THE CONSTITUTION

Good Morning 3/30/15

Please take a handout, grab your notebook and have a
seat.
Prepare to take notes on the Constitution
We will complete the handout after taking notes and

while working through the quizzes in Unit 2 of Edgenuity

Quarter 3 ends TODAY for this class. You should reach at

least 25% completion with a passing grade on Edgenuity.

ARTICLES OF THE
CONSTITUTION
Article

Preamble
Article I
Article II
Article III
Article IV
Article V
Article VI
Article VII

Subject

states the purpose of the Constitution

Legislative Branch
Executive Branch
Judicial Branch
Relations among the states
Amending the Constitution
National debts, supremacy of national law, and oaths of office
Ratifying the constitution

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
1. Popular Sovereignty: political power belongs

to the people
We the People
National government is given power from the

people via the Constitution

State governments are given power from the
people via state constitutions
National Law supersedes state law in most cases

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
2. Limited Government
No government should be all-powerful.
The other side of popular sovereignty

People give the power to govern and the

government cannot do anything other than
the things the people have given them power
to do.
Constitutionalism government must be
conducted according to constitutional principles
Rule of Law government and its officers are
always subject to never above the law.

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
3. Separation of Powers
Power is distributed to the branches of government.
Each branch has specific power/responsibility
Article I Section 1: All legislative powers herein granted shall

be vested in the Congress of the United States.

Congress has lawmaking power
Article II Section 1: The executive power shall be vested in a
President of the United States of America.
The President has the power to execute, enforce, and
administer the law.
Article III Section 1: The judicial power of the United States
will be vested in one supreme court, and in such inferior courts
as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish
The Supreme Court and the Federal Courts interpret and
apply the law.

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
4. Checks & Balances
The branches of government are not entirely

separate from one another.

Each branch is subject to a number of constitutional
restraints by the other branches.
i.e. The Presidents power to veto a bill

See the chart on p.68

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
5. Judicial Review
The power of the courts to determine whether what

government does is in accord with what the

Constitution provides.
The power of the court to determine the Constitutionality of

governmental action.

Though the Constitution does not explicitly provide

for the power of judicial review, it is an implied

power.
Hamilton wrote in The Federalist No. 78 independent

judges are an essential safeguard against the effects of

occasional ill humors in society.

The Supreme Court established the power of

judicial review in the Madison v. Marbury case.

SIX BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE

CONSTITUTION
6. Federalism
The division of power among a central government

and several regional (state) governments

This concept arose as a solution to the failures of the

Articles of Confederation

Federalism was an alternative to the system of

nearly independent states and a safeguard against

a powerful central government.