This document is for people who study Politics with Edexcel and it's a comprehensive guide for everything you need to know condensed: it has examples, arguments, counterpoints, recent information, debates, comparisons with the UK side and lots of explanations. For my A Levels this is all I used to ...
historical setting
nature
key features
federalism
comparing the UK and US
HISTORICAL SETTING
ORIGINS OF THE CONSTITUTION
THE CONFEDERACY
- 13 ex British colonies - vision was a 'confederacy' - a 'league of friendship', loose
cooperation of states over a national govt
- agreed on in the Articles of Confederation, ratified by the states by march 1781
- wasn't much central power - one chamber, weak govt
THE PHILADELPHIA CONVENTION
- At the convention the 55 delegates (from 12 states excluding Rhode Island) decided
the Confederacy was structurally flawed and weak - it trampled on human rights
- They could not agree and so compromised with the Connecticut Compromise →
leading to two Chambers, the Constitution and federalism
THE NATURE OF THE CONSTITUTION
- codified
- Constitution created:
- the legislature (make laws)
- the executive (carry out laws)
- the judiciary (enforce + interpret laws)
ENUMERATED POWERS
- first 3 articles - constitutional powers of the federal govt
ARTICLE I: Congress as the national legislature - defining its membership, methods of
member election, powers and its specific powers: power of the purse, declare war
ARTICLE II: singular executive - the President, chosen by the Electoral College
ARTICLE III: established the supreme court - umpire of the constitution implied in the
supremacy clause (made more explicit later)
, VAGUENESS OF THE CONSTITUTION
- allowed delegates to compromise at the Philadelphia Convention
- allows the Constitution to evolve without formal amendment
- lack of clarity leads to disputes over what should be classified as constitutional
IMPLIED POWERS
- 'necessary and proper clause' / elastic clause
- allows the powers of the federal govt to be stretched beyond the enumerated powers
- one of its earliest uses - Congress created a national bank in 1819 in
McCulloch vs Maryland
- the power of judicial review is another implied power - has been solidified by Marbury
vs Madison
- CONGRESS: power to levy and collect taxes to provide for the defence of the US
- PRESIDENT: Commander-in-chief of the US Air Force (as there wasn't one when the
Constitution was created)
- JUDICIARY: To declare Acts of Congress / actions of the executive unconstitutional
RESERVED POWERS
- powers left to the state/individuals
- 10th Amendment - if powers are not delegated to the federal govt, they fall to the
states or the people
CONCURRENT POWERS
- shared by the federal govt and the states
- eg. collecting taxes, building roads, maintaining courts
- legitimate national laws supersede state ones
ENTRENCHMENT
- difficult to amend (intentional by the founding fathers)
- but they did not envisage parties let alone hyper-partisanship
- article 5 amendment process : 2 stage process
- proposal requiring ⅔ in both houses
- ratification by ¾ of state legislatures or ¾ of special state conventions
- 5000 amendments have been suggested, 40 submitted to the states, 33 to ratification
and only 0.2% passed (27)
BILL OF RIGHTS
- first ten
- 1st - freedom of religion, speech, the press and assembly
- 2nd - right to keep and bear arms
- 3rd - no quartering of troops in private homes
- good example of how hard it is to change - this is outdated/irrelevant
- 9th - protection of rights not specifically enumerated
OTHER AMENDMENTS
- 19th (1920) - women's right to vote
- 18th and then 21st amendments - prohibition and its removal
- 22nd - limited president to two terms
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller simranvaria. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for £6.09. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
