Numbers
Contrary to former President Donald Trump's declaration in July 2016 that he would protect Article XII of the Constitution if elected, the document in fact contains this single-digit number of articles
What is seven?
The "Father of the Constitution" is this man, who was the fourth (and the shortest) POTUS
Who is James Madison?
The first government after the American Revolution under this document failed, leading to Philadelphia's Constitutional Convention between May and September 1787
What are the Articles of Confederation?
This amendment granted women the right to vote in 1920
What is the Nineteenth Amendment?
Much like an academic advisor, the nine justices on the Supreme Court are tasked with this action regarding laws
What is interpreting?
The Bill of Rights contains the first ten amendments to the Constitution, and the total number of amendments is this multiple of nine
What is 27?
This Founding Father presided over the Constitutional Convention and was unanimously elected to serve as the first POTUS in 1789
Who is George Washington?
John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison published a series of essays in support of the Constitution's ratification, known collectively by this name
What are the Federalist Papers?
This amendment, the subject of the 2012 film Lincoln, abolished slavery
What is the Thirteenth Amendment?
Name one power granted to the executive branch (i.e., POTUS)
What is nominating federal judges, vetoing bills passed by Congress, commanding the armed forces, granting pardons, calling Congress into session or allowing it to adjourn, etc.?
This is the number of delegates who attended the Constitutional Convention, though only 39 ultimately signed the document
What is 55?
In S6E14 of The West Wing, this actor of Back to the Future fame played a legal scholar tasked with guiding representatives of Belarus as they draft a new constitution
Who is Christopher Lloyd?
Constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar published a 2005 book on the U.S. Constitution with this word in the subtitle, which usually refers to a nonfiction book about a person
What is biography?
In S2E5 of the sketch comedy series Chappelle’s Show, Dave Chappelle mocks those who plead this amendment in exercising their right to avoid self-incrimination
What is the Fifth (Fizzith) Amendment?
The necessary and proper (or “elastic”) clause in Article I authorizes this branch of the federal government to create laws that a majority deem appropriate and convenient for the government to carry out its other functions
What is Congress (the legislative branch)?
This is the current number of voting members in the U.S. House of Representatives, determined proportionally by the population of each state
What is 435?
While announcing the first impeachment inquiry of former President Donald Trump, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi quoted this 81-year-old Founding Father, who upon exiting the Constitutional Convention replied to a question about whether a republic or a monarchy had been chosen, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
Who is Benjamin Franklin?
This 1215 document restricted King John's absolute rule and established the rule of law, indicating that no individual is above the law and inspiring the Founding Fathers
What is Magna Carta?
In S5 of The West Wing, President Bartlet invokes this amendment to activate the line of succession, resulting in the Speaker of the House, played by John Goodman, temporarily serving as the acting POTUS
What is the Twenty-Fifth Amendment?
Checks and balances may be useful for our accountancy students, but in reference to the U.S. Constitution, the term means this via the separation of powers
What is the prevention of one branch from wielding too much power?
Jonathan Dayton of New Jersey was the youngest delegate who signed the Constitution; he was this age during the Constitutional Convention and celebrated his birthday one month after it concluded
What is 26?
Name one political philosopher whose writings inspired the principles enshrined in the U.S. Constitution
Who is John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, David Hume, Thomas Hobbes, or the Baron de Montesquieu?
This pseudonym was paired with essays included in the Anti-Federalist Papers; the writer, believed to be New Yorker Robert Yates, found inspiration in the assassination of Roman dictator Julius Caesar
Who is Brutus?
This amendment is the only one that repealed a previous amendment, ending the Prohibition period during which the production, sale, and distribution of alcohol were illegal
What is the Twenty-First Amendment?
Article VII includes this final step in the creation of the U.S. Constitution as each state's convention debates and votes on the document's merits and whether the U.S. should implement it
What is ratification?