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The Constitution is actually a short document, outlining only a framework of a federal government system.

The Constitution is divided into three main parts:

1. The Preamble
2. The Articles
3. The Amendments

The Preamble lists the goals the founding fathers wanted to accomplish in the Constitution (see lesson one).

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• Form a more perfect union.
• Establish justice.
• Insure law and order (domestic tranquility).
• Defense against foreign enemies.
• Promote the well-being of citizens.
• Secure freedom for ourselves and our descendants.

To accomplish these six goals, the 55 delegates in Philadelphia approved the seven articles in the Constitution.

The seven articles in the Constitution are not designed to address a particular goal from the Preamble.

Rather, the articles concentrate on setting up a type of government that meets all of the goals of the Preamble.

1. Legislative Branch
2. Executive Branch
3. Judicial Branch
4. States and Territories
5. Amendments
6. Supremacy Clause

Article I - The Legislative Branch

Many people believe that the legislative branch was placed in the first article to indicate it was the most important branch of government. In this branch the people would have direct control, through their vote, over their representation on the national level of government.

There is much more information included in Article I. First, it gives all legislative powers to a Congress.

Article II - The Executive Branch

Article III - The Judicial Branch

All three branches of the American government are established in the first three Articles of the Constitution. The other four Articles begin to limit and restrict the federal government.

Article IV - Relations Among the States

Article V - Procedures for Changing the Constitution

Article V lists the procedures for amending or changing the Constitution. An amendment to the U.S. Constitution can be proposed by a vote of two thirds of both Houses of Congress.

An amendment can also be proposed by the application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several states and shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments. This process to amend the Constitution has never been used.

Article VI - National Supremacy

In this Article the federal government assumes the debts from the days of the Articles of Confederation.

Article VI also makes the Constitution the supreme law of the land. This means that the Constitution is superior to all state and local laws and state constitutions.

All officers of government must take an oath to support the Constitution. Article VI also states that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification for any public office.

Article VII - Ratification

This Article outlines how the Constitution shall go into effect when 9 states ratify it (see lesson 7).

The second paragraph states that the Constitution was "Done in Convention by the Unanimous consent of the States present...in witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed our Names". Actually only thirty-nine of the fifty-five men present signed the Constitution on September 17, 1787.

The Amendments

These are the changes we have made to the Constitution since the original document was written in 1787.

The first ten amendments are called the "Bill of Rights," while the last 17 were changes that were added as time passed.

The amendments will be discussed in detail in later lessons.

The first ten amendments were almost included in the original Constitution.

To get enough votes to ratify the Constitution, a Bill of Rights was promised to the Anti-Federalists, those who favored states' rights.

The Bill of Rights were written to remove the fear of the Anti-Federalists that a government would not always respect the rights of individual citizens.

The Americans had just defeated the tyrannical English government and had no wish to create another one.

The Constitution has been changed or amended 27 times. Some think that there have been only 16 changes because the first ten amendments were adopted together and the 21st Amendment cancelled out the 18th Amendment.

Whatever the number of changes, the most important amendments are the first ten. The are important not only because they fulfilled a promise to the Anti-Federalists, but also because of their content.

The Bill of Rights makes the Constitution unique among documents.

Gives citizens freedom of religion, speech, press, and the right to petition the government and to assemble peacefully.

Guarantees people the right to keep and bear arms.

No soldiers shall live in a person's private home at the home owner's expense unless prescribed by law.

No unreasonable searches or seizures without a warrant.

A person cannot be made to testify against himself and cannot be tried twice for the same crime. Private property will not be taken by the government without due process of the law.

Citizens have the right to a speedy and public trial and the right to a lawyer.

Trial by jury in civil cases when the value of the property contested is over $20. This is for civil cases only, not criminal cases.

No excessive fines or excessive bail. No cruel or unusual punishment may be inflicted.

Americans have rights that are included in the Constitution, but are not spelled out.

Powers not given to the U.S. Government belong to the states or the people.

No person can sue a state unless he/she lives in that state.

The President and Vice President are chosen separately in electoral voting.

Slavery is abolished.

All citizens must be treated equally under the law.

The right to vote cannot be denied, regardless of race, color. Former slaves were given the right to vote.

Congress can levy income taxes.

In the United States, all power belongs to the sovereign people. The people are the only source of all of the power that has been given to the government.

In other words, the people give their permission to be governed (see lesson 1).

Throughout the Constitution, there are limits placed on the power of government. Some of these restrictions are very specific as in Article 1, Sections 8 and 9. In these sections, Congress is told what it can and cannot do.

The power of government will be limited by the people. Government must obey the law. The source of limited government can be traced to the Magna Carta signed by King John of England in 1215 AD.

All of the first three articles state the powers and limitations of each branch of government. The Constitution distributes the power of the federal government among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches.

The Founding Fathers used the ideas of Montesquieu to create a central government that could meet the needs of the people.

The powers of government are shared between the states and a national government. See the graphic below.

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Although judicial review was not specifically stated in the Constitution, it has been established by tradition. The process of judicial review is actually the power to determine if the principles of the Constitution are not being ignored or violated.

The Supreme Court can declare a law passed by Congress to be unconstitutional. It can also find that an action by the President is in violation of the Constitution.

Each branch of government can check the power of the other two branches. For example, the President can veto legislation passed by Congress. Congress can vote to override that veto. The Supreme Court can declare actions by the Congress or the President to be unconstitutional.

The President selects the members of the Supreme Court with the approval of the Senate. These are examples of the check and balance system that ensures the equality of the three branches of the federal government.

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