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TD American Law > American Law > Flashcards

American Law Flashcards

1
Q

Who can become President of the United States?

A
  • 35 year-old (to prevent the Presidents from giving the federal title to their children)
  • no European, no Prince or noble, etc.
  • a natural born of the United States
  • have to swore on oath
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2
Q

U.S. Constitution

A
  • Bill of Rights
  • 7 articles
  • really short (400 000 words)
  • accessible: anyone can read it (on purpose)
  • 27 amendments
  • divided in sections
  • the oldest operative constitution in the world
  • never been repealed
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3
Q

What is the hierarchy in American law?

A
  1. Constitution
  2. Treaties and executive agreements
  3. Statutes (legislators)
    4.a. Common law / case law (judges)
    4.b. Regulations, orders (executive officers)
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4
Q

How do you know you can or cannot do something in the United States?

A
  • If it is written in the Constitution, you can do it
  • If it isn’t, you can’t
    –> enumerated powers: everything is in the Constitution
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5
Q

Source of the US Constitution

A
  • Founding fathers proposed it
  • wrote with 7 amendments then ratified
  • people are sovereign
  • source: “the people” in 1788/1787
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6
Q

US Constitution characteristics

A
  • written
  • rigid
  • supreme
  • separate
  • republican
  • legal
  • federal
  • presidential
  • entrenched (really hard to change it)
  • resilient
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7
Q

Was the Common sense of Thomas Paine written before or after the Declaration of Independence?

A
  • written before the declaration of independence
  • in response to Thomas Paine’s work (January 1776 - 4th July 1776)
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8
Q

What does the following mean: “Nothing can be more fallacious than this kind of argument.”
What is the fallacy Paine has spotted?

A
  • The fallacy that Paine’s spotting is the fact that Great Britain has always done things this way, and that’s why it is the best way.
  • Paine is saying that it’s not because they have always done things this way that they have to keep it.
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9
Q

What are the 3 ways to be independent according to Thomas Paine?

A
  • by legal voice
  • by military power
  • by a mob
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10
Q

Which way did the US choose to be independent? What was their argumentation?

A
  • legal voice
  • they built the Congress and have their own constitution
  • argumentation:
    - complexity is not a virtue of gouvernment
    - the British Constitution was about monarchy and notibility
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11
Q

Who declared the colonies in rebellion? In front of who? When?

A
  • the King
  • in front of Parliament
  • 1775
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12
Q

What are the 3 preamble principles?

A
  • natural rights
  • popular sovereignty
  • rule of law
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13
Q

What is the date of the US Constitution?

A

No American knows it

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14
Q

The United States (plural)

A
  • before civil war
  • multiple states
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15
Q

The United States (singular)

A
  • after the civil war
  • a single country composed of states
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16
Q

What does bound the governement and its actions?

A

The Constitution

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17
Q

Why is constitutional law unique?

A
  • it is the only body to work as a single one: it is considered superior to every other body of law
    –> any law, on any topic, being contrary to the Constitution is not considered as valid law
  • made of a single text (other bodies based on multiple sources)
  • only law raising ‘fundamental political issues and value choices’
  • all of the other bodies base their decisions on constitutional law: reference to the other bodies
    –> is often asked how to interpret the words of the law
18
Q

Characteristics of the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court

A
  • 9 justices
  • no need of any legal training
  • according to the President and Congress
  • appointed for life
  • not politically appointed
19
Q

Why is Marbury v. Madison the most important case ever decided by the Supreme Court?

A
  • US history liberties
  • Madison: 4th president and founder of the Constitution,
  • from Virginia : courts will double check the work of the legislative branch in the executive as well as the states
  • Marbury famous just because of the case
  • judicial review: court reviews constitutionnal principles
20
Q

Who was John Marshall?

A
  • 1801-1844
  • first chief justice
  • made supreme court important because people thought it was unusable because of state courts
  • per curium: everyone aggreed with the others’ opinions
  • federalist: appointed by J. Marshall
  • Jefferson won elections of 1800
  • can’t impeach supreme court justice
  • Marshall very upset about Marbury v. Madison
21
Q

What is a preamble?

A

sets up the goals of the founders of the Constitution

22
Q

What are the central concepts of the Constitution’s Preamble?

A
  • people and justice
  • a government by the people, for the people and of the people: popular sovereignty as opposed to national sovereignty
23
Q

Powers of the legislative branch

A
  • enumerated but limited
  • overall powers
  • all powers to make laws is only vested in the Congress
24
Q

What does ‘herein’ means?

A

the legislative powers of Congress are all enumerated

25
Q

What does bicameral means? What are the chambers of the U.S. Congress called?

A
  • bicameral: made of 2 chambers
  • Senate and House of Representatives
26
Q

3/5th clause

A
  • Senate and House of Representatives are equal houses
  • one of them is more stable that the other (Senate)
27
Q

Which chamber has the ‘power of the purse’?

A

The House of Representatives:
- directly elected by the people
- Senate by electoral colleges

28
Q

Who leads the Executive?

A

the President (Cabinet doesn’t matter)

29
Q

Who has the power to create a government?

A

the people

30
Q

What are the objectives and goals of the Government?

A
  • to unify a country
  • to manage it
  • it brings stability and security to the country
  • the US Government was made to break up with the British one and to become independent
31
Q

Is that Government limited? Should that Government be limited? Why? Or why not?

A
  • it is limited by the Constitution
  • it should be limited because it sets up the rules and people have to follow them
  • if it was not limited, it could do anything, and tyranny would ensue
32
Q

What are the names of the 2 US federal chambers?

A
  • the Senate
  • the House of Representatives
33
Q

Find 5 key differences between Senate and House of Representatives

A
  • House of Representatives :
    - composed of members called Representatives
    - chosen every 2 years by the People of the States
    - at least 25 years old and citizen of the US for 7 years
    - sole power of impeachment
  • Senate :
    - composed of members called Senators
    - come from each state and have to be 2 per state
    - chosen by the Legislature for 6 years
    - at least 30 years old and citizen of the US for 9 years
    - sole power to try all impeachments
34
Q

How are Representatives apportioned?

A
  • among the states ‘which may be included within this Union’ with direct taxes
  • add the number of ‘free persons’ but not ‘Indians not taxed’ to ‘3/5 of all others persons’
    (Article I, Section 2 Clause 3 of the US Constitution)
35
Q

Are Senators up for elections this year? If they are, how many?

A
  • last elections took place in 2022
  • there is a new election every 2 years
  • 1/3 of the Senate is up to election
  • as we are in 2024, there will be an election this year of 1/3 of the Senate
    (Article I, Section 3, Clause 2 of the US Constitution)
36
Q

What body can impeach a president?

A
  • The House of Representatives
  • Clause 6 of Section 2 of Article I of the US Constitution: ‘shall have the sole Power of Impeachment’
37
Q

Which body can try the President?

A

the Senate in case of an impeachment by the House of Representatives
(Article I, Section 3, Clause 6)

38
Q

How is a president convicted?

A
  • if the ‘2/3 of the Members’ of the Senate are present
  • if the trial is presided by the ‘Chief Justice’
    (Article I, Section 3, Clause 6)
39
Q

What is the purpose of impeachment?

A
  • to remove a president that might have made a gross inconduct
  • to evitate being in a situation of tyranny
  • to evitate a non-respect of checks and balances
40
Q

Which Chamber do spending bills?

A
  • The House of Representatives spend ‘all bills for raising revenue’
  • Senate have to ‘propose or concur’ with the Representatives’ decision
  • bill will have to be presented to the President for approval
    (Article I, Section 7, Clause 1)
41
Q

Why does the House of Representatives spend bills?

A
  • because they are elected by the people of the states not as the Senate
  • they are considered as more legitimate to do so

TD American Law (1 decks)

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