United States Constitution and Political Parties Essay

Submitted By CRAYON-
Words: 762
Pages: 4
Open Document
“We the People…”
The Constitution in Review

What is Government?
 We

need government to protect the rights of the people.
 In America we have a Republican form of government –

The people elect leaders to make laws and vote on decisions for them

 In America

we also have a Constitutional government –

A Constitutional government has limits to its power. Opposite of a dictatorial government.

Separation of Powers
 To

avoid the abuse of power, we separate powers into three branches.
–

Legislative, Executive, and Judicial

 These

branches check and balance each other to make sure one does not become too powerful and begin to abuse its power.

What shaped the Founders’
Thinking about Government?
 Life

in colonial times
 Events leading up to the American
Revolution
 Declaration of Independence
 The American Revolution
 Articles of Confederation

What happened at the
Philadelphia Convention?
 Delegates

from 12 of the 13 states met in Convention at Philadelphia in 1787
 Originally came to revise the Articles of
Confederation
 End up starting all over again.
 Spend the summer writing a new
Constitution.
 James Madison, George Washington,
Benjamin Franklin, among others.

Article 1: Legislative Branch
 The

Virginia Plan called for two houses of
Congress with representation based on population--the more people you have, the more votes you get.
 The New Jersey Plan called for one house of
Congress with equal representation--each state gets one vote.
 The Great Compromise = Two houses of
Congress. One house has proportional representation, the other has equal representation. Problems with Representation
 3/5

Compromise: Counted slaves as
3/5 of a person when it came to representation. Slaves were seen as property and were not citizens of the
US.
–

This compromise was voided after the
Civil War amendments made slavery illegal and gave citizenship to Black
Americans.

Powers of the Legislative
Branch
 Enumerated

Powers: Framers who wanted to limit the powers of Congress supported these powers. They laid out specific things
Congress could and could not do.
 General Powers: Framers who wanted to give more power to Congress supported these powers. They generally said
Congress could pass any laws that were
“necessary and proper.” This is known as the
Elastic Clause.

Article II: Executive Branch
 The
–
–

35 years old
Natural born citizen, etc.

 The
–
–

–

Powers of the President

Make treaties
Commander in Chief of Military, etc.

 The
–

qualifications for the President

Responsibilities of the President

State of the Union address
Budget suggestions, etc.

Article III: The Judiciary
 Supreme

Court
 Courts of Appeal
 Very vaguely described branch of government. How did the People approve the new Constitution?
 Ratification

= the process of officially

approving
 Framers wanted the people to vote on approving the new government plan
 9 of the 13 states had to ratify the document
 Federalists were for the Constitution;
Antifederalists were against the Constitution.
 1789--Constitution is ratified after Framers promise to add a Bill of Rights

How was the Constitution used to establish the US government?

Political Parties
 The

first political parties developed naturally due to disagreements over the meaning of the words in the
Constitution
Show More

Related Documents: United States Constitution and Political Parties Essay

What Was The Federalist Era

the Constitution and Jefferson’s inauguration as president. During this time, the new nation struggled to find firm footing. Even though the nation faced obstacles including divisive political parties and the large national debt, they have made accomplishments such as the ratification of the Constitution and worked out economic and foreign relations issues. In the Federalist Era, the United States faced tensions such as the political parties and the large national debt. The political parties were…

Words 521 - Pages 3

Anti Federalist Despotism

of the United States constitution was conveyed by long term debate regarding the Country future and its’s edification. These heated arguments brought about the formation of two political parties, the federalists and antifederalists. Antifederalists was knowing as the opposing party where their debates addresses the supremacy of the federalist’s interest over its citizen. “The Federalists were headed by Alexander Hamilton, and the first political party to have emerged in the United States. This party…

Words 543 - Pages 3

Compare And Contrast Democrats And Republicans

The United States of America has two current dominant parties in political elections: the Republicans and Democrats. In elections, people seem to choose the political party that have the same values as they do. Both of these parties have key ideals that define the development of our laws and policies. The United States can be described as a democratic republic or a republic democracy depending on your political views. Based on how the United States is running as of now, Donald Trump ran as a Republican…

Words 380 - Pages 2

American Democracy Research Paper

American Democracy My Report Card One of the greatest strengths of the U.S. Constitution is it can be amended. The Constitution is the single most important document in our country. The preambles of the Constitution set in motion the electoral process we use yet today. The founding fathers set a plan in motion to limit the amount of terms that any one person could serve. This was achieved by writings in the Constitution setting term limits on presidents and creating a congress. The founding fathers…

Words 1189 - Pages 5

Essay on Chapter 15 Terms

only way to overthrow the institution of slavery in the United States. 2. John C. Calhoun- a leading American politician and political theorist during the first half of the 19th century. 3. Zachary Taylor- 12th President of the United States, serving from March 1849 until his death in July 1850. Before his presidency, Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to the rank of major general. 4. Henry Clay- encouraged United States participation in the War of 1812. 5. Stephen Douglas-…

Words 1382 - Pages 6

The United States And The Prime Minister Of The United Kingdom

difference in power between the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The President of the United States and the Prime minister of the United Kingdom are often perceived to be amongst the the most powerful political figures in the western world (1). In this essay the difference in power between the two will be briefly examined. Firstly the different constitutions of the two countries requires examination. The Constitution, the codified document America was founded…

Words 1100 - Pages 5

Study Guide: Bicameral Legislature

Avoids concentration of political power Advantage (3) Accommodated already existing state governments Advantage (4) States serve as training grounds for national leaders Advantage (5) Keeps government close to people Disadvantage (1) Inflexibility inherent in written constitution Disadvantage (2) Complex Disadvantage (3) Duplication of offices and functions Disadvantage (4) Conflicts of authority may rise Articles of Confederation The first constitution of the 13 American states, adopted in 1781 and replaced in 1789 by the…

Words 2231 - Pages 9

Essay Early Republic HW LE Pdf

feeling between the two national political parties. Thomas Jefferson, the new president, recognized the need for a smooth and peaceful transition of power to the federalists to the democraticrepublicans. the federalists quietly accepted their defeat in the election of 1800 and peacefully relinquished control of the federal government to Jefferson's party. The election of 1800 was also named the revolution of 1800 because the passing of power from one political party to another was accomplished without…

Words 654 - Pages 3

Political Changes After The American Revolution Essay

conditions in the years after the Revolution lead to calls for fundamental political change? The economic conditions after the Revolution called for many fundamental political changes. The newly independent nation had many obstacles to hurdle.Firstly was protecting the rights of individuals and composing the rights and protections to secure the freedoms we fought for. Another change after the Revolution was the founding of the separate party system. Of Course the one that peaked my interest was women and slaves…

Words 497 - Pages 2

politicalscifinal Essay

Poli Sci Final 1. List and explain the four main features and functions of constitutions. Be sure to associate your answers with specific models from countries explored in this course. According to the teaching of this course, some constitutions features and functions are Theories of government, humanity, society and God. When it comes down to it , constitutions are designed to prevent the government from doing unethical things to others like illegal search and seizure and unwarranted surveillance…

Words 3081 - Pages 13