Constitution Questions

1) What is the structure of the Constitution.  Briefly describe each section:

A) The Preamble- States why the Constitution was written and lists six goals for the American Government.

B) Seven Articles- The bod of the Constitution contains several things called articles. Each article covers its own topic such as Articles I, II, III cover the three branches of government.

C) The Amendments- The third part of the Constitution contains the amendments or changes that have been made to the Constitution.

2) What are the six major principles of government?  Describe each.

The six major principles of government are popular sovereignty, federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances, judicial review and limited government. Popular sovereignty was basically rule by the the people. Federalism is the basic structure of the government where power is divided between nation and state. Separation of powers limits the central government by dividing power so no one person has to much power. Checks and balances makes it so each branch has some control over the others, yet again so no one has too much power. Judicial review is where the Supreme Court can decide if something is unconstitutional. Limited government is the separation of powers in the government. 

3) How does the Constitution divide the powers of the federal government?

The Constitution divides the powers of the federal government by splitting it into three branches. The legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. All three branches have checks and balances to keep each other under control.

4) What role do the federal courts play in checking the power of the legislative branch?

The federal courts role in checking the power of the legislative branch is to decide if laws that the legislative branch try to pass are Constitutional or not.

5) Why do you think the Founders provided that the President and Congress be elected but the federal judges to be appointed?

I think the Founders provided that the President and Congress are elected but the federal judges are appointed so that criminals do not get involved and vote for judges who will side with the offender.