Topic 1
Key questions and answers
The US Constitution
The separation of powers
Explain the reasons for the separation of powers in the US
Knowledge Answers should begin with a clear definition of the separation of powers: it divides
the various responsibilities of government between three different branches of government,
Executive, Legislative and Judicial, assigning different functions to each.
Examples should be given of the powers assigned to each branch, such as:
Executive: commands the armed forces.
Legislative: regulates interstate commerce.
Judicial: can strike down federal or state laws which conflict with the constitution.
Explanation The motivation of the Founding Fathers should be examined:
The experience of living under British rule made them mistrustful of any system of
government that put unchecked power in the hands of one man or one institution.
Fear of excessive democracy was another reason for limiting the power of each branch of
government.
The states wished to retain a high degree of independence, not to be forced to merge their
identities into one centralised state, and having divided powers would help prevent the federal
government from becoming too dominant.
The division of the Founding Fathers into Federalists and Republicans could also be
explored, as the final form of the constitution and the principle of separation of powers was
the result of a compromise between these two positions.
The answer should end with a short conclusion, summing up these reasons in a sentence or two.
. Federalism
Why was the federal structure adopted?
, The principal reason why a federal structure was adopted is that the 13 original colonies were
independent of each other and formed a union voluntarily to drive out the British. Each had its own
distinctive identity and did not wish to be subsumed into a monolithic unitary state. The federal
structure represented a compromise between the Federalists, who wanted a strong central
government and the Republicans, who argued for states’ rights. It was designed to enable the states
to retain a high degree of autonomy, while allowing an adequately strong central government.
The Bill of Rights
Describe three of the most significant rights in the first ten amendments?
First Amendment: the Establishment clause and the right to freedom of speech have been at
the centre of controversies about the First Amendment. The former’s ban on any officially
sanctioned establishment of religion has led to court cases about prayers in state schools, primary
school nativity scenes and the teaching of creationism. The right to freedom of speech has been
involved in issues from New York Times v USA, 1971, ruling that publishing the ‘Pentagon Papers’
was legal, to flag-burning (Flag Protection Act 1989) and campaign finance (Citizens United v
FEC, 2010).
Second Amendment: the ‘right to keep and bear arms’ is thought by many to refer in its
original context to militia members keeping firearms at home in case of national emergency but,
under the influence of pressure groups such as the National Rifle Association, it has been
expanded to mean a blanket right of all US citizens to own guns. Calls to restrict availability of
firearms have multiplied after massacres such as those at Columbine High School in 1999, Virginia
Tech in 2007, and Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. But gun control laws such as the
Brady Bill in 1993 and laws banning handguns in Washington DC and the city of Chicago have
been struck down by the Supreme Court (Printz v USA, 1997; DC v Heller, 2007; McDonald v
Chicago, 2010).
Eighth Amendment: the Eighth Amendment’s ban on ‘cruel and unusual punishments’ has
been at the centre of numerous Supreme Court cases about capital punishment. The Court
decided in Trop v Dulles, 1958 that the death penalty was permissible, but that the meaning of
‘cruel and unusual punishments’ was not fixed and was to be interpreted from the public opinion of
the day. This opened up the possibility that one day capital punishment might be banned, and has
led the court to outlaw the execution of mentally retarded criminals (Atkins v Virginia, 2002) and of
killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes (Roper v Simmons, 2005).
Amendments to the constitution
Describe the 3 most recent amendments.
25th Amendment: The 25th Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1967, provides for the
appointment and confirmation of a new vice president if a vacancy occurs, in order to avoid a
situation in which the office remains vacant after its incumbent inherits the presidency. Such a
situation had occurred in 1945, when President Roosevelt died and Harry S. Truman became
president; in 1963, when President Kennedy was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson became
president; and on 14 previous occasions. Proposed in January 1965, the amendment was
approved by both houses of Congress in July 1965 and achieved ratification by three-quarters of
the states with little difficulty by February 1967. It was invoked on two occasions within eight years
of ratification: when Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned in October 1973 and when Gerald Ford
became president on Richard Nixon’s resignation in August 1974.
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