom contained in the First Amendment. Jefferson had seen
how religion in some colonies became the rule of government and he believed that there should
be a clear separation of church (religion) and state (the government).
No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious
worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced,
restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall
otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinion or belief; but
that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain,
their opinion in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no
wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.
-Thomas Jefferson
The Statute for Religious Freedom
Jefferson also believed in the concept of majority rule. He stated that the only way a
government could function properly was through the majority. In other words, when people
exercise their right to vote, the person with the most votes wins. As soon as the minority is
allowed to make decisions, then the government no longer represents the will of the people.
Having a minority rule can be dangerous because then the strongest and most powerful groups
will take advantage of everyone else.
Every man, and every body of men on earth, possesses the right of
self-government. They receive it with their being from the hand of
nature. Individuals exercise it by their single will; collections of
men by that of their majority; for the law of the majority is the
natural law of every society of men.
-Thomas Jefferson:
Opinion on Residence Bill, 1790
Where the law of the majority ceases to be acknowledged, there
government ends, the law of the strongest takes its place, and life
and property are his who can take them.
-Thomas Jefferson
To Annapolis Citizens, 1809