Government Chapter 8. GOALS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE CONSTITUTION Section 1.

Government

Chapter 8

GOALS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE CONSTITUTION

Section 1

Parts of the Constitution

Divided into 3 Parts – Preamble: Introduction to the

Constitution; it lists the six basic goals for our government

– Articles: The articles laying out the framework for our government (seven)

– Amendments: Changes made to the Constitution after the initial ratification

6 Functions of Government

These six functions are the ideas and standards that our government is based on and functions according to.– To form a more perfect Union – To establish justice– To insure domestic tranquility– To provide for the common defense– To promote General welfare– To secure the blessings of liberty

Amending the Constitution

Article V provided four methods to amend the Constitution

An amendment is a change to the Constitution or clarification of something in the Constitution

The Four MethodsMethod 1: Proposed by a 2/3

vote in each house of Congress

Ratified by ¾ of the state legislatures

Method 2 Proposed by a 2/3

vote in each house of Congress

Ratified by conventions in ¾ of the states

Method 3: Proposed by a national convention called by

Congress at the request of 2/3 of the states Ratified by ¾ of the state legislaturesMethod 4: Proposed by national convention called by

Congress at the request of 2/3 of the states Ratified by conventions in ¾ of the states

Amendments, continued

The amendments are divided into three groups

BILL OF RIGHTS – Amendments 1 through 10CIVIL WAR AMENDMENTS – Amendments

13 through 15LATER AMENDMENTS – Amendments 16

through 27(Amendments 11 and 12 are generally

considered to be an extension of the Bill of Rights, and therefore not included in any of the three groups)

Civil War AmendmentsThe Civil War Amendments were passed as a

direct response to the outcome of The Civil war. They all deal with slavery in one way or another.

13th Amendment – Outlawed slavery and Involuntary servitude in the United States of America

14th Amendment – Helped make former slaves citizens of the U.S. and gave them all the rights that being a citizen entails

15th Amendment – Written to give former slaves the right to vote, however was not entirely successful in doing so for nearly 100 years

Bill of RightsThe purpose of the Bill of Rights was to list out the basic rights of all

Americans so these rights could not be violated as they were in the years of British rule under King George III

Amendment 1: Freedom of Speech, Press, Religion, Assembly, and Petition

Amendment 2: The right to bear arms Amendment 3: Protects against the Quartering of Troops Amendment 4: Protects against illegal search and seizure of

personal property Amendment 5: Insures due process, protects against eminent

domain, provides rules for criminal hearings, and protects against self-incrimination

Amendment 6: Right to a speedy and public trial and right to trial by jury

Amendment 7: Provides stipulations for civil trials Amendment 8: Protects against excessive bail and cruel and

unusual punishment Amendment 9: States that the rights listed in the Constitution are

not all the rights given to the American people Amendment 10: States that all powers not granted to the National

government or forbidden to the states, belong to the states

The ArticlesThere are 7 articles in the second section of the

Constitution, each accomplishing different things Article 1: The legislative article lays out the

structure and powers of the legislative branch Article 2: The executive article lays out the

structure and powers of the executive branch Article 3: The judicial article establishes a national

judiciary and gives Congress the power to create additional court systems

Article 4: Deals with the relationships between states

Article 5: Provides methods for amending the Constitution

Article 6: Deals with the National Debt Article 7: Provides provisions for ratification of the

Constitution

Seven Basic Principles

Ideas and standards that our government is based on and functions according to.

1. Popular Sovereignty2. Limited Government3. Separation of Powers4. Checks and Balances5. Federalism6. Republicanism7. Individual Rights

Popular Sovereignty

People are the ONLY source of government’s power

“We the People…do ordain and establish”

Government’s power comes from the people, and the people have given government permission to govern by the constitution

Limited Government

The idea that government is not all powerful and can be limited

Government can do only those things the PEOPLE have given it the power to do

States that government must obey the law

The entire Constitution is a statement of Limited Government

Separation of Power

Further limit government power. Divided the government into three

branches.– Legislative – Executive– Judicial

Checks and Balances

Checks and balances is a way for the government to give each branch power over the other two

The idea is to keep one branch from becoming more powerful than the others and controlling government– Why would the framers want to ensure

one branch did not become too powerful?

Federalism

Division of power between the federal and state government.

Federal government– coin money– Declare war– Regulate trade between states

State government– Regulate trade within its own border– Make rules for state elections– Establish schools

Powers not exclusively given to federal government belong to state.

Republicanism

Allowing representatives to carry out the will of the people.

Representatives vote with their own mind once elected.

Must be willing to listen to the people if have concerns.

Hold offices in their home districts

Individual Rights

The rights that no one can take away from you.

Protected by Constitution– Freedom of speech– Freedom of religion – Right to bear arms

Quiz 1

1. What are the 6 basic principles of the government? To form a more perfect Union

To establish justiceTo insure domestic tranquilityTo provide for the common defenseTo promote General welfareTo secure the blessings of liberty

2. The Constitution is divided into how many

parts? What are those parts? Preamble Articles Amendments

Quiz 1

3. What groups are the amendments divided into?BILL OF RIGHTS – Amendments 1 through 10CIVIL WAR AMENDMENTS – Amendments 13 through 15LATER AMENDMENTS – Amendments 16 through 27

4. This amendment gives all citizens the right to bear arms

2nd Amendment 5. What is the Bill of Rights?list out the basic rights of all Americans

HOW GOVERNMENT WORKS

Section 2

Legislative Branch

House of representatives

– Larger of both houses currently has 435 members

– Based off population– Elected by people in their districts for 2 year

terms – Run for reelection as many times as they want– Leader of the House is the Speaker– The speaker regulates debates and controls

the agenda.– Speaker is third in line if president and vice

president die

Mississippi Represenatives

District 1 (ours) Alan Nunnelee District 2 Bennie Thompson District 3 Gregg Harper District 4 Steven Palazzo

Legislative Branch

Senate– Equal representation – 2 senators per state– Elected to 6 year term which overlap. – Every two years 1/3 of members come up for

election.– Chosen by state legislatures at first but now

the public elects the members.– Vice President is the Leader of the Senate.– Casts a vote in a tie–

Mississippi Senate members

Thad Cochran Rodger Wicker

Legislative Branch

Powers of Congress (laws)– Makes the laws for the country– Laws start as bills– Can start in either Senate or House – After introduction the bill is debated– If both houses agree then the president

must sign it – Both houses have standing Committees

that deal with different bills Elastic Clause- allows Congress to extent its

power to handle situation in the changing country

Executive Branch

Article 2 set up this branch to carry out the laws and run the affairs of the national government.

President is head of the Executive Branch

Other members of this branch are– Vice president – Cabinet members– Departments and agencies that help

them do their job( FBI, CIA, NSA…. Etc. )

Roles of President

Commander and Chief of all armed forces.

Carries out the Laws Directs foreign affairs and has power

to make treaties and to appoint ambassadors.

Electing the president

President is elected for a 4-year term and may only be elected twice.

Electoral college is used to elect the president.– When a person votes they do not vote for the

person directly.– Mississippi has 6

President can lose the popular vote but can still become president

Judicial Branch

Lower Courts Most federal cases begin in

district courts Once all evidence is seen and

a decision is made and appeal may be made

Appeal- ask that the decision be reviewed by higher court

Next court is the appeal court where decision is reviewed and make sure the decision was fair

Supreme Court Made up of a Chief Justice and 8

Associate Justices that server for life

Supreme Court serves as the final appeals court.

Decides less than 100 cases every year.

After the case is heard the judges vote, decision rest on Majority vote of at least 5

The biggest power The Supreme Court has is to decide if law are unconstitutional

Unconstitutional- not allowed under the Constitution

Congress established the Supreme Court in 1789, as well as lower courts as they are needed .

STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

Section 4

All 50 states have a state Constitution that sets forth principals and a framework

Includes provisions on finance, education and other matters.

State constitutions can be changed by amendments voted on by citizens( ex prop 8 California)

half of the states citizens can change the constitution by constitutional initiative.

Constitutional Initiative- sponsors of an amendment gather signatures on a petition.

States can rewrite constitution by calling a constitutional convention (ex Mississippi after Civil War)

State Provided Services

Maintain law and order Enforce criminal law Protect property Regulate business Supervise public education Provide public health and welfare programs (ex:

Health Dept, Food Stamps) Maintain and build the infrastructure Infrastructure-system of roads, bridges, and

tunnels

Local Government

Government on the county, parish, city, town, village, or district level.

Created by the states and only have the powers the state gives them

One service local governments control is education.– Build schools– Hire teachers and staff– Have a say in what curriculum is taught

Voters have more of a say in local government than federal or state.

Other services are police, firemen, garbage pick up, water, hospitals, libraries, parks……..