The Trinity of American Government
• Declaration of Independence
– A document that is used to separate a country from another
country.
EXAMPLE: Texas from Mexico,
the U.S.A. from the U.K.
• Constitution
– A document that lists and divides the powers of Government.
EXAMPLE: Texas Constitution of 1845, US Constitution
• Bill of Rights
– An addition to the Constitution that list the rights of the people.
EXAMPLE: First 10 Amendments to the US Constitution
The Constitution
• Sets forth responsibilities
of the government
• Places limits on the
governments powers
• Explains what a
government can do and
cannot do.
• It divides the federal
government into three
branches (or parts)
•The U.S. Constitution was
written in 1787.
7 Principles of the Constitution
Popular Sovereignty
• Definition – A government in which the
people rule.
• This means the people participate by voting.
• Example – People can run for office, campaign
for individuals who run, or protest decisions
made by others.
Republicanism
• Definition – People vote for people to represent their views.
(Representative Government)
• You can’t have the whole population vote on everything, so
you vote on people who share similar beliefs and allow them
to vote.
Federalism
• Definition – A system of government in which powers
are shared by the state and national government.
• These include setting up courts, creating and
collecting taxes, building highways, and borrowing
money.
Separation of Power
• Definition – Divides the roles of
government into 3 branches,
Executive, Legislative, and Judicial.
• Why? So that one person or one
group of people do not control
everything and become to powerful.
Federal Government:
Texas Government:
Executive: President
Executive: Governor
Legislative: Congress
Legislative: Congress
Judicial: Courts
Judicial: Courts
• Definition – Each of the 3 branches
of government “check” on what
each other are doing to keep power Check and Balances
in “balance” or to make sure that
any one branch doesn’t get too
much power.
• This is another way to assure that
our government is limited.
• Example – Federal judges are
nominated by the President, but
have to be approved by Congress.
• Both the Federal Government and
Texas Government have this system
of Checks and Balances.
Limited Government
• Definition – Everybody has to follow the same laws, even
members of the government.
• If a Representative killed a man, he would face a trial just like
everybody else.
Individual Rights
The Texas Bill of Rights is the
first thirty four sections of the
Texas Constitution
• Definition – Personal liberties and
privileges that people are born with and
can not be taken away.
• The U.S. Constitution and the Texas
Constitution both have a Bill of Rights – a
list of laws that are YOUR rights as people
living in the U.S. and Texas.
• The Bill of Rights was included in our
constitution to protect your individual
rights/freedoms.
• These rights limit the power of our
federal and state governments.
The U.S. Bill of Rights is the
first ten Amendments to the
U.S. Constitution
Other Terms
Bill of Rights
• Basic liberties and rights of all citizens are
guaranteed in the Constitution
Bill of Rights
• Describes and protects the individual rights of the citizens
• The 1st ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution are called
the Bill of Rights
• Examples:
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Texas is a free and independent state
All political power is inherent in the people
All free men have equal rights
Freedom of worship is guaranteed
Freedom of speech and the press is guaranteed
No unreasonable searches and seizures
Trial by jury
• These were not originally in the constitution but were
added later
A Texas Bill of Rights
• The Texas Bill of Rights is Article 1 of
the Texas constitution
• Its much like the U.S. Bill of Rights
and covers a lot of the same rights
•The Texas Bill of Rights is much more
specific than the U.S. Bill of Rights
Amendment
an addition to a formal
document such as a
constitution
Bicameral
composed of two
legislative chambers or
branches (House of
Representatives and
Senate)