Summary Edexcel Politics US Constitution revision guide - based on 2022 exam advanced information
22 views 0 purchase
Course
Government and Politics of the USA
Institution
PEARSON (PEARSON)
Book
Edexcel GCE Politics AS and A-level Student Book
A revision guide covering US Constitution based on the 2022 exam advanced information - is still useful for all A-Level examination years. Notes are taken from the textbook and classwork for a thorough revision resource.
From 2022 advanced information:
1 US Constitution and federalism
• ...
Component 3, part 1 government and politics of the usa, chapter 1
July 14, 2022
9
2021/2022
Summary
Subjects
government and politics
us constitution
constitution
a level
edexcel
2022 exams
us
us government and politics
summary
Connected book
Book Title:
Author(s):
Edition:
ISBN:
Edition:
More summaries for
Edexcel Politics US Democracy and Participation revision guide - based on 2022 exam advanced information
Voting and the Media Case Studies - 1979, 1997, 2010
All for this textbook (3)
Written for
A/AS Level
PEARSON (PEARSON)
Politics
Government and Politics of the USA
All documents for this subject (1)
Seller
Follow
ruhina1
Reviews received
Content preview
US CONSTITUTION
1.1 The nature of the US Constitution
Codification – A constitution that consists of a full and authoritative set of rules written
down in a single document.
A codified constitution is:
o authoritative – it is on a higher level than ordinary law, so it sets out the basis for all
political institutions, including those that create everyday legislation
o entrenched – it is hard to amend or abolish
o judiciable – as a higher form of law, other laws can be judged against it. The
judiciary is responsible for this, judging whether other laws are constitutional or not.
The Founding Fathers deliberately entrenched the Constitution to prevent it being changed
too easily by a single institution or political party in their own self-interest – for example, by
centralising excessive power in the hands of the government of the day. However, the
Founding Fathers knew that there would need to be some mechanism for changing the
Constitution to meet the changing needs of society – an amendment process – and this is
outlined in Article V.
Entrenchment – The application of extra legal safeguards to a constitutional provision to
make it more difficult to amend or abolish. Entrenchment is written into the Constitution by
the complicated and demanding process for amending it.
Vagueness – Some of the powers given by the Constitution are very specific, especially to
Congress, but others are very vague. This leads to the issues of whether certain powers
belong only to the federal government, only to state governments, or to both the federal
and state governments.
There are many clearly enumerated powers, but the Constitution is often unclear. This is
partly because it is a compromise between Founding Fathers who sometimes disagreed, and
partly because there was a deliberate decision to allow room for the Constitution to evolve.
However, this lack of clarity means there is often significant disagreement over its meaning.
The Constitution has many enumerated powers – powers that are explicitly stated. However,
many implied powers have been found in the Constitution too – powers that are not
expressly written down in the Constitution but are needed to perform an enumerated power
or are suggested by the wording.
Enumerated Implied
Powers of • Collection of taxes and duties, which provide for the debts • The necessary and
Congress of the United States, as well as for the common defence and proper clause
welfare of the country. • Interstate commerce
• Borrowing money on behalf of the United States. clause
• Regulation of commerce, both on the international and
interstate levels. This also includes native American tribes.
• Establishing currency and coin money and fixing common
weights and measures.
• Establishing post offices.
• Provision for and maintenance of an army and navy.
• Organise, train, and arm a militia.
• Exclusive powers to legislative matters of the country.
• Establishing courts that are subordinate to the Supreme
Court.
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller ruhina1. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $6.61. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
