John Marshall John Marshall is considered one of the most influential Supreme Court Justices in American History

The Constitution, an overview

The Preamble The introduction to the Constitution. It explains the reasons, purpose, intentions, and objectives of the Constitution. The founding fathers put what they hoped to accomplish with this new government in the Preamble.

The Articles There are seven articles of the Constitution. Article I-III- Purpose of the three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. Article IV- describes how state and federal governments are linked Article V- Amendment process Article VI- Supremacy Clause I-III V VI IV

Limited Government The government can only do what the people want it to do. The founders did not want a Monarchy All citizens must live under the rule of law-no one is above the law.

Popular Sovereignty People are the source of power for the government, people form the government. “We the People of the United States…”

Separation of Powers Power is distributed among the three branches, so one can not dominate the other. This plan is called the Madisonian Model. The founders feared tyranny. Tyranny

Checks and Balances Linked with separation of powers Each branch of government hold a power over the other, so they can check on the other. Not one branch has more power than the other. Example- the president has the right to veto a law.

Judicial Review Refers to the power of the courts to decide whether a law or other governmental action violates the constitution 1803-Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court ruled that a congressional act was unconstitutional-Supreme Court part of Checks and Balances.

Federalism A system in which most powers belong to the federal government, but some power still lies with the state governments. States Federal

Natural Rights Rights you are born with that are protected by the Constitution; such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Marbury v. Madison The Supreme Court ruled for the first time that Writ of Mandamus (an order issued by a court to force a government official to act), a law passed by congress, was unconstitutional. Government Officials Court

Ought versus Shall Madison saw the word “ought” as wishful thinking, and decided to add the word “shall” to the Constitution to illustrate the language of command. ought

Introducing an Amendment Introducing and amendment is very difficult and there are 2 ways to do it: –1) 2/3 vote in senate and House of Representatives –2) 2/3 of state legislatures can ask congress to call a convention that proposes amendments.

Ratifying amendments There are 2 ways to ratify amendments: –1) ¾ state legislatures vote in favor of the amendment –2) special convention is called, and ¾ of states approve

Commerce Clause Gives congress the power to regulate foreign and interstate commerce.

Informal amending of the Constitution The Constitution is left open for interpretation, and so according to how people interpret it, it changes constantly.

Bill of Rights The first 10 amendments that provide constitutional guarantees; they were added to the Constitution after it was ratified. Amendment 1 Freedoms, Petitions, Assembly Amendment 2 Right to bear arms Amendment 3 Quartering of soldiers Amendment 4 Search and arrest I II III IV

Bill of Rights cont… The first 10 amendments that provide constitutional guarantees; they were added to the Constitution after it was ratified. Amendment 5 Rights in criminal cases Amendment 6 Right to a fair trial Amendment 7 Rights in civil cases Amendment 8 Bail, fines, punishment Amendment 9 Rights retained by the People Amendment 10 States' rights V VI VII VIII IV X

Great job you two. Easily the most interesting graphics (maybe a tad distracting), but clear and brief explanations. Nice work 73/75