The constitution of the United States - Research Paper Example

? THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED S November 26, It is common knowledge that general rules guide the operations and efficiency of any organization regardless of its size. In effect, organizations enact code of conducts in their operations; schools set rules and regulations; and other bodies enact a raft of measures aimed at establishing guidelines that ensure seamless operations without chaos and disorder. In line with this, nations design constitutions as the guiding principles that govern these nations. In the US, the Constitution of the United States remains the guiding law that has governed the country for more than 200 years despite increases in population, economic ability, and changes in life to a profound extent as guided by the constitution. In addition, the US’ constitution’s interpretation, political stability, principal nature of the constitution, and its invariability have become the most important distinctiveness that have guided the civilization process that the country has undergone in order to become the world’s super-power. This expose elucidates on the United States constitution while considering its contents and drafting process as a basis for discussion. Importantly, the constitution drafting occurred during a time that the country faced the problems of peacetime government, which is the period between 1775 and 1783.1In effect, this underlines the emphasis that nations draft their constitutions. In this regard, it is evident that most nations drafted their constitutions during a time of conflict or during crisis that the nations wanted to resolve. In effect, America’s constitution was a result of leading political leaders such as George Washington and Alexander Hamilton who led the discussion on how to create a strong government that enforced laws that aimed at making the country powerful and united.2 In effect, these statesmen wanted a nation that negotiated with the Indian tribes who were the native communities in the country, a government that addressed the payment of a large national debt. In addition, it was important to bring the nation together in order to pay the large national debt that the country was facing. This way, the constitution was essential in helping the nation pay its debts by regulating trade within and outside its boundaries and collecting taxes, which could not be possible without a new constitution.3 In this regard, the Articles of Confederation failed to specify the laws that authorized the government to collect taxes from its citizens. It is important to consider the representative nature that led to the drafting and writing of the US constitution. In this regard, the very nature of the authors of the constitution makes it a document to behold by citizens and residents of the US since it contains a rich history regarding the drafters. In this case, the authors of the constitution were the founding fathers who became the Framers of the constitution.4 The framers constituted special delegates who represented different States, ethnic groups, professions, and different backgrounds, which enhanced their representativeness of diversity in the US. In effect, the group involved people and professions as diverse as it involved retired soldiers, ordinary citizens, politicians, jurists, diplomats, and teachers, retired soldiers whose role was to review the Articles of Confederation and effectively formulated the Constitution of the United States.5 In effect, the diverse nature of the Framers ensured the input of all Americans to develop the document that has shaped the American life through different periods. The role of the Framers was not to draw the constitution of the United States. However, the constitutional conventional that Hamilton helped bring and met in Philadelphia, in 1787 was expected to revise the Articles of Confederation, which acted as the law in the United States.6 Nonetheless, the delegates in the conventional, that later became to be known as the Framers, embarked on a process that aimed at writing a plan for government as the majority of the delegates in the conventional were in agreement of this decision. In effect, the plan of government is the current Constitution of the United States of America is now.7In effect, the Framers obtained their objective of creating a government that was able to exercise its power and authority over the citizens that it served with the government deriving its power from the constitution. This way, the Framers did not create a league of different states in the United States, but created a nation of statehood that protected the rights and existence of each state while brought the states together under a federal government that served all citizens equally despite their state of origin. As the country’s supreme law, the constitution’s preamble affirms the power of the people in the laws of the country.8 Unlike many other constitutions, the US Constitution recognizes the important role played by its citizens in drafting and adopting the constitution. It is common knowledge that most nations do not use the process that the US used in framing and developing the constitution, but used experts who are responsible for drafting the constitution without the input of the citizens. Hence, such nations developed constitutions that were not a representation of the thoughts of the people while the US constitution’s authors were representatives of the citizens of the United States, and they ensured that the Justice, rights of the citizens, and liberty are reaffirmed in the constitution. In effect, this makes the constitution the cornerstone of the country’s democratic process. The first three articles in the constitution of the United States fundamentally separate and establish powers to the legislature, judiciary, and the executive arms of government. The remaining four articles provide a framework for federalism although it also has twenty-seven amendments.9 Importantly, the constitution’s fundamental objective was to ensure that the States in America worked together since the Articles of the Confederation, which were a creation of the Congress, failed to ensure that the States worked together to ensure quick resolving of problems that affected the United States.10 In effect, the first three articles are in response to the way the Articles of Confederation’s failure to ensure that the states worked cohesively in solving the problems that affected America since they provide a working relationship for the different levels of government of the United States. It is important to point out the distinction that the constitution created regarding the powers of all levels of government. In this regard, the constitution makes the three levels of government independent from each other with each level exercising its laws independently without the interference of the arm of the government. In line with this, the executive branch of the government, which is led by the president of the United States, enforces the laws that guide the nation. On the other hand, the executive branch, which consists of the Congress and the Senate, is in charge of making the laws that the president of the United States enforces. Finally, the judicial branch of government, which consists of the Supreme Court and lower courts, is in charge of interpreting the laws and applying the laws during decision making in the courts.11 For this reason, it is evident that the Framers of the constitution developed a framework that separated the roles of each branch of government. This way, they ensured that the three arms of government worked independently to deliver services to the citizens of the United States of America as guided by the constitution. Another important reason that the Framers embarked on the drafting of the constitution regarded the provision of powers to the Federal government. In this case, the constitution grants the federal government the powers to regulate both foreign and interstate trade, declare war, and collect taxes.12 Importantly, these rights are known as delegated rights or expressed powers of the government by the constitution since the constitution lists them explicitly and mentions the powers. Other than expressed or delegated powers, the constitution provides the national government with implied powers, which are the powers that enable the government of the United States to respond to the changing needs of the nation. Case in point the Congress may print money, which is an implied power that the constitution provides through the delegated powers of borrowing and coining money.13In addition, the constitution provides concurred powers to the state governments and national government with the powers of the national government being superior to the powers of the state government in case the two conflicted. On the other hand, the constitution provides reversed powers to the citizens, which are powers that the constitution fails to give to the states or forbids from the state governments. Importantly, it is the right of the Supreme Court to interpret the constitution of the United States and the court can set aside any law that it believes to be in conflict with any part of the constitution.14 Briefly, it is evident that the US constitution remains the most important document that has held the diversity of the nation together. In this case, the constitution’s approach of defining the role of each level of government ensures that the responsibilities of these different levels did not overlap, which ensures efficiency in service delivery and that the nation follows the rule of law. On the other hand, it is evident that the constitution provides power to different levels of government by indicating their roles. In this case, the constitution provides delegated powers, implied powers, and reserved powers to different levels of government. This way, each level exercises its powers based on the requirements of the constitution. Conversely, it is crucial to point out that the Supreme Court is responsible for interpreting the constitution. Importantly, the constitution has ensured that the country remained a single entity since it was leading leaders who discussed the importance of a new constitution that guided the integration process of citizens of the United States despite their diversity. Bibliography “About America: The Constitution of the United States of America.” State.gov, December 27, 2009. http://photos.state.gov/libraries/korea/49271/dwoa_122709/About_America.pdf (accessed November 27, 2012). Bowen Catherine, Miracle at Philadelphia: The story of the Constitutional Convention, May to September 1787. New York: Little Brown, 2010. “The Constitution of the United States.” US Constitution, n.d. http://www.usconstitution.net/const.pdf (accessed November 27, 2012). Read More