US constitution Flashcards
Constitutions
A collection of rules, principles and conventions that outlines the political system, location of sovereiginity and the realtionship between the government and those being governed
Federal government
The national government of the USA, consisting of three branches - Congress, the presidency and the judiciary
Federalism
A system in government in which power and sovereignity are shared between the federal government and individual states
The founding fathers
A term used for those who helped shape the newly formed nation of the USA
What did the founding fathers do?
How was the US constitution formed?
Principle
A fundamental belief or ideal.
Constitutional principles mmay not be named in the constitution but they underpin the entire document and can be seen throughout the text
Limited government
A government that is subject to restrictions on the power it can excercise over a country or its citizens. In the USA, these limits are laid out through checks and balances in the constitution
Separation of powers
The complete seperation of the three branches of government; congress (the legislature), the presidency ( the executive) and the judicairy ( the supreme court).
This includes separation of their powers, buildings and personnel
Checks and Balances
The power of one branch to directly prevent the action of another branch
All branches of government can do this which provides a balance of power
Bipartianship
Bipartianship = the ability for two or more parties to work together to achieve an outcome. This is enforced by the supermajorities required by the constitution
Codification
Codification = A single written document containing all of the constitutional rules and principles
Judiciable
Judiciable = a constitution that contains a higher form of law and therefore allows other laws to be judged against it and be deemed either constitutional or unconstitutional
Entrenched
Entrenched = a constitution that is protected from change through a legal process. For the US constitutioon this is the two stage amendment process, which requires supermajority approval from congress and the states
Enumerated powers
Enumerated powers = powers that are specifically and explicitly written down in the US constitution
Implied powers
Implied powers = powers that are not specifically granted in the constitution but are assumed or implied from the wording of the document and the powers that it does grant
Neccesary and proper clause
Necessary and proper clause = a clause within article 1 of the constitution which allows the vongress to assume any powers which are neccessary for it to be able to carry ouy yje enumerated powers.
Supermajorit
Supermajorities = a required majority of more than half usually in a vote. The US constitution specifies supermajorities of 2/3 and 3/4 fir a varieyy of processes
What is the US constitution outlined?
What is the amendment process?
The amendment process is to ensure that the constitution did not become outdated
Two stage process requires a supermajority in both stages to ensure that the constitution is not too flexible or too rigid
What stages does an amendment have to go through?
A proposal stage
A Ratification stage
What are the key amendments outlined?
What are the advantages of the amendment process?
