American Gov. 5

How many states had to ratify the Constitution before it became law of the land?

Nine of the 13 states

What duties do the states share?

Sustaining rights, extradition, and contracts and wills

Who elected senators prior to Amendment XVII?

The state legislatures, rather than the people

What is the second clause of Article VI known as and what does it establish as the constitutional order of authority in the US?

the supremacy clause

What provision of the constitution can never be changed without the states' consent?

Equal suffrage in the senate

What state act does not have to be respected by other states?

Extradition

What can never be required as a qualification for seeking public office?

Holding specific religious beliefs

What is popular sovereignty?

In popular sovereignty, the people are the ultimate source of their government's authority.

Why did the framers purposefully make it hard for amendments to be ratified?

So the laws would be thought about by the people

Which power of congress do you think is the greatest?

Taxation

What are the first 10 amendments usually called?

The bill of rights

What characteristics of the US Constitution give flexibility in adapting to change?

The constitution is not static, it is practice. The Constitution's success is due to the founder's understanding of human nature and the document's inherent adaptability. Rather than being extremely specific, it mainly sets out principals.

What are the two major phases in the amendment process? What are the various ways an amendment may pass through these phases?

There are two major phases in the amendment process: proposal and ratification. Proposal may be made in two ways: either by a two thirds vote in both houses of Congress or by a special national convention called at the request of 2/3 of the states. In practice, only the first method has been used. Ratification can be made either by 3/4 of the states' legislatures or by 3/4 or a special state convention.

What is the obvious disadvantage of checks and balances? What benefit overshadows this disadvantage?

There is an obvious disadvantage, however: the system is inefficient. In fact, the checks and balances system can actually prevent a branch from functioning properly. One branch can purposely halt the political process, creating gridlock.

What is the difference between a strict constructionist and a broad constructionist?

Those who believe that the text of the Constitution is important and that any interpretation should be kept to a minimum have traditionally been known as strict constructionists, while others prefer the term originalists. Those who take a broader and sometimes more creative approach to constitutional interpretation have traditionally been known as broad constructionists, or living constitutionalists.

What was the primary reason for a distinct ballot in the election of the vice president?

To avoid a tie.

What constitutional requirements limit the abuse of accusation of treason?

To be convicted of treason, the accused must confess that he committed the crime, or two eyewitnesses must testify to the fact in an open court.

What is the primary function of the executive branch?

To carry out and enforce the nation's laws.

Why did Hamilton believe the judicial review is necessary?

To complete independence of the courts of justice is peculiarly essential in a limited Constitution. By a limited Constitution, I understand one which contains certain specified exceptions to the legislative authority; such, for example, as that it shall pass no bills of attainder, no ex post facto laws, and the like. Limitations of this kind van be preserved in practice no other way that through the medium of courts of justice, whose duty it must be to declare all acts of contrary to the manifest tenor of the Constitution void.

What group have the power to propose amendments?

2/3 of both houses of congress or 2/3 of the states

What is the only amendment that repealed another amendment?

21 repealed 18, prohebition

How much approval is needed to ratify an amendment?

3/4 the states legislatures or 3/4 the states in their own convention.

What kind of government are new states required and privileged to have?

A republican form of government

What is a veto? How can the Congress override a veto?

A veto is when the president opposes the bill and returns it to the body where it started. If Congress gets a 2/3 vote in both houses, they an override the veto.

What provision did the constitution make for debts contracted before its ratification?

All debts made previously would be accepted.

What is the difference between separation of powers and checks and balances?

Although separation of powers is often thought to be synonymous with checks and balances, there is an important difference. If there were only a decision of power in the national government, one branch could expand its powers within its rightful sphere and dominate the other branches. The principle of checks and balances; however, thwarts such an accumulation of power. For example, Congress can pass a bill; but the president can reject, or veto, the bill if he opposes it.

What legal powers is Congress forbidden to use?

Interfere with slave trade, not take away rights to habeas corpus, cannot punish without trial, cannot levy unequal taxes, cannot tax state exports, cannot give preference to any port or state.

Why was this legislation necessary?

It protects the states from inquisition of handling domestic violence when a state legislature or a states governor requests help.

What 6 basic principles of government informed the creation and guide interpretation of the Constitution?

Limited government, separation of powers, checks and balances, judicial review, federalism, and popular sovereignty.

What instruments of discrimination have the courts interpreted as violations of amendment XV?

Literacy tests, white primaries, grandfather clauses, gerrymandering

What are the 4 right of the accused?

No citizen can be forced to give evidence against himself, no citizen can be tortured, brain washed, or otherwise forced to give information, no person can be tried twice for the same crime, and no person can be imprisoned without a fair and proper trial.

Which of the original 13 states did not sign the Constitution? Why?

Rhode Island, because no delegates were at the Constitutional convention

How did a knowledge of human nature help the framers of the constitution?

The Constitution's framers wrote with a realistic view of human nature. They recognized human's desire for freedom and their capacity to govern, but they also had a clear understanding of humans' tendency to sin.

What are the respective roles of the House and Senate when major federal officials had committed a crime?

The house impeaches after the Senate tries

What are the qualifications for becoming president?

The president must be a natural born citizen, be at least 35, and have been a resident of the us for at least 14 years. His term is 4 years.

What powers does the president possess with which he can influence the judicial decisions?

The president nominates Supreme Court justices

What are amendments XVI and XIX known as?

The progressive amendments, because they were passed at the height of the progressive era

What is the only court specifically established by the constitution?

The supreme court.

What are the purposes of government as outlined by the Constitution's preamble?

To form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.

What is the traditional function of the judicial branch?

To interpret the law

What is the primary function of Congress?

To make laws.

What is the current line of presidential succession if the president is removed from office?

Vice president, speaker of the House of Representative, president of the Senate, and the member of the president's cabinet in order of the creation of their departments