SIX PRINCIPLES OF
THE
CONSTITUTION
PRINCIPLE #1
POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY asserts that
the people are the source of any and all
government power, and government can
exist only with the consent of the
governed.
Principle in action:
We elect our President and Legislature to make
and enforce laws for us
PRINCIPLE #2
LIMITED GOVERNMENT states that
government is restricted in what it may
do, and each individual has rights that
government cannot take away.
Principle in action:
1st Amendment guarantees that government must
respect individual rights
PRINCIPLE #3
SEPARATION OF POWERS is the
principle in which the executive, legislative, and
judicial branches of government are three
independent and coequal branches of
government.
Principle in action:
Legislature: makes the laws
Executive: enforces laws
Judicial: interprets laws
PRINCIPLE #4
CHECKS AND BALANCES is the
system that allows the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches to
check, or restrain, the actions of one
another.
Principle in action:
Ex: Congress makes laws but the President can
veto the law; Congress can override that veto
PRINCIPLE #5
JUDICIAL REVIEW consists of the
power of a court to determine the
constitutionality of a governmental action.
Principle in action:
Supreme Court can declare a law
unconstitutional
PRINCIPLE #6
FEDERALISM is a system of
government in which the powers of
government are divided between a
central government and several local
governments.
Federal: Washington, DC
State: Austin, TX
Local: Houston, TX; Harris County