‘Transformed beyond recognition from the vision of the Founding Fathers.’ Discuss this view of the modern US constitution.
In many ways, the US constitution has changed and shifted since its creation in 1787. It has changed, with power being put into the hands of bodies not specified in the constitution and certain constraints on power no longer existing. All in all, however, the constitution has maintained the very thing it was created for- to limit the power of the government and protect the people from tyranny of the executive. In this sense, the constitution is still very much embodying the vision of the founding fathers and is relatively unchanged given the lengthy period of time they have existed for. The powers of the president
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This has meant that although the words of the Founding Fathers do appear to still be relevant and present in the constitution, these words are being altered and changed- losing their original meaning and not resembling what the founding fathers wanted them to at all.
Many elements of the constitution remain unchanged. Due to the nature of the US constitution being codified, it has required a two thirds majority in Congress to change anything and this has meant that it hasn’t been greatly changed since the time it was made. The Bill of rights had remained pretty much the same since its creation. The right to bear arms, for example, is still a part of the conversation and despite many people wishing to amend it, this has not been able to happen. This proves the ridgity that the Founding Fathers wanted to give the Constitution. The Founding Fathers created the federal constitution during their time and this contained an intricate set of checks and balances between different levels and branches of government. This remains relatively unchanged within the US constitution. This set of checks and balances works in a way that makes the different branches of government still have independence and work on their own, but also requires them to work together interdependently. This creates better, stronger
Once approved by every State the U.S. Constitution was put in effect in 1789. The U.S. Constitution brought the President, Supreme Court and Congress into play. It states the powers held by each office and lays out how each position should be picked. The U.S Constitution also states the rights of every U.S citizen.
The Constitution of the United States of America was ratified in the year 1787. Ever since that date, the document has enforced the laws set forth and created a base for the country to stand upon. The Constitution was created to provide strict, but amenable guidelines that Americans could follow, which could result in a functional country. Aside from the fact that the Constitution was written over two hundred years ago, the document is still necessary and relevant to modern times. The three branches of government, the First Amendment, as well as the Fourth Amendment, are all still present in today’s America. Many of the rules in the Constitution are still accordant to society today, primarily because of the perceptive founding fathers who created them.
The United States government was founded on a written set of principles known as the Constitution. There have only been 17 amendments, or changes, since ratification. While the United States has evolved with time the role and function of the government, and the way the government guarantees civil rights and liberties, has also evolved. These changes have resulted from changing or broadening of the interpretation of the constitution. Although the core of the constitution has not changed, it has expanded and its interpretation has changed to keep up with societal demands.
The Constitution remains as relevant today as it did over two hundred years ago. Americans have lived their lives through the law of the Constitution of the United Staes of America for several years. The Constitution has kept our nation together and has kept us strong. “The Constitution defines the United States of America. This greatest of American documents not only establishes our system of government; it limits the power of that government, specifying our irrevocable rights and privileges as individuals” (Bernstein). The Constitution was created to help Americas government from collapsing. The need for the Constitution started with the failure of the Articles of Confederation.
The founding fathers, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, and John Adams came together and said there needed to be a change. This soon led to the Articles of Confederation getting replaced by the Constitution on March 4, 1787. The Constitution has three main parts to it; the preamble, seven articles, and 27 amendments. This document includes six fundamental principles to the way the United States is governed; separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, judicial review, popular sovereignty, and limited government. These six fundamental principles affects my life, everyone else's’ life, and the United States as a whole.
The United States Constitution is a document that has been able to withstand over two hundred years of use because of its elasticity. For something to be elastic it needs to be able change and adapt. This ability created a government that has survived for more than two centuries. The amendment process has allowed The Constitution to stay in place because the document is difficult to alter. The strictness of the amendment process insures a flexible government because it prevents any amendments that are not imperative to the well being of the nation from being passed. The Supreme Court’s ability to interpret The Constitution has allowed for The Constitution to last longer because it reflects the views of the citizens. Having a document that is hard to change, but not impossible to change protects the constitution from being altered constantly over and the government from being changed drastically. The
The US Constitution is a document on which we base our government. One of the most important features of our Constitution is that it can be amended.
The U.S Constitution is revered for both its age and its brevity. The Constitution is a short and concise document has been able to stand the test of time and it has remained the ultimate guide of principles for law creation and enforcement. With that being said, the words of the Constitution are unclear in many respects. Politicians have debates over the Constitution due to the reason that it is difficult to figure out what the Framers meant when they originally wrote the Constitution. According to the Constitution, the Supreme Court has the authority to decide if a law passed by Congress is Constitutional. However, the vagueness of the Constitution allows for the Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution differently since they have to figure out how to apply it to the twenty-first century.
The United States Constitution is a beloved document of this country. In this document many powers, liberties, and freedoms are given to the citizens of the United States of America. These citizens were first made up of immigrants or settlers from England who wanted a place to live without fear of death, and freedom of liberties. The people who made up the first colonies of the America’s fought long and hard through many generations to get to the point they were at writing the Constitution. Though writing the Constitution was the “icing on the cake” for those who lived in America and those looking to live in America, there was a time when the original
The United States Constitution was signed on the seventeenth of September in the year 1787. It is composed of the body and the Bill of Rights. Before it was ratified in the year 1787 the U.S. Government only worked off the seven Articles of Confederation. To strengthen the Government without taking away the rights and freedoms of the people the Bill of Rights was added in what is now called the Great Compromise. The Bill of Rights consists of the first ten Amendments to the Constitution. However, nowadays these Amendments are in some ways out of date. This is why the Founding Fathers wrote it in the Constitution that new Amendments could be made or old ones could be changed, to fit the times. As of today there are twenty-seven Amendments to
This episode of Constitution USA focused on the basis of the constitution and if it was written to last as long as it did. The constitution was created as the framework on how this country should be run and in doing so, the document needs to be flexible. Thomas Jefferson believed that each generation should have the opportunity to rewrite to constitution to suit the changing times ahead. James Madison begged to differ; he thought the constitution that was written by the founding fathers was never going to get better than what was currently inked on paper. Madison believed that frequent renovations would undermine the whole document. Although the constitution is not rewritten with every generation, amendment or modern changes are promoted. Even though only twenty seven
On March 4, 1789, the Constitution of the United States of America was put into effect, replacing the Articles of Confederation as the supreme law of the land. Over two-hundred years later, changing political and social climate brings one question. Is this Constitution still relevant today in the modern America? I not only say yes it is still relevant today, but I believe it is more relevant now than any other time in American history.
He goes on to say that just because certain activities did not exist in the times when the Constitution was written, by their “general language, they have given latitude to those who would later interpret the instrument to make the language applicable to cases [they] might not have foreseen” (Rehnquist, 1975). This opens the Constitution to a more fluid-like approach. Yes, the Constitution cannot resolve every question asked, not even every question of importance in our society. “Originalism does not remove controversy, or disagreement, but it does cabin it within a principled constitutional tradition that makes real the Rule of Law” (Forte, 2014). While the Constitution is slowly becoming subject to changing interpretations according to the spirit of the times, the vague idea of a “living” Constitution transforms it into something charter to be further developed through the values of sitting
Within this class’s short amount of time, I have learned a great amount in what our government is as whole and what specific roles it has on our society. One of my favorite things that we were assigned was to go over the constitution and the amendments within the document, and although I had a fair share of knowledge of what it was about, there were a few new things that I had learned from sitting down and reading it. I was able to put things that have happened in history that was a result in the constitutions role in our laws and regulations, and I was also able to sort out what things went against the most important document in U.S. history. For this paper I will answer question by question from information I have attained from this class, and also from people’s point of views from the internet. The first question of this topic reads “Do you believe the constitution is a living document?” and before I state my opinion on this subject I would like to inform this reader on information I have come across as to why I have come to my opinion on whether the base of our rights and laws are either dead or alive in today’s world.
Judicial Review is still going on relatively good. Whenever something is passed that is Un-Constitutional they can review it and make it illegal. In checks and balances Congress needs more power in order to balance everything out with the President. Congress has to go through the process of having a Bill approved through the House and Senate only for it to be Vetoed by the President while the President just does an executive order to put his or her own legislation into affect. This is not a fair practice and needs to be changed. The only way to fix this is to amend the Constitution. To do this first two-thirds of Congress must want the change and propose the amendment. If the proposed amendment is supported by thirty-eight of the fifty states then the Amendment will be approved and added to the Constitutional. Also, the President’s signature is not needed to approve the change to the Constitution.