Declaration of Independence Overview

  http://constitution.laws.com/declaration-of-independence

The Declaration of Independence was authored in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson, with the help of fellow political leaders, such as John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. Ratified on July 4th, 1776, the Declaration of Independence became the first political doctrine of its kind, advocating for a governing body whose purpose was to serve the citizens that it represented - a contrast of the British monarchy under which the citizens of the United States had been subject prior to the Revolutionary War. Furthermore, the doctrine diagrammed a central government whose power resulted from the consent of its citizens to be governed.The Declaration of Independence established the newly-formed United States of America as a sovereign nation, cutting all ties - both political and gubernatorial - with the British monarchy. The text of the Declaration of Independence not only confirmed the autonomy of the United States of America, but also outlined the various transgressions committed by the British monarchy under King George III.

Lack of Governmental Power

Thomas Jefferson credited political philosopher John Locke with much of the inspiration for democratic ideology that he had implemented in his authorship of the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson had been particularly moved by Locke’s notion of a just governing body. Locke stated that every citizen would be entitled to inherent rights and liberties that could not be removed by any governmental body. In addition, Locke stated that the citizens grant their respective government permission to govern them, and as a result, the true power is in the possession of those citizens, rather than any governing body.Thomas Jefferson took Locke’s notion a step further by laying the groundwork for a system of checks and balances, in which a central government is split into separate factions, thus preventing totalitarian rule. The separate branches of government would be required to work in tandem in order to act.

Implications and Image for The Constitution

In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by all of the 13 states of the newly-formed United States of America, and the implications of the doctrine were apparent. Not only was the United States establishing its sovereignty as an autonomous nation, but the authors of the Declaration of Independence cited what they believed to be fundamental flaws and inefficiencies of the British monarchy under King George III. By doing so, they allowed for a contrast between a totalitarian ruling body operating with absolute power and an elected central government; a government that would be required to act as a public servant, protecting the interests and rights of its citizens. In addition, as a sign of diplomatic faith, the Declaration of Independence not only demanded the release of all British prisoners being held captive in the United States, but a return of all British loyalist property unjustly seized subsequent to the end of the Revolutionary War.

General Message and Authorship

The Declaration of Independence not only illustrated the contempt for totalitarian, monarchical rule on the part of political figureheads such as Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin, but also elucidated what they considered to be the fundamental flaws of a tyrannical infrastructure that utilized absolute power in order to maintain dominance over its subjects. The Declaration of Independence expresses a clear philosophical message that highlights the incorporation of humanism in the development of the ideal creed to which a democratic central government would adhere.

The authors of the Declaration of Independence placed their respective faith and trust in both the ability as well as the judgment of the citizens of the United States, both present and future. By allowing the citizens of the United States the opportunity to not only elect their governing body, but also the opportunity to choose to be governed by that elected body, some political philosophers consider the Declaration of Independence to be the a prototype for humanistic political theory.

Understanding The Preamble

http://constitution.laws.com/preamble

 The Preamble to the United States Constitution was written after the rest of the Constitution had already been completed in a first draft. The United States Constitution was submitted to a Style Committee, which then revised the Constitution and also added the Preamble. This Committee was headed by Governor Morris of Pennsylvania, and he is often given the credit for having written the Preamble, even though historians cannot be absolutely confident as to whether it was written by him or another man within the Style Committee.

The significance of the Preamble to the rest of the United States Constitution has remained a topic to be debated for many years. The Preamble, though very short, presents a basic set of assumptions and concepts which many interpreted as having legal force. It establishes the basic intent for the Constitution, along with a basic understanding of the core ideas in the establishment of the Constitution, such as the fact that the Constitution was being ratified not by individual states, which would have been the only entities governed by the United States Constitution if they had been the ones ratifying it, but was instead being ratified by the people.

The issue of whether or not the Preamble actually bears legal significance, however, was not immediately clear, especially because of the fact that many parties existing at the time of the Constitution's inception believed that the Preamble provided all the necessary information which the Bill of Rights might have provided, thereby eliminating the need for a separate Bill of Rights. In general, at this point in American history, the Preamble is considered to have no genuine legal power. It does not grant rights to citizens, nor does it grant powers to the states or to the Federal Government that are not granted elsewhere in the United States Constitution. It does, however, explain some of the motivations and intent of the United States Constitution and it, furthermore, explains some of the basic tenets under which the United States Constitution operates.

The Preamble provides a strong enough guide that it can influence policy in certain decisions and situations, as it can lead to an understanding of if or when certain principles should apply. A given statute, for example, would exist in law outside of the Preamble to the United States Constitution, but the exact interpretation and implementation of that statute could be influenced by the nature and language of the Preamble.

This means that many elements of the Preamble to the United States Constitution have been dissected and re-examined and dissected again over the years, as many have argued about exactly the way in which the Preamble should be interpreted. For example, understanding exactly what is meant when the phrase "People of the United States" is used is important to understanding the rest of the Constitution and how it should be interpreted.

The understanding of the United States mentioned in the Preamble, for example, has been taken to mean parts of the world that are under the control and domain of the United States, but may not actually be part of the Union. Similarly, understanding the meaning of "We the People" bears great significance. So while the Preamble to the United States Constitution may not have any inherent legal power, it is highly important for understanding the Constitution as a whole and how it comes into play in any given situation.

The first three Articles of the United States Constitution

 http://constitution.laws.com
The first three Articles of the United States Constitution set up the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches of Government that comprise the structure of the United States governing body. Article III of the Constitution deals specifically with the Judicial Branch of the United States, providing for the general architecture of the judicial system.

Section 1 of Article III states that there should be a sole high court, the Supreme Court, that shall have the vested judicial powers of the United States. However, it also provides for inferior courts to help with the function of the judicial system and to allow for a better structure to delegate judicial power.

It is of worthy note that the Constitution does not actually provide for an established number of judges to hold office in the Supreme Court. Article III only requires that there be only one Federal court. However, the number of Supreme Court Justices would be established later through additional statutes, setting the number at nine. There is one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices appointed to the Supreme Court.

Federal Judiciary Act of 1789:

The Federal Judiciary Act of 1789 was the landmark statute that was introduced in the first session of the United State Congress. The Judiciary Act established the Unites States Federal Judicial Branch. Article III of the United States Constitution states that one Supreme Court is to be vested with the nation's judicial powers. Initially, this provision was met with dispute and opposition, for many feared that establishing all judicial powers into a single court would leave the door wide open for tyranny. Many of the opponents suggested that the Supreme Court powers be delegated among local courts as well. However, Congress would establish the Supreme Court with the intentions of having broader jurisdiction of the Federal power, which would allow for enforcement of national laws at the State level.

The Act would give the Supreme Court jurisdiction over all civil matters between states, the states and the United States, and over matters dealing with ambassadors and diplomatic officials. The Act would also state that there would be six Supreme Court Justices, one being a Chief Justice and the other five being Associate Justices.

The Judiciary Act would also create both the Office of Attorney General and the United States Marshal’s Service that would serve each individual judicial district also created by the Act. These judicial districts were created in each of the eleven states that ratified the Constitution. Each State would have one district, with the exception of Massachusetts and Virginia, each of which would have two. The Judiciary Act of 1789 would also allow for the power of the Supreme Court to issue writs of mandamus, but this would later be declared unconstitutional in the landmark case of Marbury v. Madison.

The United States Constitution is regarded as the supreme law of the United States.

http://constitution.laws.com 

 The United States Constitution is in essence, the framework for the organization of the United States government and more specifically for the relationship of the federal government with its states and citizens of the country.

The Constitution, which was drawn up by the founding fathers of the United States following the Revolutionary War, created the three branches (the legislature, the bicameral Congress; an executive branch which is led by the President; a judicial branch headed by the Supreme Court) of the United States Federal Government. In addition to the creation of such branches, the United States Constitution specifies powers and responsibilities to each branch. The United States Constitution reserves all unremunerated powers to the individual states and to the people of the nation; this relationship effectively established the democratic system of government in the United States.

The United States Constitution was adopted on September 7, 1878 by the Constitutional Convention; the document was ratified by conventions in each U.S. state in the name “of the people of the United States.”

The United States Constitution is the framework for which America’s society is based off of. The Constitution awards individual citizens of the United States with undeniable rights and privileges, in addition to separating the powers of the governing bodies. Furthermore, the United States constitution developed and organized the relationship between the federal government of the United States and the localized state governments that comprise the Union. As a result of this framework, a body of law is dedicated to the United States Constitution.

Constitutional Law

Constitutional law is the body of law which deals with distribution and exercise of government authority.

All states in the United States possess some form of Constitution or at least a general law of the land that will consist of a variety of consensual legal issues. Such laws or rules may include statutory law, judge-made law, customary law or conventions.

Constitutional laws govern the relationship between the legislature, the judiciary and the executive bodies within the governing system. One of the fundamental tasks of constitutional law is to indicate hierarchies and relationship of power. When a constitution establishes a federal state, the framework will identify the several levels of government which coexist with exclusive or shared areas of jurisdiction over the application of enforcement and lawmaking powers.

In addition to the organization of governmental powers, a constitution will also govern the rights of the individual citizens against the state. All states and the federal government as a whole possess a codified constitution with a developed bill of rights. This section of the constitution establishes the individual citizen’s undeniable rights and liberties. Any issues where a governing body strips an individual of these rights may be evaluated in a court of law.

The Rule of Law

The Constitution possesses a doctrine known as the rule of law, which dictates the protocol for which governing bodies and their subsequent actions must be conducted. In essence, the Rule of law is the separation of powers between different governing bodies.

Slogging Toward Liberty: Keeping Business Honest

Slogging Toward Liberty: Keeping Business Honest: I normally don't do "economics", although I seem to be hitting that mark more often recently. I just finished reading an article from John S...

Teacher Threatens Student with Jail for 'Speaking Ill' of Obama -- Society's Child -- Sott.net

Teacher Threatens Student with Jail for 'Speaking Ill' of Obama -- Society's Child -- Sott.net

This a TEACHER? seriously. What an idiot! can't even speak English and a liar also. OMG! he never spoke ill of anyone, He just asked a question. This kids is a hero. There is hope after all.