CE 2a Fundamental Principles
The Fundamental Principles are the building blocks of our countries
government. These principles “define and shape American constitutional
government.” (SOLPASS) The five principles set the tone of how our government
is run. The basic idea that should be gotten from all of them is that, THE PEOPLE
ARE IN CHARGE.
Consent of the governed: The people are the source of any and all
governmental power. If the word consent is replaced with “permission”
and governed is replaced with “the people”, the term may be easier to
understand. If the government wants to do anything, they need the
“permission of the people.”
Limited government: Government is not all-powerful and may do only
those things the people have given it the power to do. This means that
the government can only use the power that the people give it. If the
government wants more power, they need to ask the people.
Rule of law: The government and those who govern are bound by the
law, as are those who are governed. Everyone must obey all of the laws.
No one is above the law.
Democracy: In a democratic system of government, the people rule.
Representative government: In a representative system of government,
the people elect public officeholders to make laws and conduct
government on the people’s behalf. Think of it like this: There are too
many citizens for all of us to go to Washington D.C. to make the rules.
So the people of each state pick (or elect) someone to speak for them and
make the rules on their behalf.
What do you know?
1. What is the main idea behind all of these principles?
a) anyone can make a law
c) the people are in charge
b) one person makes all the decisions d) both a&b
2. Rule of Law means;
a) Important people do not have to obey laws
b) Everyone must obey the laws no matter who they are
c) Laws are meant to be broken
d) Government official cannot get speeding tickets
3) Limited Government:
a) Congress can do whatever it wants without getting permission from
anyone.
b) Government has only so much power. If they need to do anything
else, they need to ask the people.
c) Limited Government means that only a certain number of people
can vote.
d) Government is based on how many parking places there are in
Washington, D.C.
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CE 2b Earlier Documents
Before the United States of America became a country, there were some
documents written by different people that helped shape our thoughts and actions
as a country.
The first document was actually written by the King of England. The Charters of
the Virginia Company of London were written to give permission for the colony of
Jamestown to be started. There were actually three Charters written and the most
important element of the Charters was they gave the colonist at Jamestown the
same rights as citizens in England. This confirmed that all citizens of a country
should have the same rights.
The second document was written over 100 years after the first. The
Virginia Declaration of Rights was written by George Mason. It clearly stated
the rights all Virginia citizens had. The important thing was that it was used as a
model to go by when the Bill of Rights of the Constitution was being written.
As tensions grew between the colonists and England, the colonists decided
they should break away from England and become their own country. The
Declaration of Independence was written to announce to England and the world
that a new nation was being formed. The Declaration had four major points it
wanted to make.
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These points can best be remembered by using R.I.C.E.
R= Rights- the colonists believed that all people have certain
unalienable rights: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
These could never be taken away.
I= Independence- the colonist demanded their freedom from England
C= Complaints (or grievances) - Against the King. How King had
treated the colonist unfairly.
E=Equality- All men are considered equal.
Once freedom was gotten from England, the new country needed guidelines
to run their country. The Articles of Confederation was written for this. The
important points were mostly bad ones. The only good thing was that it was the
first form of national government for the new country. Since most of the power
was given to the States, the Central (national) government was very weak and had
no power to enforce laws or collect taxes.
In the same time frame, another document came from the State of Virginia.
This was written by Thomas Jefferson and the Virginia Statute of Religious
Freedom. The important thing about this was that it cleared the way for anyone to
worship anyway they chose.
The final important document was the Constitution of the United States of
America. This was written to replace the Articles of Confederation. It set up the
structure for the government as well as confirming everyone’s fundamental rights
and equality. The Constitution also supported the idea of majority rule and the
worth and dignity of all citizens.
What do you know?
1) Who wrote The Charters of the Virginia Company of London?
a) George Washington
c) King of England
b) Thomas Jefferson
d) George Mason
2) What document was the first form of national government for the United
States?
a) U.S. Constitution
c) Declaration of Independence
b) Articles of Confederation
d) Bill of Rights
3) What document replaced the Articles of Confederation?
a) U.S. Constitution
c) Declaration of Independence
b) Articles of Confederation
d) Bill of Rights
CE 2c Preamble to the Constitution
The Preamble is an introduction to the Constitution. It states the purposes and
goals of the Constitution and the government. The Preamble starts with “We the
People” to show that our government is run by the people.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
There are six purposes of the Government:
To form a more perfect union (make our government better than before)
Establish justice (fairness for all)
Ensure Domestic Tranquility (peace and security within the country)
Provide for the common defense (protect our country from others)
Promote the general welfare (insure the wellbeing of the people)
Secure the blessings of liberty (enjoy the good things of freedom)
What do you know?
1) The Preamble is part of what document?
a) U.S. Constitution
c) Declaration of Independence
c) Articles of Confederation
d) Bill of Rights
2) The Preamble is what part of the document?
a) The end
c) the middle
b) The beginning
d) none of the above
3) What document did the document with the Preamble in it replace?
a) U.S. Constitution
c) Declaration of Independence
b) Articles of Confederation
d) Bill of Rights
CE 2d Amending the Constitution
The word “amend” means to fix or change.
 When we amend The Constitution, we are adjusting it because something
that was written in it is either outdated, or no longer appropriate for our
country.
 There are only 27 amendments to the Constitution.
 The first 10 of the amendments are the Bill of Rights.
 So since the Constitution was written, we have only had to make 17
“corrections” to it.
 The amendment process is complex.(difficult)
There are 2 ways to amend the Constitution:
1. Action by Congress: this means that the U.S. Congress gets together and
decides that an amendment needs to be done. If it is agreed than the
amendment is sent out to the individual states for ratification.
( to ratify something means to approve it) There needs to be ¾ approval
of all the states for ratification.
2. Action by convention: Congress calls for an amendment proposing
convention
3. Of the 2 options, Action by Congress has been the only one used so far.
The State of Virginia uses the same process to amend its Constitution.
Action by General Assembly or convention
The citizens of Virginia vote to ratify.
What do you know?
1) How many total amendments are there to the Constitution?
a) 17
c) 27
b) 10
d) 19
2) Ratify means;
a) approve
b) remove
c) disagree
d) change
3) How many amendments are in the Bill of Rights?
a)17
c) 27
b)10
d) 19