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The Bill of Rights. Protections afforded fundamental rights and freedoms. Protections against arbitrary and court action
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The Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution and their purpose
Protections afforded fundamental rights and freedoms
Amendment 1: Freedom of religion, speech, press, and assembly; the right to petition the government.
Protections against arbitrary military action
Amendment 2: Right to bear arms and maintain state militia (National Guard).
Amendment 3: Troops may not be quartered in homes in peacetime.
Protections against arbitrary and court action
Amendment 4: No unreasonable searches or seizures.
Amendment 5: Grand jury indictment required to prosecute for a serious crime. No “double jeopardy” – being tried twice for the same offence. Forcing a person to testify against himself or herself prohibited. No loss of life, liberty without due process.
Amendment 6: Right to speedy, public, impartial with defense counsel, and right to cross-examine witnesses.
Amendment 7: Jury trials in civil suits where value exceeds 20 dollars.
Amendment 8: No excessive bail or fines, no cruel and unusual punishments.
Protections of states’ rights and unnamed rights of the people
Amendment 9: Unlisted rights are not necessarily denied.
Amendment 10: Powers not delegated to the United States of denied to states are reserved to the states or to the people.
Although the constitution has been amended 26 times it is still the “supreme law of the land” which has been fought for and won.
The constitution provides for three main branches of government which are separate and distinct from one another; the executive branch (the president, the vice president, the cabinet), the legislative branch (the Congress) and the judicial branch (the Supreme Court).
The powers given to each are carefully balanced by the powers of the other two. Each branch serves as a check on the others. This is to keep any branch from gaining too much power or from misusing its powers. The chart below illustrates how the equal branches of government are connected and how each is dependent on the other two.
The Separation of Powers. The Policy of Checks and Balances
The USA Congress has the power to make laws, but the President may veto any act of Congress. Congress, in its turn, can override a veto by a two-thirds vote in each house. Congress can also refuse to provide funds requested by the President. The President can appoint important officials of his administration, but they must be approved by the Senate. The courts have the power to determine the constitutionality of all acts of Congress and of presidential actions, and to strike down those they find unconstitutional.
The system of checks and balances makes compromise and consensus necessary. Compromise is also a vital aspect of other levels of the US government.
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The system of “check and balances” protects against extremes. It means for example, that new presidents cannot radically change governmental policies just as they wish.
Political Parties.
The US Constitution says nothing about political parties, but over time the US has developed a two-party system: the Democratic and Republican parties. Other small parties such as the Liberation Party and the Labor Party do not play any important role in national politics. The president-day Democratic Party was founded in 1828 representing Southern planters. The Republican Party, founded in 1854, united industrial and trade bourgeoisie from Northeast. Later after the Civil War the differences between the two parties became minimal.
Sometimes, the Democrats are thought of as associated with labor, and the Republicans with business and industry. Republicans also tend to oppose the greater involvement of the federal government in some areas of public life, which they consider to be the responsibility of the states and communities. Democrats, on the other hand, tend to favor a more active role of the central government in social matters.
Yet it is still more difficult for ordinary Americans to distinguish between the parties. Furthermore, the traditional European terms of “right” and “left”, or “conservative” and “liberal” do not quite fit the American system. Someone from the “conservative right”, for instance, would be against a strong central government. Or a Democrat from one part of the country could be very “liberal”, and one from another part quite “conservative”. Even if they have been elected as Democrats or Republicans, Representatives or Senators are not bound to a party program, nor are they subject to any discipline when they disagree with their party.
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