American Citizenship Handbook

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American Citizenship Handbook
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Ideas Behind the Constitution

• Ancient Greece
• Ancient Rome
• Magna Carta
• English Bill of Rights
• John Locke

• Baron de Montesquieu
• Representative Traditions
• The Declaration of Independence

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Structure of the Constitution

• The Preamble of the Constitution states the goals
  of the document
• The body is divided into 7 Articles which
  describes the three branches of government, sets
  up rules between states and the amendment
  process, and establishes the supremacy of the
  Constitution
• Amendments are formal changes that have been
  added to the Constitution

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Principles of the Constitution

• Popular Sovereignty- asserts that the people are
  the ultimate source of authority in a government
• Limited Government- the government only has the
  powers given to it in the Constitution (higher
  law)
• Separation of Powers- power is less likely to be
  abused if it is separated into 3 different
  branches of government

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Principles of the Constitution

• Checks and Balances- each branch of the
  government has the power to limit actions of the
  other two
• Federalism- establishes a division of power
  between national (federal) government and state
  governments
• Republicanism- citizens elect representatives to
  carry out their will
• Individual rights are guaranteed to citizens and
  are to be protected by the government