US Constitution- Strengths and Weaknesses

Question 1

Strength of the US constitution (think about interpretive amendments and why they’re good)

Answer 1

• Interpretive amendments allow the constitution to remain flexible in response to 21st-century challenges.
• For example, in Obergefell v Hodes, same-sex marraige was ruled constitutional for the whole of the USA.

Question 2

Strength of the US constitution (think about how much power the federal government has)

Answer 2

• The federal government has been prevented, largely, from amassing vast, unquestioned power.
• For example, the Supreme Court ruling against the federal government in Texas v US [2016].

Question 3

Strength of the US constitution (think about civil rights, second amendment etc)

Answer 3

• Citizens rights remain mostly protected, even when they are controversial.
• For example, the ‘right to bear arms’ has been upheld despite recent mass shootings such as the Orlando nightclub shooting (2016) and Sandy Hook (2012).
• Could also use DC v Heller here

Question 4

Weakness of the US constitution (interpretative amendments and state power over them)

Answer 4

• Interpretative amendments have trampled on the rights of individual states.
• The ruling in Obergefell v Hodges made same-sex marriage legal in the 13 states that had made it illegal.

Question 5

Weakness of the US constitution (think about cases where the federal government have been powerful)

Answer 5

• In practise, the federal government has demonstrated wide, unchecked power.
• For example, Obama negotiated the Iran deal with almost no Congressional input.

Question 6

Weakness of the US constitution (think about how sometimes citizens rights conflict with each other)

Answer 6

• The rights of citizens often conflict.
• For example, the controversy over the ‘right to bear arms’ protects weapons, but not the many who lose their lives each year due to gun violence.