Name_____________________
Constitution Notes
The Constitution was created using Seven Principles
First Principle of the Constitution: Popular Sovereignty
 This tells the government the source of its power. (The voters)
 This is clearly stated in the first words of the Preamble: “We the
people of the United States…”
 Definition: a government in which the people rule; a system in which
the residents vote to decide an issue.
Second Principle of the Constitution: Republicanism
 Is the belief that the people exercise their power by voting for their
political representatives to work for what the voters want.
 The United States is not a Democracy. It is a Republic!
 Found in Article 4 Section 4; calls for every state to have a “republican
form of government.”

Third Principle of the Constitution: Federalism
 This is the idea that the State & National Governments have to share
power. The states keep certain powers, then give the national
government others and they share some powers or duties.
 Article 4 talks about the powers reserved for the states. It also lists the
powers given to the national government.
Fourth Principle of the Constitution: Separation of Powers
 Because the Framers of the Constitution did not want all the power
given to a small group of people, they spread out the powers between
three branches of government.
 The Constitution clearly says which branch has what power in Articles
1(Legislative), 2 (Executive) & 3 (Judicial).
Fifth Principle of the Constitution: Checks and Balances
 To keep any one branch from becoming to powerful, the Framers of
the Constitution set up a system where each of the Branches of
Government would have to work together & could block another
branch from becoming to powerful.
 Checks & Balances was first thought of by Barron de Montesquieu of
18th Century France.
 Listed in Articles 1, 2 & 3
Sixth Principle of the Constitution: Limited Government
 Requires all U.S. citizens to follow the law.
 In American Government, everyone is under the law. All citizens,
elected officials and the government must follow the law unlike a king.
 Article 1 Sections 9 & 10 states that the States and National
Governments must follow the laws.
Seventh Principle of the Constitution: Individual Rights
 The guarantees that citizens have rights that protect them from the
government picking on them.
 These rights are listed in the Bill of Rights.
The Constitution has Four Parts
First Part of the Constitution: The Preamble
 It states the purpose of the Constitution by telling what the Framers of
the Constitution intended to do in writing the Constitution.
Goals of the Preamble
PREAMBLE
EXPLANATION
EXAMPLE
“ Form a More Prefect
Union”
Create a nation in which states work
together.
•
•
US Postal System
US coins, Paper Money
“Establish Justice”
Make laws & set up courts that are fair
•
•
Court System
Jury System
“Insure Domestic
Tranquility”
Keep peace within the country
•
•
National Guard
Federal Marshals
“Provide for the
Common Defense”
Safeguard the country against attack
•
•
Army
Navy
“Promote the General
Welfare”
Contribute to the happiness and well
being of all the people
•
•
Birth Certificates
Marriage License
“Secure the Blessings of
Liberty to Ourselves and
Our Posterity”
Make sure future citizens remain free
•
Commission on Civil
Rights
National Council on
Disability
•
Second Part of the Constitution: Seven Articles
Article One
• Creates the Legislative Branch & divides it into 2 houses (House and
Senate)
• Sets up how each house is to be elected & qualifications.
• Explains the Legislative Branch’s powers (checks) over the other
branches
• Explains how a Bill becomes a law
• Describes the powers given only to the Legislative Branch (Trade,
Declare War)
Article Two
 Creates the Executive Branch
 Sets up & describes the Electoral College
 Sets up the qualifications to be President.
 Explains who takes over if the President can’t finish the term of office.
 Clearly explains the duties of the President (what they can and can’t
do)
 Explains how the President can be removed from office (impeachment)
Article Three
 Creates the Judicial Branch
 Creates all of the federal courts (Supreme, District and Circuit)
 Explains the Supreme Courts Authority & Jurisdiction (Original &
Appellate)
 Describes trial by jury
 Defines Treason and states it’s punishment
Article Four
• Describes the relationships between the states
• Sets up “Full Faith and Credit” between the states. (it means that each
state much respect licensing or court ruling from other states)
• Explains how to admit new states into the country.
Article Five
 Explains how to amend the Constitution
 Proposed by Congress (2/3 majority) or by 2/3 of the States
Legislatures. It then approved (Ratified) by ¾ of either Both Houses of
Congress or ¾ of State Legislatures.
Article Six
• Explains that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land. Meaning
that when it comes down between national and state laws, the national
law wins out.
Article Seven
• Explains that the Constitution must be ratified (approved) by nine of the
thirteen states to take effect
Third Part of the Constitution: The Bill of Rights
 Amendments 1-10
 Explains the rights of citizens and states
 It was understood that they would be added at the Constitutional
Convention
 All ten were added at the same time
Fourth Part of the Constitution: Amendments
• Amendments 11-27
• These are changes to the Constitution
Name ______________
(who has what power) Federalism:
The Sharing of Power
National Powers
State Powers
Regulate Interstate & Foreign
Trade
Regulate Trade Within the
state
Raise And Support A Military
Shared Powers
Declare War & Peace
Collect Taxes
Coin And Print Money
Borrow Money
Grant Patents & Copyrights
Make & Enforce Laws
Establish Federal Courts
Establish Maintain courts
Admit New States
Set Standards Of Weights &
Measurements
Charter banks
Establish A Postal System
Regulate Immigration
Provide for Public Welfare
Write Business laws
Establish and maintain
Public Schools
Set local Governments
Pass marriage and divorce
laws
Conduct elections
Ratify Constitutional
amendments
Congress Notes
1. Congress is the _______________ branch of Government
Legislative
2. The U.S. Congress is ____cameral
Bicameral
3. Congress meets is the _______________ building
Capital
4. In the House of Representatives, Representation is…
Based on Population
5. In the House of Representatives, there are _____ Representatives
435
6. In the House of Representatives, Missouri has _____ Representatives
9 (8 after January 3rd)
7. In the House of Representatives, elected for _____ years
2
8. In the House of Representatives, they are elected every _____ years
Even
9. In the House of Representatives, the leader is called…
Speaker of the House
10. Her name is…
John Boener
11. She is the ______ woman to be Speaker
1st
12. In the House of Representatives, Representatives must be _____ years old
25
13. In the House of Representatives, Representatives must be citizen of that state for_____ years.
7
14. In the House of Representatives, the Representative from Affton, South City and South County
is…
Russ Carnahan (until January 3rd)
15. In the Senate, Representation is…
Equal
16. In the Senate, there are _____ Senators
100
17. In the Senate, each state has _____ Senators
2
18. In the Senate, elected for _____ years
6
19. In the Senate, they are elected every _____ year
Even (In groups of 33, 33, 34. That is why the Senate is considered a continuous Body)
20. In the Senate, the majority leader name is…
Harry Reid
21. In the Senate, the president of the Senate is…
The Vice President of the United States: Joe Biden
22. In the Senate, Senators must be _____ years old
30
23. In the Senate, Senators must be citizen of that state for_____ years.
9
24. Missouri’s Senators are…
Claire McCaskill & Roy Blunt
Gerrymandering: This deliberate drawing of district lines to favor the political party that is in power.
Franking privilege: the franking privilege is meant to help legislators keep in touch with the people
they represent.
Congressional immunity: or freedom from arrest. Senators and Representatives cannot be placed
under arrest while conducting legislative duties.
Censure: The house may vote to censure, or express disapproval of the member. In extreme cases,
the house may vote to expel the member, or force the member from office.
Expressed Powers: Expressed powers are those powers that are written or listed in the
Constitution. Most of the expressed powers given to Congress are in section 8 of Article 1
Implied Powers: in addition to expressed powers, the Constitution allows Congress to exercise
implied powers. These powers are based on the last clause of Article 1, Section 8, sometimes called
the Necessary and Proper Clause
Powers of Congress
Legislative
Power to tax
Power to borrow money
Power to decide how money will be spent
Power to coin money and to regulate its value
Power to regulate trade with foreign nations among the states
Power to set up uniform standards of weights and measures
Power to establish post offices
Power to establish and maintain highways
Power to enact naturalization laws and to regulate immigration
Power to govern the nation’s territories
Power to set up rules about the admission of new states to the country
Power to declare war
Power to raise and maintain military services
Power to set up federal courts
Power to decide punishment for federal crimes
Power to secure patients and copyrights for inventors and authors
Power to make laws that are necessary and proper, or convenient and useful, to carrying out one
of its expressed powers
Nonlegislative
Power to regulate elections and to judge the qualifications of elected members
Power to conduct investigations
Power to propose amendments and to call conventions to propose amendments at the request of
the states
Power to elect a President (House) and Vice-President (Senate) if no candidate wins a majority
of votes in the Electoral College
Power to bring impeachment charges (House)
Power to try impeachment cases (Senate)
Power to give advice and consent
Power to admit new states and territories
Power to administer federal lands
Standing Committees of Congress
Senate
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
Appropriations
Armed Services
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Budget
Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Energy and Natural Resources
Environment and Public Works
Finance
Foreign Relations
Governmental Affairs
Judiciary
Labor and Human Resources
Rules and Administration
Small Business
Veterans’ Affairs
House
Agriculture
Appropriations
Armed Services
Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs
Budget
District of Columbia
Education and Labor
Energy and Commerce
Foreign Affairs
Government Operations
House Administration
Interior and Insular Affairs
Judiciary
Merchant Marine and Fisheries
Post Office and Civil Service
Public Works and Transportation
Rules
Science, Space, and Technology
Small Business
Standards of Official Conduct
Veterans’ Affairs
Ways and Means
President and Vice President Notes
1. The President and Vice President are in the _____________ Branch
Executive
2. The President must be _______ years old.
35
3. He must be born a
Citizen
4. The President can be elected
twice
5. He will serve ____ years each term (time).
4
6. The President may serve up to ___ years.
10
7. The President is elected by the
Electoral College
8. The Electoral College is a winner takes all process that goes state to state with each
having a certain amount of votes. The way the states get their Electoral number of
votes is: take the number of ______________ a state has plus two, for the number of
_________ each state gets. Representatives + Senators
9. There are ___ total Electoral votes. To win a person must get ___ Electoral votes.
538, 270
10. It is possible to get fewer votes from the voters and still win in Electoral votes. That
has happened four times. The last time was
2000
11. To get rid of the President, Congress can _______ him. That means that they
accuse him of something. Then he would be put on trial in the Senate. If 67 of the
Senators vote that he is guilty then he would be kicked out.
impeach
12. Who are two Presidents that have been impeached?
Andrew Johnson & Bill Clinton
13. The President and Vice President _____ _________. They can not be from the
same state. They used to let the person with the second highest amount of votes
become the Vice President. That means that right now the President and Vice
President would be _____ and _______
Run together, Bush & Kerry
14. The President is the _________ in _______of the Military.
This means he is in charge of the Army, Navy, Air Force & Marines
Commander in Chief
15. There has been one President who was elected four times. That was
Franklin D. Roosevelt
16. There have been ___ Presidents assassinated.
4
17. There has been one President from the state of Missouri:
Harry S. Truman
18. _______________ was the first president to resign.
Richard M. Nixon
19. ________________ was the first un-elected President
Gerald R. Ford
20. ________________ is the 44th President?
Barack Obama
He is the 1st ________________________________ president.
African American
Supreme Court
Judicial Branch Notes
1. The Supreme Court is in the Judicial Branch of Government.
2. There are 9 members on the Supreme Court.
3. The Leader of the Supreme Court is called the Chief Justice
4. The Chief Justice’s name is John Roberts. He is the 17th Chief Justice.
5. He was appointed by President George W. Bush.
6. The 1st African American Man on the Supreme Court was:
Thurgood Marshall
7. The 1st Woman on the Supreme Court was Sandra Day O”Conner.
8. Who is the 1st Latino person to serve on the Supreme Court?
Justice Sonja Sotomayer
9. Judges on the Supreme Court serve for Life.
10. A Judge on the Supreme Court must be 35 years old.
11. What kind of jurisdiction does the Supreme Court Have?
Original & Appellate
12. List the current members of the Supreme Court Chief Justice John G.
Roberts, Jr., Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, Ruth
Bader-Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor & Elena
Kagan
•
Dred Scott v Sanford
–
•
Plessy v Ferguson
–
•
States cannot ban abortions
Marbury v Madison
–
•
Schools cannot require students to say prayers in school
Roe v Wade
–
•
Separate but equal (for blacks and whites) 1896
Engel v Vitale –
–
•
1857 decision that, that whether slave or free, “Negroes” had no right to bring a lawsuit
supreme court can overrule a law of congress
Miranda v Arizona
–
when being arrested you must be read your rights before questioning or statements
cannot be used as evidence
•
US v Nixon
–
•
Executive privilege has limits
Board of Education v Pico
–
a school board cannot ban books from a library just because someone does not agree
with the ideas.
•
Brown v Board of Education
–
•
Regents of U Cal v Bakkee
–
•
School segregation is unconstitutional
affirmative action
Texas v Johnson
–
the government cannot stop a person from a dissenting view or action because it finds it
offensive
We the people of the United States, in order to form a more
perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility,
provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and
secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,
do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States
of America
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7
10
10
10
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