As Americans, it is hard to think that the constitution was a “rough draft“. When it was written by the founding fathers, it was implied that it wasn’t perfect. As it was used, it was supposed to be revised and made to adapt so it could become a new and strong form of government. However, if a glance is taken back in history, hardly any revisions have been made. There have only been twenty seven amendments to our constitution to up to the present.
These have included proposals to balance the federal budget, ban flag desecration, permit prayers in state-run schools and preserve the traditional concept of marriage. But these are all policy matters. In terms of reform of the workings of government, the most frequently talked about proposals for reform have concerned term limits for members of Congress, a line-item veto power for the president, and reform or abolition of the Electoral College as a means of electing the
In agreement, I believe all shall follow for strictly guidelines and restrictions, not to be precise within each Amendment, not one should uphold detail. The unwritten Constitution refers to traditions that have become part of our political system. Although George Washington warned us against Political Parties, they nominate candidates for office. Political Parties are not written into The Constitution, yet the people of the United States are left to vote and decide who the winner of the elections will be, and who will take the position as the next President of the United States. Yet, another reason why we, as a nation, alter the Constitution in our own ways, still allowing each part as an indication of mandate.
Haylie Stickel Civics Frickman Should the constitution be ratified or should it be tossed? The Articles of Confederation established America’s first national government but it was a weak one because it was a free government. This became apparent after Shay’s Rebellion; the government couldn’t regulate the economy or apply a foreign policy. We needed to change the Articles of Confederation thus a meeting was called to the Annapolis Convention. There were plenty of arguments over what to add or take out so some delegates came up with the idea to abandon the Articles of Confederation and establish a new constitution.
A constitutional amendment takes an issue away from the normal process of democracy. However most proposals aren’t inspired by a broad national consensus but instead for political gains, e.g. the day after the Supreme Court ruled flag burning to be protected speech in 1989, the US representative Michael Bilirakis introduced an amendment outlawing desecration of the flag. Amendments to ban flag burning have been introduced in every session of Congress since, spanning more than two decades. Another reason why most proposed amendments fail to pass is the difficulties posed by the very complex amendment process.
During the creation of Constitution, each state had to approve it. During this time there were people who supported it, Federalist and who did not, Anti-Federalists. I am siding with Anti-Federalist since they were right in thinking they did not want to give all their power away to the national government. If you lived in a state separate from where government state is established, how would you get your problems in your state solved if you had a government who was telling you what to do but not really knowing what problems you had in your state. If I lived back in that time, and having just finished the war with Britain where we finally got our independence, I would remind people all the issues we had.
Anti-Federalists vs. Federalists For as long as over 200 years, the Constitution of the United States has served as the under structure for U.S. government. When created in 1787, the U.S. Constitution builds and explain the basic outlines of a national government that combine the states in an sufficient political union. But the creation of the Constitution were hours of debate and compromise, and even when it was completed, it left some delegates unhappy. After having the document approved by the delegates, it had to be ratified by the states. However states that did not ratify the Constitution would not be considered a part of the Union so people started to form two groups, the Anti-Federalists and Federalists.
The power of the Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional leads some people to assume that the judicial branch will be superior to the legislative branch. Hamilton examines this argument, starting with the fact that only the constitution is fundamental law. To argue that the constitution is not superior to the laws suggest that the representative of the people are superior to the people and that the constitution is inferior to the government it gave birth to. The courts are the arbiters between the legislative branch and the people; the courts are to interpret the laws and prevent the legislative branch from exceeding the powers granted to it. The courts must not only place the constitution higher than the laws passed by congress, they must also place the intentions of the people ahead of the intentions of their representatives.
In this essay Thoreau makes the points that the government does not keep the country free, doesn’t settle the west, and doesn’t educate. His opinion is that the government is just a hindrance to these things in America. He believes in his words that “That government is best which governs the least” and that “That government is best
| The Relevant Constitution | | | | | 12729C.P. EnglishSeptember 22, 2012 | This year the Constitution is 224 years old, and some Americans think it is high time it retired. Although the Constitution is the oldest national Constitution in existence, in the eyes of America and the planet it is still fairly young (Jamison). The fact that the Constitution was made by the Founding Founders to flex with time and economic status, that over half of all Americans are blind to the political and governmental society, and that the Constitution is the foundation of Americas whole government being; despite the counter argument of others, supports the relevancy of this sacred document. The structure of the Constitution is relevant in every economic situation.