Note Sheet – Constitution
1. The Constitution is a living Constitution because it is (flexible/inflexible) and can (change/not
change) to meet the times. It (can/cannot) accommodate change.
2. The _______________ is the supreme law of the land.
3. When Jefferson wrote that the Constitution “belongs to the living and not the dead,” he meant that
(the Framers should have made it more relevant to young people/it must be responsive to the
changing times and customs).
4. Popular sovereignty means absolute power is invested in the (Congress/people).
5. The source of power in the U.S. is the (Supreme Court/people/the president).
6. Government has only the power the people give it is an example of
(popular sovereignty/separation of power/limited government).
7. The Framers feared that direct rule would lead to ______ _______.
8. (Checks and balances/Separation of powers) mean power is distributed among the 3 branches.
9. Dividing the government into three distinct branches is an example of
(checks and balances/separation of powers).
10. Legislative power is invested in the (Supreme Court/President/Congress).
11. The system of ________ _____ __________ keep one branch of government from dominating
the actions of the others.
12. The President’s veto of an act of Congress is an example of
(separation of powers/checks and balances/limited government).
13. The legislative branch can check on the executive branch by
(President’s veto of an act of Congress/Congress overrides a presidential veto).
14. The legislative branch can check the judicial branch by
(Congress removing judges by impeachment/Congress overrides a presidential veto).
15. __________ Review – power given the courts to declare laws unconstitutional [null and void].
16. The power of judicial review is held by (some/all) federal courts and most State courts.
17. Former Chief Justice Hughes said, “We are under the Constitution but the Constitution is what the
(Congress/judges) say it is.”
18. In 1803, the Supreme Court first established the power of judicial review in __________________.
19. Dividing power between the National Government and the 50 States is known as ___________.
20. (Formal/Informal) amendments take place through the process of constitutional amendments.
21. Formal amendments (involve/don’t involve) changes in the written word of the Constitution.
22. (Formal/Informal) amendments take place without involving changes in the written word of the
Constitution.
23. More than 10,000 formal amendments have been proposed in Congress since 1789.
____ have been sent to the States and ____ have been ratified.
24. Amendments must be passed by 2/3 vote of both houses and ratified by ___ of the State
legislatures or ___ in number.
25. Twenty-sex of the twenty-seven amendments have been brought about by using proposed by
(Congress/state legislatures) and ratified by (Congress/State legislatures).
26. The federal character of the U.S. government can be shown in the formal amendment process by
proposals at the (national/State) level and ratification at the (national/State) level.
27. The only constitutional amendment to be repealed was the (17th, 18th, and 19th).
28. The three amendments which expanded suffrage are the 15th, 19th, and the (24th/25th/26th).
29. The most recent amendment in 1992 was the 27th and had to do with _____________ _____.
30. The first ten amendments are known as the _______ ____ __________.
31. The First Amendment includes freedom (to bear arms/of speech/from quartering of troops during
peacetime).
32. The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were known as the ________ ______ amendments.
33. The (13th/14th/15th) amendment banned slavery and involuntary servitude.
34. The (13th/14th/15th) amendment gave the freed slaves their citizenship.
35. The (13th/14th/15) amendment gave the freed slaves the right to vote.
36. The (16th/17th/18th) amendment made income taxes legal.
37. The (16th/17th/18th) amendment said senators should be elected by the people.
38. The (16th17th/18th) amendment prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages (prohibition).
39. Amendment ____ in 1920 gave women the right to vote.
40. The 21st amendment repealed the ____ amendment.
41. The ____ amendment lowered the voting age to 18. [“If you can die for your country, you can vote
for your country”]
42. Most constitutional changes have been brought about through (formal/informal) amendments.
43. The Constitution has grown and changed mostly as a result of (formal/informal) amendments.
44. (Formal/Informal) amendments are the key to the vitality of the Constitution.
45. The Constitution can be informally amended by the
(executive branch only/legislative branch only/judicial branch only/all three branches).
46. Executive action [agreement] (may/may not) produce informal amendments.
47. Executive action [agreement] (does/does not) carry the same force of law as a treaty.
48. When former President Harry S. Truman sent American troops to Korea even though the
constitution said only Congress could declare war, this was an example of
(congressional action/executive action/judicial action).
49. The “rubber stamp” behavior of presidential electors is an example of a(n) (formal/informal)
amendment.
50. The custom of the President appointing a cabinet is an example of a(n) (formal/informal)
amendment.