Comparing The Preamble To The Constitution Of The United States

The preamble to the Articles of Confederation and the preamble to the US constitution had a number of similarities. For example, they were both established by the same people, being the official government, the United States were granted the power to make agreements with other states, and they also addressed the issue of the money. However both sides had some comparisons that differentiated each other; like legislature, voting rights, appointment of members, power to levy and collect taxes and how to solve disputes. The framers of Constitution "We the people of united states" wanted to build a fundamental purpose and guiding principles which aimed to form a more perfect union to establish justice , insure domestic calmness, provide for common defense, promote and improve general welfare and secure liberty even for the future generation, while the framers of the article wanted each state to hold its sovereignty freedom and independence plus jurisdiction and rights.

In Peter Charles Hoffer’s For Ourselves and Our Posterity, he talks about how the preamble to the constitution was such a transcendent idea. Hoffer talks about how the way the preamble was written it has been able to adjust and adapt to the needs of the nation over time. In analyzing this novel Hoffer makes many interesting and compelling arguments in saying that the preamble has been one of the most influential pieces of work in helping develop this country. After reading this book and looking at the civil war, the presidency of FDR, and the presidencies of JFK and Lyndon B. Johnson. I have found that I agree with Hoffer’s opinion.

When you build a house you have to have a strong foundation to have a sturdy house, well a government is them same thing. You have to create a reliable foundation to assure a successful country, that is what John Dickinson and James Madison thought when they were assigned to write the first drafts of The Articles of Confederation and The Constitution. These two documents were the most basic rules during and after the Revolutionary War, they assisted with clarifying what the public was expected to follow. It gave citizens of America a glimpse into the future of the government. I will be discussing what each document is and their purpose and then comparing the two to clarify how they were both helpful, yet different from each other.

After 1776, radical change occurred that led our forefathers to create The Preamble. This document is the opening statement to the United States Constitution. Its purpose is to explain why the men writing the Constitution created our government. The Preamble does not provide any laws or assign any certain kind of power. It delivers what the founding fathers intentions were when they wrote the Constitution. The United States had some successes and unfortunately some failures when it came to accomplishing its goals during its early ascendancy because they were able to make the U.S. safe at high costs, and was able to make themselves into a powerhouse of a country.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” These are the first 52 words of the constitution looked at to be the most important part of the constitution; it lists six objectives and purposes of government. Everything in this Constitution is supposed to serve theses six purposes.

The preamble played a vital role in shaping America as it is today. Three of the many national goals stated in this essential document include forming a more perfect union, establishing justice, and promoting the general welfare of every citizen. All of these goals have been achieved to some degree since the conception of the document and America continues to thrive and push forward, still as much in its’ prime as it was years ago.

The Constitution was created in the 1700’s to unify a growing nation and to ensure the basic rights of all citizens. However, as time went on, it seemed as if the large ideas in which our nation had been based upon, began to diminish and after the Mexican-American War, the nation began to face a large split in opinions mainly when regarding slavery. By the 1850’s the largely different interpretation of the Constitution caused such tension between citizens (northerners vs. southerners; those who were for slavery vs. those who opposed slavery), that the constitution could be described as an instrument of destruction that would lead to one of the darkest periods in this country’s history. The Constitution may have built up the union, but it ultimately contributed to its failure as well. The Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act, the different interpretations of the constitution and the Dred Scott case, all contributed to the failure of the union the Constitution had created.

In 1783, the Americans triumphed in the American Revolution, which granted independence from Great Britain. After their victory, it became evident that the new country would need a secure and central government to thrive. The Constitution is a document formed to aid the new republic and ensure that it would become and remain stable. It gives a complete and thorough outline of the rights that all citizens are entitled to have. However, prior to the ratification of the Constitution there had to be many debates and factors that influenced the idea of such a document that would form the basis for the United States. The creation of the Constitution was a result of America’s perseverance through certain political, economic, and social issues of the 1780s. Even through the unfavorable circumstances, America was able to devise a doctrine that would become to be known as the basis for the greatest country in the world; the US

After America shocked the world by defeating Great Britain in the War for Independence, the new nation needed a document that established their governments- state and national. After failed attempts with the Articles of Confederation, which gave the state governments too much power, the Constitution was eventually drafted. This contract established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for the citizens. The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, by delegates to the Constitutional Convention, in Philadelphia, conducted by George Washington. Said authors of the Constitution intended this document to rule our nation for eternity, yet a widely debated topic in the political science world, is whether or not the Constitution is still relevant in today’s

The United States would lose its name and stand divided if the Constitution did not bring the thirteen colonies into one body. Within this governing body, fears arise from the difficulty of controlling power in a central government, while still trying to keep unity between the states. Understanding that the United States was formed based on the people’s irritation with the corruption of the control of power in England, the Constitution reassured the people that their freedoms were going to be kept, but it required their trust. The founders of the United States Constitution established a just government through encompassing equal representation, with the people as the foundation, and protecting the injustices that could arise with the misuse of power.

The Beacon Learning gives a breakdown of the Preamble, starting with; We the people of the Unites States meaning all citizens of the United States (The Meaning of the United States Preamble). Following are the goals or reasons that will summarize the Constitution. To form a more perfect union, establish justice and insure domestic tranquility. These three goals mean. To make everything in our country as perfect as possible, begin fairness for all and promise that everything in our country will be peaceful (The Meaning of the United States Preamble). Last set of goals, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity and do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. Meaning, give protection to everyone, care for those

According to Jacobson v mass, the Preamble “indicates the general purpose for which the people ordained and established Constitution.” The Preamble was written to create a sustainable society.

With domestic and foreign policy challenges, much of the U.S. saw the need to ratify the Constitution. Anti Federalists opposed the ratification of the constitution due to the fear that the new national government would be too powerful without the addition of a Bill of Rights, because the way they saw it, they had just escaped tyrannical government and if the new government became too powerful, what was stopping them from doing the same thing, so they found the need to include a set of 10 amendments that would protect them against that ever happening. As the framers of the Constitution outlined in the preamble of the Constitution, they had six goals as a nation: to form a more perfect union, to establish justice, to ensure domestic tranquility, to provide for the common defense, to promote the general welfare, and to secure the blessings of liberty. With these goals in mind, they set off to write a constitution that everyone would be content with, outlining unalienable rights for everyone. The Alien and Sedition Act made the Federalist Party lose much of its popularity.

Men like George Washington, James Madison Jr., and Benjamin Franklin wanted to make a government that would: defend people homes, national security, law of the land and that individuals have the freedom to make their own choices. The Preamble is the introduction of the Constitution and the first ten amendments are the Bill of Rights. The United States Constitution was written to separate the three forms of government. In the beginning of the constitution, the Preamble states the reason why the thirteen original colonies separated from Great Britain. The separation of powers with checks and balances was given over the others was designed to prevent any branch, from infringing individual liberties safeguarded by the Constitution. The parts

This fresh, new foundation came in the form a document that outlined the way the government would work. Unlike the way Europe was governed before the Enlightenment period, Americans, since they had recently liberated themselves from the British throne, wanted to establish a government in such a way that would prevent tyrannical monarchy. By this time, they still were faced with the challenge of a republican self government. But again, we see the influence of Locke’s ideas from his Treatise, where he proposed that people had the right to establish their own government for their own protection of their natural rights. As a result of this idea, the preamble to the Constitution was created. This section provided analysis as to what the whole Constitution was about; improvement on the current government (to ensure that they are just) and protection for its citizens.