ESSENTIAL CONCEPTS

As the supreme law of the land, the U.S. Constitution incorporates basic principles that help define the government of the United States as a federal republic including its structure, powers and relationship with the governed.

Explain in context one of the basic principles that helps define the government of the United States.

One of the basic principles that helps define the government is the principle of checks and balances. All of the branches help to check eachother and prevent any one branch from gaining too much power. The president can veto the congress's bills, but the legislative branch can override a presidential veto. The president can appoint judges but they must be approved by the senate.

The Federalist Papers and Anti-Federalist Papers framed the national debate over the basic principles of government encompassed by the Constitution of the United States.

Cite arguments from the Federalist Papers and/or the Anti-Federalist Papers that supported their position on the issue of how well the Constitution upheld the principle of limited government.

Federalists advocated for a powerful central government, while Anti-Federalists, still distrustful of large governments, argued that a small federal government accompanied by strong state governments would be a far better system. The sides expressed their arguments through a collection of essays, called the Federalist Papers, and in the end the Constitution was created, giving the central government considerably more power than it had been given in the Articles.

Constitutional government in the United States has changed over time as a result of amendments to the U.S. Constitution, Supreme Court decisions, legislation and informal practices.

Select an example of how constitutional government in the United States has changed the meaning and application of any one of the basic principles that help define the government of the United States and summarize the nature of the change.

Constitutional government in the United States has changed over the course of our history through amendments to the Constitution. Important changes to the basic principles of the United States government include the change in acceptance and equality racially. In the beginning nothing was mentioned referring to slavery or rights for non-whites, but now all people are considered equal.

The Bill of Rights was drafted in response to the national debate over the ratification of the Constitution of the United States.

Relate one of the arguments over the need for a bill of rights to the wording of one of the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution of the United States.

One argument supporting the inclusion of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution was to serve the purpose of protecting citizen's rights and liberties from the government. One amendment that supports this is the first, which protected all citizens right to free expression through speech, petition, press, assembly and religion.

The Reconstruction Era prompted Amendments 13 through 15 to address the aftermath of slavery and the Civil War.

Summarize how the 13th through 15th Amendments addressed the aftermath of slavery and the Civil War.

The 13th, 14th and 15th amendments freed enslaved persons, declared all peoples equal under law, and prohibited the denial of vote to people based on race. This created massive amounts of tension in the states between white people who had previously owned or supported the owning of slaves. Many states created new laws that made it nearly impossible for african americans to vote or enjoy the same freedoms that white people did.

Amendments 16 through 19 responded to calls for reform during the Progressive Era.

Summarize how the 16th through 19th Amendments addressed the calls for reform during the Progressive Era.

The 16th amendment imposed an income tax, which is a progressive form of taxation and reflective of the era. The 17th amendment established the direct election of senators, which was another progressive thing. The 18th amendment attempted to prohibit the selling of alcohol, which was a progressive idea, if poorly executed. The final amendment gave women the right to vote, which had been called for for many years, peaking in the progressive era.

Five amendments have altered provisions for presidential election, terms and succession to address changing historical circumstances.

Explain the historical circumstances surrounding the adoption of constitutional amendments pertaining to presidential election, terms and succession.

The five amendments are amendments 12, 20, 22, and 25. The 12th established vice presidential elections, the 20th established procedures for incoming presidents, the 22 limited presidents to 2 terms of office and the 25 established the line of succession. These came as a result of historical factors of the time as the united states attempted to form its new government.

Amendments 11, 21 and 27 have addressed unique historical circumstances.

Describe the unique circumstances surrounding the adoption of Amendments 11, 21 and 27.

The 11th amendment made it so citizens couldn't sue the state, the 21st amendment repealed the 18th amendment and the 27th amendment made it so congressmen can't just change their pay.

The Ohio Constitution was drafted in 1851 to address difficulties in governing the state of Ohio.

Provide examples of how the 1851 Ohio Constitution addressed difficulties in governing Ohio at that time.

The Ohio Constitution was put in place after the Northwest Ordincance. This said that there had to be at least 3 states in the area, but no more than five. Ohio was created as one of these states and the constitution was established as such.

As a framework for the state, the Ohio Constitution complements the federal structure of government in the United States.

Determine how the Ohio Constitution complements the federal structure of government in the United States and compare the structures, powers and relationships between both levels of government as defined in the Constitution of Ohio and the Constitution of the United States.

The Ohio Constitution and the Federal Constitution are related in several ways. First it is very structurally similar, first in the preamble then the articles. Secondly the powers are very similar and give similar powers, but the state constitution is more refined to the state while the federal is more broad.