of Rights consists of the first ten amendments in the constitution; a document that outlines how the new American government would be created and operated. The Constitution was ratified in 1788 which was the start of protecting the interests of each citizen, two years later the Bill of Rights was proposed by congress and went into effect in 1791. It was designed to prevent the government from taking total power over citizens and to provide them with legal defenses. This essay will discuss the understanding
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The U.S. Constitution creates a balance of power by using a federal system of government. Essentially, this means that power is divided between national (federal) government and state governments. When the U.S. declared independence from Britain, the first form of government structure used was outlined in the Articles of Confederation. However, this was suboptimal as states had far too much power and the central government had almost none. People soon realized that there needed to be a middle ground
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such as Federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances, and the small state-large state plan. The Constitution guards against tyranny by using Federalism. In Madison’s quote, he talks about a “Double Security” between powers in the central government and state powers. “Hence a double security arises to the
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Federalism In a monarchy, the people have no say in the government, while the anti-federalists wanted to keep our government as it is. They both are most likely alike. This would cause chaos and hostility amongst the citizens of the nation. The federalists believed in a strong central government. They wanted some of the state powers for itself. Also, the supported the division of the government into three branches Anti-Federalist and Federalist The federalist were for the people and not
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ahead, he would play a central role in developing a formal government. Madison lived during the American Revolutionary War and was involved in forming our nation. Madison took part in drafting the U.S. Constitution and giving people freedom and prosperity. He was born on March 16, 1751 in Virginia and grew up there. Madison helped draft the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, which helped us because it gave the U.S. a better government that has lasted until the present day. He also made laws
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writes the laws, what laws are, and who is responsible for using the laws. We must also see firsthand how these laws affect us as a society and as a business. First let’s take a look at who makes laws. Laws are made by three branches of the government. These branches are the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. The executive branch is made up of the president and vice president who have to sign all laws before they go into effect. This is only after the legislative
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Criminal justice is a system of practices and institutions of governments directed at upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime, or sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties and rehabilitation efforts (Wikipedia 2015). The criminal justice system makes up a set of independent agencies that is establish by the government. The justice system divides into three categories: federal, state, military, and local government. The Justice system designed to enforce laws and punish
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before the Statue of Liberty was erected, the groundwork for the US government was being set by the enlightenment thinkers. The ideas influenced people in the 13 colonies to push for independence and start a revolution for freedom. John Locke, Montesquieu, and thomas Paine were just three of these influential men that had ideas, such as separation of power, natural rights and independence, that are used in our nation's modern government. John Locke is credited with the ideas of natural rights, separation
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and deciding if they apply to specific cases. In all of this, the Legislative branch is supposed to be the most powerful, the most representative of the people's voice, and the introduction of that voice to policy making in our federal government. The other two branches have specific duties and powers that are supposed to be limited to those duties, as well as their checks that maintain that balance of power. In the last hundred years, there has been a significant shift in the balance of power towards
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thirteen British colonies in North America declared their independence in 1776, they laid down that “governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” The “colonies” had to establish a government, which would be the framework for the United States. The purpose of a written constitution is to define and therefore more specifically limit government powers. After the Articles of Confederation failed to work in the 13 colonies, the U.S. Constitution was
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