Government Chapter 3 Assessment

The text of the Constitution is organized into an introduction(Preamble) and seven articles.

The six basic principles of the Constitution are popular sovereignty, limited government, separation of powers, checks and balances, judicial review, and federalism.

Popular sovereignty and limited government both say that the people give the government its authority. This principle was important because they wanted the government to be subject to the law, not above it.

The purpose of checks and balances is to prevent an unjust combination of the majority.

The judicial branch can check the legislative branch by determining the constitutionality and striking down those acts that are unconstitutional.

The executive branch can check the legislative branch by vetoing legislation, calling special sessions, recommending legislation, and appealing to the people.

27 amendments have been formally added to the Constitution.

The most common method for adding an amendment is a 2/3 vote in each congressional house and ratification by 3/4 of state legislatures. The method only used once is proposed by Congress and then ratified by conventions in 3/4 of the states.

The formal amendment process reflects federalism by taking place at the national level and ratification at the state level.

The amendment that took the longest amount of time to ratify was the 27th, and it took almost 203 years.

The end of the Civil War and Reconstruction led to the addition of the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments.

The Constitution has been changed by basic legislation by Congress, actions taken by the President, key decisions of the Supreme Court, the activities of political parties, and custom.

Congress has contributed to the process of constitutional change and development by passing laws to spell out several of the Constitution's provisions.

Two examples of the exercise of presidential power that illustrates the process of constitutional change are making the President the commander in chief and making treaties or executive agreements.

The presidential nominating process illustrates the process of constitutional change and development because political parties formed during Washington's presidency and the electoral college shifted during the 1830s.

The role of customs in government is as strong as written law.