THE BEGINNING
What was the name of the meeting held in May of 1787 to make changes to the new government?
The Constitutional Convention
What were the two primary plans completing for the Constitution?
The Virginia Plan and The New Jersey Plan
How many branches of government are there?
3
This was added to the United States Constitution as a way to specifically list the rights people have under the Constitution. They make up the first ten amendments of the Constitution.
The Bill of Rights
Explain the 6th Amendment - Rights to a Fair Trial
Amendment 6: Rights to a Fair Trial - requires a person accused of a crime to receive a speedy public trial by a jury.
Why was the Constitutional. convention needed?
To make changes to the Articles of Confederation
Explain the Virginia Plan.
The Virginia Plan - The Virginia plan was written by James Madison. It represented the desires of the larger states and said that the number of representatives to Congress should be based on the state's population.
List the branches of government.
Executive
Legislative
Judicial
Explain the 1st Amendment - Freedom of Religion, Speech and the Press
Amendment 1: Freedom of Religion, Speech and the Press: The Right to Assemble and Petition - allows people to establish and practice their religion freely, and to speak their ideas and opinions. It protects the rights of its citizens to hold meetings and to petition the government. It gives the press (newspapers, magazines) the right to publish the news and ideas
Explain one OR both of these:
7th Amendment - Rights to a Civil Trial
8th amendment -Bails, Fines and Punishment
Amendment 7: Rights in a Civil Trial - allows a civil case to be decided by a jury trial when the amount of money involved is over $20.
Amendment 8: Bail, Fines and Punishment - does not allow for unfair bail or fines and the use of cruel or unusual punishments.
Which of the colonies did not come to the convention?
Rhode Island
Explain the New Jersey plan.
The New Jersey Plan - The New Jersey plan was written by William Paterson from New Jersey. It represented the smaller states and said that each state should have the same number of representatives.
What system is set up for the branches of government that keeps one branch from becoming more powerful than the other.
System of Checks and Balances
Explain the 2nd amendment - The Right to Bear Arms
Amendment 2: The Right to Bear Arms - gives all citizens the right to own guns.
Explain the 9th Amendment - Rights Kept by the People
Amendment 9: Rights Kept by the People - protects the rights people have though not listed in the Constitution.
Who were 3 of the main leaders of the constitutional convention that we discussed?
James Madison
George Washington
Benjamin Franklin
At the end of Constitutional convention an agreement was finally met ... what was it called?
The Great Compromise
the main responsibility of the legislative branch, the judicial branch and the executive branch of the United States government:
Executive = Carries out (or Enforces) the laws
Legislative = Makes (or Writes) the laws
Judicial = Decides if laws are constitutional (or Interprets the laws)
Explain the 3rd Amendment - Housing of Soldiers
Amendment 3: Housing of Soldiers - unlawful for a government to make a private citizen house its soldiers.
Explain the 10th Amendment - Powers Kept by the States and the People
Amendment 10: Powers Kept by the States and the People - The rights not given to the national government are rights kept by the states or the people.
The Constitutional Convention discussed how states should be represented in Congress. What agreement did they come to?
Congress will have two houses. The House of Representatives with representation based on population, and the other (the Senate) with the same number of representatives from each state (regardless of the size or population of the state).
What did the Great Compromise accomplish?
It allowed the number of representatives to the House be based on the state's population while each state (no matter is size) would have two representatives in the Senate.
If the government creates a law that people cannot own firearms, the president can veto it because it because it goes against one of the amendments in the Bill of Rights. This is an example of the _____________ branch checking the _________ branch.
This is an example of the executive branch checking the legislative branch.
Explain the 4th amendment - Searches, Seizure and Warrants
Amendment 4: Searches, Seizure and Warrants - protects people from law enforcement entering their home without their permission or an order from the court called a search warrant.
Explain the 5th Amendment - Rights in Criminal Trials and Rights of Property
Amendment 5: Rights in Criminal Trials and the Rights of Property - Persons cannot be made to testify against themselves in a criminal trial. A person cannot be tried more than once for the same crime. People’s property cannot be taken away without their being paid for it.