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Constitutional Amendments

Constitutional Amendments. Culture in America in 1787. No cars, few cities, no phones/ tv /internet Agrarian life - farmers Problems that faced that America are in no way the ones that face America today

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Constitutional Amendments

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  1. Constitutional Amendments

  2. Culture in America in 1787 • No cars, few cities, no phones/tv/internet • Agrarian life - farmers • Problems that faced that America are in no way the ones that face America today • The people who wrote the Constitution wrote it with the needs and concerns of their time in mind • Framers knew they could not make a government relevant for all time

  3. “A Living Document” • They made sure to leave room for adaptation to meet the needs of future generations • The Constitution has been in effect for 223 years • Longer by far than the written constitution of any nation in the world • The Constitution isand is notthe same one written in 1787 • Constitutional change via formal and informal amendments • To amend = to change • This allows the Constitution to grow and change with time – often referred to as a living document

  4. Formal Amendment Process • Formal Amendment - Changes that become part of the written language of the Constitution. • Article V sets out Four Methods • 26 Amendments were adopted using the first method • 1 Amendment (21st) was adopted using the second method First Method Third Method Second Method Fourth Method

  5. Questions • How does the formal amendment process illustrate federalism? • The proposal takes place at the national level but ratification takes place on a State-by-State basis • How is popular sovereignty expressed in the amendment process? • The ultimate decision to formally pass any amendment is given to the people

  6. Proposed Amendments • There are currently 27 formal amendments. • More than 10,000 amendment proposals have been sent to Congress since 1789, only 33 have reached the States; 27 have been ratified • The first ten Amendments are called the Bill of Rights (proposed in 1789; ratified 1791) • Sets out Constitutional guarantees for all citizens • Remember, many people only agreed to support and ratify the Constitution when a Bill of Rights was implemented

  7. Fun with Amendments!! • Your job is to create a graphical representation of your amendment • This should be created on a one-page Word document with the Amendment written on the back • Your job (worth 1 bonus point) is to get your classmates to guess which amendment your picture represents • You may use clip-art, online images, or hand-drawn pictures to convey your amendment • No words or numbers are allowed on your picture • Project is worth 20 points

  8. www.ushistory.org/documents/amendments.htm • www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_amendments_to_the_United_States_Constitution

  9. 27 Amendments!!! • Bill of Rights (1791) • First Amendment - Five freedoms; Freedom of religion, speech, press; right to assembly, petition • Note: each of these rights may be exercised only with regard to the rights of all other persons • Second Amendment – Allows each state to keep a militia (National Guard); right to keep and bear arms • Third Amendment – Prohibits soldiers from staying in your home without your permission • Fourth Amendment – Prohibits unlawful searches and seizures

  10. 27 Amendments!!! • Fifth Amendment – Rights of the Accused • Criminal Proceedings: No trial unless indicted by a grand jury; No Double Jeopardy; No Self-Incrimination • Due Process – Prohibits unfair, arbitrary actions by the Fed. Govt • Eminent Domain – Govt can take private property for a legit public purpose, but it must pay a fair price for it • Sixth Amendment – Right to Speedy Trial by Jury • Right to a fair and speedy public trial by an impartial jury; must be informed of charge; has the right to confront accuser; to obtain witnesses; and is provided with an attorney • SeventhAmendment – Civil Trials – Right to a trial by jury in cases over $20; right can be waived if both parties agree to a bench trial (only a judge)

  11. 27 Amendments!!! • Eighth Amendment – Prohibits excessive fines or bail; prohibits cruel and unusual punishment • Ninth Amendment – Unenumerated rights of the people exist and cannot be infringed upon • Tenth Amendment – Those powers which are not given to fed. govt. and not prohibited for the states, belong to the states Amendments 11-27 • (1795) No state may be sued in federal court by a citizen or a foreign country • (1804) Establishes that the Electoral College must cast two votes: one for the President and one for VP

  12. 27 Amendments!!! • (1865) Abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude • (1868) Citizenship granted through birth or naturalization; also through blood • Due Process clause forbids a state to act in an unfair way • Equal Protection clause forbids a state to discriminate • (1870) Prohibits denial of suffrage based on race, color, or previous servitude • (1913) Allows Federal Government to collect income tax Civil War Amendments

  13. 27 Amendments!!! • (1913) Popular election of U.S. Senators • (1919) Prohibition of Intoxicating Liquors • (1920) Suffrage for women • (1933) “Lame Duck Amendment” - President starts January 20; Congress starts Jan. 3

  14. 27 Amendments!!! • (1933) Repeals 18th Amendment – Prohibition • (1951) Limits Presidential tenure to 2 terms or 10 years • (1961) Gives the District of Columbia the same amount of voters in the Electoral College as the smallest state (3) • (1964) Outlaws the payment of a tax for voting

  15. 27 Amendments!!! • (1967) Presidential Succession • If President dies, is removed, or resigns, VP takes over (Succession) • If VP vacancy, President nominates a successor and he is confirmed by majority vote in Congress • If President is incapacitated, he sends a letter to Congress and the VP takes over until he sends another letter declaring himself fit • Allows VP and Cabinet to declare President unable to serve • (1971) Establishes minimum voting age of 18 • (1992) An increase in pay for Congress isn’t effective until the next election

  16. Decision Sedition Act is passed that says yes Court said yes: it creates a “clear and present danger” to national security (Schenckv. United States) Court decides 1st Amendment does not protect them (Dennis v. United States) The Living Constitution: Changing Views of Free SpeechThe 1st Amendment • 1798 • Is it a crime to criticize the government in speech or writing? • 1919 • Should sending written material to draftees urging them to resist the draft be unlawful? • 1951 • Does 1st Amendment protect 11 Communists who advocated the overthrow of the government?

  17. Decision Court says yes (Tinker v. Des Moines School District) Court said this is an example of “symbolic speech” (Texas v. Johnson) The Living Constitution: Changing Views of Free SpeechThe 1st Amendment • 1969 • Does 1stAmd protect students who wear armbands in school to protest the Vietnam War? • 1989 • Should burning an American flag as a political protest be allowed?

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