American Revolution Reading
1.) According to the preamble of the constitution, what is the purpose of the constitution? What connections to enlighten thinkers do you detect in the preamble?
The preamble is the constitutions introductory part or statute, and it states the reasons or intentions of the constitution to the people. About the preamble, the purpose of the constitution is to protect the people against the abuse of powers. Power can be abused by the state, legislature, Congress, or any other body or individual in authority. Therefore, a good constitution should be one that protects her people against any form of abuse by the authorities. Besides, a constitution should be able to improve public confidence in the government. Democratic governments usually obtain their constitutional mandates from the citizens. In this case, a good constitution should provide checks and balances between the government and its citizens to establish and promote public confidence in the government. Finally, the constitution authorizes the government to the government to perform certain functions on behalf of her people. (Douma, 2017)
Consequently, preamble intents to support popular sovereignty signified by using words like "we the people" to claim that the sovereign power belongs to the people and not the states. Secondly, the preamble is a source of power to the national government. For example, the governing bodies like the Congress that exercises power on behalf of the people to encourage the general welfare and ensure tranquility have got the preamble to supplement such powers. Equally, a preamble is simply a symbolic language that has no significant function. It is considered a philosophical language used to describe the purpose of the constitution; however, it is not used during the interpretation of the constitution. For example, courts rarely refer to the preamble during judgment or interpretation of the constitution. (Douma, 2017)
2.) What branch of the government does Article I of the Constitution address? What are the powers and responsibilities given to this branch? Who can serve in this branch? How are people elected to the branch? How is the number of people in this branch determined and divided amongst the states? What does Clause 18 of Section 8 of Article I say, and how do you interpret its meaning?
The article I of the constitution addresses the legislative branch of government, which comprises the Senate and the House of Representatives (Congress). Like any other government branch, Congress equally has its powers and responsibilities as the legislative branch. The Congress is the only governmental body with the powers and responsibility to make and change laws that govern political entities like a country or city. Both chambers also have investigative powers and can forcefully order to produce evidence as they deem necessary during investigation processes. The oversight of the executive branch is also another important responsibility of Congress to ensure the President does not abuse his or her powers while implementing various laws and regulations. The Congress also has the powers and responsibility to approve presidential appointments and declare war when necessary. (Douma, 2017)
One can...
…do you believe that the framers of the Constitution intended this process to be easy or difficult?
The process of amending the USA constitution is outlined in Article V of the constitution. Congress may take the proposed constitutional amendment to the states if two-thirds of both houses pass the proposed amendment bill. After that, the Congress has to call for a convention for proposing amendments upon applying two-thirds of the states' legislatures. Consequently, amendments supported by the convention or Congress only become valid when ratified by conventions or legislatures of threefourths states. (Douma, 2017)
Considering the thresh hold required for the amendment of the constitution, I believe the framers wanted to Make it difficult to safeguard it from manipulation. (Douma, 2017)
6.) In general, what are the rights and privileges guaranteed by the Bill of Rights (the first ten Amendments)? What does the creation of these amendments tell you about the fears and doubts many people had about the Constitution and this new government experiment?
The bill of rights also referred to as the first ten amendments to the constitution, has privileges and rights. For example, it proclaims the rights of Americans with their government. It also establishes civil rights and liberties to individuals like freedom of press, religion, and speech. (Douma, 2017)
Finally, the powers that are not given to the states from the constitution, nor barred by it to the states, are kept for the states or the citizens. It emphasizes that the inclusion of a bill of rights does not alter the national government's fundamental attributes. (Douma,…
