1.1 Legislative Department

How many houses in congress?

1.2 house of representatives

what is the term length for a representative in the house of representatives?

in the state that he/she represents

***in England, representatives were not mandated to live in the district they represented

# of free persons + 3/5 of the # of slaves - non-taxpaying indians

***indentured servants (owed their service) were counted as 1 whole free person

freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, petition (1791)

there are no completely unlimited freedoms

congress shall make no law preventing people from meeting peacefully or from asking for help when they have been treated unfairly

Quartering of Troops (1791)

in peacetime, no soldier shall live in a person's house without the permission of the owner. in wartime, special laws can provide exceptions

Search and seizure (1971)

a warrant needs good reason

oaths/swearing/affirmation declares something is true. falsifying oaths is perjury

Grand Jury, Double Jeopardy, Self-incrimination, Due process (1791)

a capital crime's punishment is death

double jeopardy - people can't be tried for the same crime twice

people cannot be forced to testify against themselves in court

Criminal Prosecutions - Jury Trial, Right to Confront and to Counsel (1791)

prompt, open trial

unbiased jury

accused has the right to be represented by a lawyer

Common Law Suits - Jury Trial (1791)

guarantee jury trials for persons accused of crimes

Excess bail or fines, cruel and unusual punishment (1791)

bail and fines used as punishment must fit the crime

non-enumerated rights (1791)

if a right is not listed in the constitution that doesn't mean it doesn't exist

Suits against a state (1795)

came about bc a man from south carolina successfully sued the state of georgia

the only amendment that limits the judicial branch

abolition of slavery (1865)

convicted criminals are still subject to "involuntary servitude"

income tax (1913)

in 1894, congress passed a law imposing a tax on income. the supreme court ruled it unconstitutional. this amendment set aside the court's ruling

election of senators (1913)

this changes article 1, section 3...

2 senators from each state

granted women the right to vote (1920)

only 9 states permitted women to vote before this amendment was added

new terms of office (president, vice president, and house of representatives)

changed sections of articles 1 and 2 AND the 13th amendment

President and Vice-President's terms end at noon January 20

Congress' terms end at noon on January 3

limited president to two terms (1951)

this amendment was introduced and passed following Franklin Roosevelt's four successive elections

Thomas Bailey said this amendment was "something of a kick at the corpse of Roosevelt"

granted washington DC Residents right to vote (1961)

DC did not have this right until March 29, 1961

Granted right to vote despite failure to pay poll tax (1964)

in 1966 the supreme court ruled that the states could not keep citizens from voting in any election bc of unpaid taxes

presidential and vice presidential succession (ratified february 10, 1967)

changed article 2, section 1

granted 18 year olds the right to vote (July 1971)

Voting Rights Act of 1970

banned mid-term pay raises for congress (1992)

originally drafted by James Madison in 1791 as part of our bill of rights

what is eminent domain?

(found in the 5th amendment)

what are the "civil war amendments"?

1868 - andrew johnson (senate didn't convict)

1974 - richard nixon (he resigned before a vote for impeachment could occur)

1998 - bill clinton (senate voted for aquittal)

every word spoken in the house or senate

senators and representatives are permitted to amend their remarks before they are published

minimum number required to conduct official congressional business

(half +1)... simple majority

• borrow money
• make rules about trade
• make rules about becoming a us citizen
• stamp or print money
• establish courts
• declare and finance war
• raise and pay an army

5

war powers act (1973)

congress must be notified of action to send military within 48 hours and must approve it within 90 days

people could be declared guilty without trial and forfeiture of their property could occur if they were sentenced to death, thus cutting off the rights of heirs

these were used in colonial times in our country

by the 12th amendment in 1804 

passed in part because in 1800 thomas jefferson and aaron burr each received the same number of electoral votes

must be a US citizen by birth

be 35 years old

have lived in the US for 14 years

determines the line of succession if the president dies or is incapable of performing his duties

vice-president

speaker of the house

president pro tempore (president of the senate)

secretary of state

secretary of the treasury

secretary of war

attorney general

postmaster general

secretary of the navy

secretary of the interior

• the power to pardon
• make treaties with other countries if 2/3 of the senators who are present concur
• appoint people to represent the country abroad
• nominate supreme court judges
• may call either house or the whole congress together for a special session

september 17, 1787

rhode island was not present.

42 men were there when the constitution was signed

3 refused to sign

the 9th state (new hampshire) ratified the constitution on june 21, 1788