Bill of Rights

 

 

 

The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. 

Empowered with the supreme authority of the people by the framers and the consent of the legislatures (deliberative assembly with the authority to make laws) of the states, it is the source of all government powers, and also provides important limitations on the government that protect the fundamental rights of United States citizens.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, 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.

Why a Constitution?

The need for the Constitution grew out of problems with the Articles of Confederation (Union), which established a “firm league of friendship” between the states, and vested most power in a Congress of the Confederation. 

This power was, however, extremely limited — the central government conducted diplomacy and made war, set weights and measures, and was the final arbiter of disputes between the states. 

Crucially, it could not raise any funds itself, and was entirely dependent on the states themselves for the money necessary to operate. 

Each state sent a delegation of between two and seven members to the Congress, and they voted as a bloc (combined) with each state getting one vote. But any decision of consequence required a unanimous vote -long story short this was ineffectual.

A movement to reform the Articles began, and invitations to attend a convention in Philadelphia to discuss changes to the Articles were sent to the state legislatures in 1787. 

In May of that year, delegates from 12 of the 13 states (Rhode Island sent no representatives) convened in Philadelphia to begin the work of redesigning government. 

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention quickly began work on drafting a new Constitution for the United States.

The Constitutional Convention

A chief aim of the Constitution as drafted by the Convention was to create a government with enough power to act on a national level, but without so much power that fundamental rights would be at risk. 

 A balance.

One way that this was accomplished was to separate the power of government into three branches, and then to include checks and balances on those powers to assure that no one branch of government gained supremacy. 

Brilliant. 

This concern arose largely out of the experience that the delegates had with the King (Dictator) of England and his powerful Parliament (Crownies: friends, family, ect). The powers of each branch are enumerated (spelled out one by one), in the Constitution, with powers not assigned to them reserved to the states.

The founders also took pains to establish the relationship between the states. States are required to give “full faith and credit” to the laws, records, contracts, and judicial proceedings of the other states, although Congress may regulate the manner in which the states share records, and define the scope of this clause. 

States are barred from discriminating against citizens of other states in any way, and cannot enact tariffs against one another. States must also extradite those accused of crimes to other states for trial.

In order to prevent arbitrary changes, the process for making changes to amendments is difficult. An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of Congress.

Additionally, the Constitution specifies that no amendment can deny a state equal representation in the Senate without that state’s consent.

The founders also specified a process by which the Constitution may be amended, and since its ratification, the Constitution has been amended 27 times. 

With the details and language of the Constitution decided, the Convention got down to the work of actually setting the Constitution to paper. It is written in the hand of a delegate from Pennsylvania, Gouverneur Morris, whose job allowed him some reign over the actual punctuation of a few clauses in the Constitution. 

He is also credited with the famous preamble, quoted at the top of this page. On September 17, 1787, 39 of the 55 delegates signed the new document, with many of those who refused to sign objecting to the lack of a bill of rights. At least one delegate refused to sign because the Constitution codified and protected slavery and the slave trade.

The United States Bill of Rights comprises the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution.  The Bill of Rights amendments added to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms and rights, clear limitations on the government's power in judicial and other proceedings, and explicit declarations that all powers not specifically granted to the U.S. Congress by the Constitution are reserved for the states or the people.

 

Amendment One: (4)

 

1 Freedom of Religion

 

2 Freedom of Speech 

 

3 Right to Assemble

 

4 Right to Petition  

 

Petition, written instrument directed to some individual, official, legislative body, or court in order to redress a grievance or to request the granting of a favour. 

Petition in the broadest form (not necessarily legal), means a list of people (names) who support your idea.

 

Petitions are also used to collect signatures to enable a candidate to get on a ballot or to put an issue before the electorate.

 

 

 

Amendment Two: (1)

1. Right to keep and bear arms (in order to maintain a well regulated militia).

 

Militia: a military force that is raised from the civil population to supplement a regular army in an emergency.

 

Amendment Three (1) 

No Quartering of Soldiers 

This was to prevent the Military from taking personal property, like your home, and using it as their own.

 

Amendment Four (1)

Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. 

The police need probably cause, and then they have to get a search warrant, and then they have to articulate why they arrested you in a jury of your peers.

 

 

Amendment Five (3)

 

Right to due process of law

 

Freedom from self-incrimination

 

Double jeopardy   

If a person robs a bank, that individual cannot twice be tried for robbery for the same offense. But if he robs a bank and a murder occurs, he can be tried for both murder and robbery if the murder arose out of the robbery.

 

Amendment Six (2)

 

Rights of accused persons

You have the right to know and see who the people are that accuse you of a crime.

 

Right to a speedy and public trial.

 

Amendment Seven (2)

 

Right of trial by jury in civil cases.   

 

Amendment Eight (2)

 

Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments.

 

Amendment Nine (1)

 

Other rights of the people.

 

Not limited to.

Unemerated Rights are rights not listed. Perhaps, this was an attempt by our Framers (makers) of the Constitution to say, these are NOT the only right people are allowed, but these rights are bare minimum the government must abide by.

 

Amendment Ten (1)

 

Powers reserved to the states.

In other words, states have all powers not granted to the federal government by the Constitution. 

 

Sources: 

 

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/the-constitution/