That Which Defines Us...The Foundation - Articles I, II, and III

Know from the beginning this is not a soapbox, nor one of my somewhat renowned rants. Selfishly, this is an avenue for me to refresh my knowledge of what defines America at its core; a way for me to once again be taught the underlying framework for our form of government. I also thought it a valid resource for anyone who may care to learn the same.
This is, by no means or inflection, meant to be a forum for airing my own or anyone else's political beliefs, persuasions, or ideologies. Many of the specifics here come from a book titled The Words We Live By by Linda R. Monk. The asides are largely my own. I certainly welcome any input or feedback you may have.
J. Nicklaus

A quick indulgence... [What follows isn't so much a soapbox as it is a small-town phone book. ~ JN] America is, by its very nature, a melting pot. Neither I nor the rest of my country are as strong individually as we are collectively. To be an American doesn't mean you are only caucasian, it means we are every race, creed, national origin, and even skin color you can think of. At our core though, all Americans are red, white, and blue. Each of us pursue our own dreams and desires, we live our lives largely on an individual basis, reaching out and embracing family and friends. Ask most of us what we really love and the responses you'll get will run the gamut from materialistic to spiritual. It's not unfair to say that each of us, deep down, reserves a small piece of real estate upon which we quietly nurture our love for our country, an ideal not indigenous to America alone. Ask me if America (or our government) is perfect? I emphatically respond "No." Ask me if many things could be better? Naturally, I respond "Yes." Ask me what I think it means to be American? I say "For me it reduces down to two simple but powerful words: Freedom and Responsibility." I consider myself most fortunate, even blessed, to be an American. I enjoy, even take for granted, freedoms which people of other nations dream of or only read about in clandestine shadows and forbidden books. We have an immigration problem here because of what America is, not because as Americans we hate outsiders. The mere fact I can write this and speak my mind without fear of reprisal is because of our Constitution. That doesn't mean I can be disrespectful just for the sake of speaking out; with powerful freedoms come equally powerful responsibilities. You can't have one without the other. Frankly, if you don't like America then I and many of my American brothers and sisters wholeheartedly welcome and encourage you to leave. We don't expect you to love everything about it, good and bad. Most of us don't either. But we also try to work at becoming better people, better citizens...better Americans. I take Liberty, to have and to hold. I will fade and pass eventually, but within my bloodline run the hopes and dreams of America. Let Freedom ring.

When Enough Is Beyond Enough
No discussion of American history or constitutional framework should ever be done without at least a mention of the Declaration of Independence. This one document is perhaps one of the most beautifully written in our country's young history. In one sweeping document it lays out the list of grievances we had against King George III and justifies the colonies desire to break from the mother country and set up shop on our own. The risks our forefathers took were immense; the sheer act of standing up to the King (not to mention against him) was an unequivocal act of treason, and the declaration itself a brazen act of sedition.

How did it begin?
June 7th, 1776 (Friday): Richard Henry Lee brought before the Second Continental Congress the following resolution for independence from Britain:

"Resolved, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.''

On Saturday and Monday (Congress didn't work on Sundays) Congress debated the issue. Three states dissented, but Congress couldn't agree upon more time for further debate, so they chose a Committee of Five to draft a declaration. Among the five were Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin.
It took Jefferson just seventeen days to come up with the initial draft. He submitted it to John Adams and Benjamin Franklin for their thoughts and changes before submitting it to the remaining members of the Committee. When all was done over twenty-six changes had been made.
July 1st, 1776: Congress is called to order at 9am, and the whole day is spent in debate of the Lee Resolution. Absentions and disagreements prevented all twelve colonies from unanimously passing the resolution, so debate carried over into the next day when all colonies finally concurred. On this date, the United Colonies of America officially became the United States of America, having fully adopted the resolution for declaring independence from Britain.
Upon passage of the resolution the Second Continental Congress then turned debate over to the Committee of Five's Declaration of Independence. Bear in mind, they first passed a resolution, but had yet to adopt a formal declaration. Further debate on July 3rd and the morning of July 4th altered the Declaration yet again, reducing the text by 25 percent. Jefferson referred to the changes as "mutilations". The Committee of Five took the manuscript copy of the document to John Dunlap, official printer to the Congress. These are known as the Dunlap Broadsides. It is believed that Dunlap printed between 200 and 500 copies of the Declaration on the evening of July 4th, 1776.
On the morning of the July 5, broadsides were dispatched by members of Congress to various committees, assemblies, and to the commanders of the Continental troops.
The document was signed by most of the members on August 2. The last signature was applied five years later in 1781.

Of all the signatures on the Declaration, only two were actually on the copy which King George III received later that year: John Hancock and Charles Thompson. If you were a member of the Second Continental Congress in 1776, you were a rebel and considered a traitor by the King of England. You knew that a reward had been posted for the capture of certain prominent rebel leaders and signing your name to the Declaration meant that you pledged your life, your fortune, and your sacred honor to the cause of freedom.

Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence and member of the Committee of Five died on July 4, 1826. And John Adams, also a committee member, died on the same day.

If you'd like to see the actual document, you have two ways in which to view it. Please bear in mind, both of these are large files! They will open slowly simply by virtue of their size.

The actual document. It will re-size automatically. The engraved document. It will re-size automatically. Once opened you can dowload it locally for more detailed viewing,

If you saw the movie National Treasure then you might be wondering what, if anything, is on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Here's your answer: It reads: "Original Declaration of Independence" dated 4th July 1776" It appears on the bottom of the document, upside down. While no one knows for certain who wrote it, it is known that early in its life, the large parchment document (it measures 29¾ inches by 24½ inches) was rolled up for storage. So, it is likely that the notation was added simply as a label.

A written instrument...

"The Constitution is a written instrument. As such, its meaning does not alter. That which it meant when it was adopted, it means now." — South Carolina v. United States (1905)

Few things are as hotly contested in legal and political circles as whether or not a given issue is constitutional. Most of the time the arguement is built around what the framers of the constitution literally meant or intended. It really all boils down to interpretation.

Movies make for a good example, if not a touch myopic in context. You get into a discussion of the latest blockbuster with someone. They thought it was great, you thought it sucked. You both saw the same exact movie, right? Your opinion of the movie is inherently influenced by a number of factors: education, the environment you grew up in, perhaps your like or dislike of an actor or actress, or even the very premise the movie was predicated on. If it rubs you the wrong way, you're probably not going to like it. Simple pyschology. And so it can go with the interpretation of the Constitution--that's not to say such intrepretation is a matter of simple psychology.

The United States of America are, in fact, a sovereign nation--more precisely, we are a popular sovereignty. This is a bedrock facet of our system of government. Popular Sovereignty is the principle which states the people are the source of governmental power. Nowhere else in the Constitution is this more dramatically emphasized than in the first three words...We the people... Not the king, the legislatures, nor the courts--the American people quiescently hold the power of government. The potential Achilles heel to this principle is apathy. How can a people truly possess and retain this power if they don't participate in it, be knowledgable of it?

The first seven articles of the Constitution directly spell out the branches of government and their respective powers. Of those, the first three evince the specific powers each branch is granted. The framers feared the concentration of authority in any one group, so they built in a system of checks and balances. This included the separation of powers. By design, then, we have three branches of government:

Article I: Creates and grants specific power to the Legislative branch to make law.
Article II: Creates and grants specific power to the Executive branch to enforce law.
Article III: Creates and grants specific power to the Judicial branch to interpret law.

Separation of Powers

The constitutional doctrine of dividing governmental power among the legislative, executive, an judicial branches.

Checks and Balances

The constitutional doctrine in which each branch of government shares some of the powers of the other branches in order to limit their actions.

The boundaries between each branch are not absolute--that's what the checks-and-balances are for; each branch can exercise some restraint on the powers of the others. For instance, Congress can pass laws, but the president can veto them. The president can make treaties, but the Senate must approve them. The Supreme Court can rule a law to be unconstitutional, but the Congress, with the States, can amend the Constitution. Say what you want about a group of men putting quill to paper over 200 years ago...this is really pretty ingenious. Having said that, it wasn't an original idea. They derived their ideas of separation of powers from the French philosopher Montesquieu. We got some ideas from them, and ever since we've been bailing them out. To be fair, they did give us some fine cheeses, wines, and crepes. Oh yeah, and there's the whole Statue of Liberty thing.

From the You had to see it comin' file ... French Fries: The logical explanation of the origin of the North American name of the dish is that it derives from potatoes that have been "fried in the French manner". The English verb fry is ambiguous: it can refer to both sautéing and deep-fat frying, while the French pommes frites or patates frites ("fried potatoes") refers unambiguously to deep frying. Thomas Jefferson, famous for including European, especially French cuisine, in his writings and recipes, referred to fried potatoes in this same manner. The Belgians, French, and Spanish have all tried to lay claim to french fries. Technically though, the French typically associate the fries with Belgium, possibly out of fear. The Brits simply call them chips. You know, once you get past the whole Revolutionary War thing the Brits are pretty charming folks. I like them, even though we did whip their Redcoats. In case you weren't paying attention, I did tie french fries to the discussion at hand...see the Thomas Jefferson mention above. --edited from Wikipedia

The Legislative branch is comprised of two "houses." This is known as a bicameral legislature. The House of Representatives is the one considered closest to the people, and is often referred to as the "lower house."

"Reader, suppose you are an idiot. And suppose you are a member of Congress. But I repeat myself." --Mark Twain

Congress, and politicians in general, take a beating from all sides; pundits, comedians, fanatics, etc. This seems especially true for those whom we elect to the lower house. Our love-and-hate relationship with our representatives is largely thought to exist because they are closest (in government-speak) to American citizens--the familiarity-breeds-contempt theory in action. The second "house" is the Senate, also referred to as the "upper house." The Senate contains two representatives from each state, regardless of population. There are currently 100 Senators.

Membership in the House of Representatives is based upon a state's population, whereas each state has equal representation in the Senate. Member of the lower house are elected by the people. Prior to the Seventeenth Amendment, Senators were chosen by the membership of the Senate, by their peers. The Seventeenth Amendment (ratified in 1913) now requires that Senators are elected by the people as well.
Lower House Term limit: 2 years
Senate Term limit: 6 years; rotates so not all senators are up for re-election at the same time.

Article I of the Constitution gives Congress certain powers:
enumerated powers	Those that are specifically listed in the Constitution as belonging to the national government.
implied powers	Congress may exercise those powers not specifically listed in the Constitution, which can be inferred from the enumerated powers--such as the power to draft people into the armed services.
inherent powers	Those powers that belong to the government of a sovereign state; these do not have to be granted by the Constitution. These powers include regulating immigration and conducting foreign affars.

The process of making law is only slightly more exciting than an insurance seminar. The most simplified (and frankly, the most fun) way to learn the process was broadcast on Saturday mornings on ABC as part of a educational series of animated shorts titled Schoolhouse Rocks. Arguably, one of the most memorable explains the process of how a Bill becomes Law. The animation is a little dated, especially by todays standards, but overall it's a classic. Click on the graphic to the right to see it. [You'll need Quicktime to view it. You can install it from here. If you don't get the installer, go here...it's free]

"Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." --Winston Churchill

The Executive branch houses the president and his administration. Its primary focus is to enforce law (federal regulation). It plays a critical part in not only providing a point of leadership and accountability, but also in the system of checks-and-balances. By virtue of office the president is imbued with the following powers: veto power over all bills; appointment of judges and other officials; makes treaties; ensures all laws are carried out; commander in chief of the military; pardon power. The president can also appoint Supreme Court judges, but they must be confimed by the Senate.

The Vice President is President of the Senate as well. He is the only U.S. official who can hold positions within two branches of government simultaneously. Should anything happen to the president, he is next in line for the presidency; outside of that he has no executive branch duties. The Constitution designates the Vice President as the Senate's presiding officer and tiebreaker.

Among the aforementioned checks, the executive branch has the following checks:
Recess appointments
Emergency calling into session of one or both houses of Congress
May force adjournment when both houses cannot agree on adjournment

Article II does not define the exact nature of the president's powers. Unlike Article I, which limits the powers of Congress to those "herein granted," Article II vests the president with "executive power." Generally speaking, the Supreme Court has upheld the principle that the president has some inherent powers that do not need to be specifically mentioned in the Constitution, especially with regard to foreign policy.

executive privilege: doctrine which states the president does not have to share certain information with Congress or the judiciary.

Lest you think the president always gets a free ride, stand fast. In 1974 the Supreme Court ruled that the president's need for confidential information [executive privilege] was constitutionally based. That meant executive privilege did not outweigh the demand for evidence in a criminal trial if national security issues were not involved.

The Supreme Court has also held that Article II gives the president "absolute immunity from damages liability" for his official actions. But in 1997 the Court unanimously ruled that the president can be sued while in office for actions unrelated to his official conduct. See, even the president isn't immune the "freedom and responsibility" pairing.

The Twenty-Second Amendment to the Constitution limits the presidency to two consecutive terms. The only exception being if a Vice President takes over the presidency in the middle of a term, the maximum he can serve is a total of ten years.

Who qualifies to be President of the United States? A candidate must be:
At least 35 years old
A natural-born, not naturalized, U.S. Citizen
Must have lived in the United States for at least fourteen years.

"Liberty wasn't guaranteed by the Constitution. It was only given a chance." --Stephen Chapman Chicago Tribune

Article III of the Constitution is the shortest and, surprisingly, least specific of the constitutional provisions establishing the three branches of government. The duty of the Judicial branch is to interpret the laws--or, in the words of Chief Justice John Marshall, "to say what the law is." According to the Supreme Court, this article gives the judiciary the power to declare acts of the president or Congress as unconstitutional, also known as judicial review. The Constitution itself makes no mention whatsoever of judicial review. Alexander Hamilton once declared that the judiciary was the "least dangerous" branch of government, because it had neither the legislature's fiscal gravitas nor the executive branch's power of the sword--it had "neither force nor will but merely judgement." Throughout American history many have disagreed with Hamilton, because unelected judges have the power to overturn the decisions of elected officials. Hamilton's response was, even though unelected, the judiciary was the true guardian of the ultimate will of the people: the Constitution.

Nothing in the Constitution requires that the Supreme Court consist of nine justices. The exact number is determined by Congress, and has varied from the original six in 1780 to a high of ten authorized in 1803. The number we have today was arrived at in 1948, when a federal law was passed setting the size of the Supreme Court to eight associate judges and one chief justice. The chief justice is the only judicial officer mentioned in the Constitution; Article I states the chief justice shall preside over the impeachment trial of a president. The chief justice is also the head of the entire judicial branch, not just the Supreme Court. As such, his or her proper title is Chief Justice of the United States, not just Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Neither does the Constitution spell out any sort of qualifications a Supreme Court justice should have. There are no requirements of minimum age or length of citizenship. Before 1957, not all justices even had law degrees, because until World War I most lawyers trained through apprenticeships instead of law schools. All confirmed appoinments to the Supreme Court are lifetime, and can only be terminated by impeachment.

The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury...
Trial by jury is one of the few individual rights protected in the original Constitution. Before the Bill of Rights was added in 1791, the Constitution focused mainly on the structure of government and did not guarantee many civil liberties. But juries were so vital to Americans that they are now specified four times in the Constitution: In Article III, the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Amendments.

Juries involve lay citizens in the dispensation of justice, which some argue is unreliable and unfair. However, as Thomas Jefferson said, the jury means a trial "by the people themselves." Thus, to many Americans, juries are essential to self-government.

Now, with a basic understanding of the structure of government, understanding the remaining Articles should be much less troublesome.