The constitution of the United States is an insightful and revolutionary idea of how a government should be practiced in order to prevent a greedy, corrupt form of government from establishing and taking over its people. The US government is founded on the principle that it works for its people, meaning that whatever is legislated is meant only for the benefit of the American people. However, the Constitution is at this point flawed due to the fact that many of its proclamations are vague and outdated, and has to be left to interpretation as to what the framers truly intended of it. This is dangerous because it further divides the nation when Americans believe in different forms of what is constitutionally righteous, and this may start a civil
When our founding fathers were writing the constitution for our new nation, they looked at many different sources to gain thoughts on what they should include in the document. Some of the documents that the men looked at included the Magna Carta, Mayflower Compact, and the English Bill of Rights. When the people in America decided that they needed to be able to have freedoms that the king wouldn’t let them have, they decided to break free of Great Britain. The Americans realized that in their new nation they wanted to make an establishment causing the government to have limited power over them because they wanted to be free.
The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, but there was a grapple for its ratification that went on until about two decades after the ratification. Members of Congress believed that the first government of the United States or the Articles of Confederation, needed to be adjusted while others did not want anything to change. After the Revolutionary War, the people did not want a strong central government, because it reminded them too much of what they were trying to escape from. Under the Articles, each state had their own laws, and the need for a new Constitution was desired by many. The Constitution of 1787 created huge debates, arguments and splits in the nation that lasted for several year after its ratification between people who
The Constitution is a call for change in America. It is written very direct and detailed to get the point across. It was written to set laws for the United States, and to set up a reasonable government. James Madison wrote about three branches of government, legislative, judicial, and executive. And it also includes the Bill of Rights.
The Constitution is a counter-transformation on the grounds that the Constitutional Convention was a meeting to totally update the Articles of Confederation, and that record fundamentally illustrated the administration at that period in time. Since an insurgency is a move towards a changed government, that would make the Constitution an unrest, and it is countering the disappointments of the Articles of Confederation. It is additionally a counter-transformation since a few provisions were placed in it to counteract uprisings, for example, that of Daniel (Shays ' Rebellion). Counter-transformation, in that sense, implied the Constitution was attempting to anticipate future upheavals. The Constitutional Convention additionally settled a legislature
According to Document 2, the Constitution was not secure enough. The Constitution did not have restrictions put in place in order to prevent a political office from ruling for life. The possibilities of the U.S. government transforming into a monarchy were too high, making it ideal to not ratify the Constitution. Furthermore, the Constitution posed a threat to those less wealthy. Document 5 expressed the concerns of the people, stating, “These lawyers and men of learning, and monied men … make us poor illiterate people swallow down the pill”.
Edmund Burke once said, "A state without the means of some change is without the means of its conservation." (Burke 36) A country 's constitution needs mechanisms in place to make amendments because as progress is made the landscape of a country is altered. Times change and people change. Constitutions are stories nations tell about themselves (Adams 3), how they wish to protect their citizens and how it must "provide more than a legal blueprint for governance" (Adams 2)
The U.S. Constitution is a Living Document Since society has changed dramatically between the eighteenth and twenty first century, the U.S Constitution should be considered as a living document because it is not applicable in today's society and therefore in need of some changes in order to fit into today’s society. When our founding fathers wrote the constitution they did not have in mind all the technological advancements the U.S. will one day have. Such as the internet, television, radio, and so on. Other’s will say that if the constitution was considered a living document then judges will take advantage and manipulate the constitution to their benefit, but they don’t realize that people already manipulate the constitution. There were laws that contradicted the constitution like the Judiciary Act of 1789, which contradicts Article III of the Constitution in the Marbury v. Madison case.
Essay Two – Daniel Astleford Jeremy Christensen spoke extensively about the difference between Originalism and Living Constitutionalism. I want to discuss the similarities and differences of these two points of view and then take a stance on which I think is more valid. Originalism says that the Constitution should only be changed through the amendment process. The amendment process is extremely thorough. In fact, there have been thousands of proposed amendments, but only a few have made it through the process to become law.
DBQ Essay The United States Constitution is a document that or founding fathers made in order to replace the failing Articles of Confederation (A of C). Under the Constitution, the current government and states don’t have the problems they faced when the A of C was in action. The Constitution was created in 1788, and held an idea that the whole nation was nervous about. This idea was a strong national government, and the Federalist assured the people that this new government would work. The framers of the Constitution decided to give more power to the Federal government rather than the state governments because the A of C had many problems, there was a need for the layout of new government, rights, and laws, and there was a need for the Federal
The Constitution of the united states of America means to me my rights as an American citizen. The constitution makes me feel safe from the government because it protects my rights. It lets me know the government power over the people, and the laws they can make and the laws they can not make. The Constitution ensures my freedom as an American. It is a very important document for the United States of American for the president to follow.
The Constitution—the foundation of the American government—has been quintessential for the lives of the American people for over 200 years. Without this document America today would not have basic human rights, such as those stated in the Bill of Rights, which includes freedom of speech and religion. To some, the Constitution was an embodiment of the American Revolution, yet others believe that it was a betrayal of the Revolution. I personally believe that the Constitution did betray the Revolution because it did not live up to the ideals of the Revolution, and the views of the Anti-Federalists most closely embodied the “Spirit of ‘76.” During the midst of the American Revolution, authors and politicians of important documents, pamphlets, and slogans spread the basis for Revolutionary ideals and defined what is known as the “Spirit of ‘76”.
Justice Thurgood Marshall Response Justice Thurgood Marshall said in his “Reflections on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution”, “I do not believe the meaning of the Constitution was forever ‘fixed’ at the Philadelphia Convention. Nor do I find the wisdom, foresight, and sense of justice exhibited by the framers particularly profound. To the contrary, the government they devised was defective from the start, requiring several amendments, a civil war, and momentous social transformation to attain the system of constitutional government and its respect for the individual freedoms and human rights, that we hold as fundamental as today” (Marshall). In this passage of his essay, Judge Marshall is critical of the government that is
The Constitution of the United States was formed 223 years ago. Since 1787, a lot has changed. We grew as a country, technology advanced, and we elected 43 different presidents. One of witch, being the first African-American President in history. Due to its age, some may argue that the Constitution is irrelevant to today’s problems.
A constitution according to Haywood (???) is a set of rules written and unwritten. These rules enable powers and establish duties and define the relationships between the individual and the state. This constitution in the UK can be traced back to the Magna Carter (1215) where the separation of powers from the monarch to parliament began in response to unrest. The English Civil War (1642-1651) saw the Parliamentary victory that set the precedent that the monarch could not govern without parliament’s consent then in 1689 The Bill of Rights was introduced.
