The Amendments to the United States Constitution

The Amendments to the United States Constitution

Bill of Rights: Amendments 1 -10 Written to satisfy the anti-federalists James Madison was the author of the Bill of Rights Twelve were originally proposed, but ten made the cut Adopted December 15, 1791 Pneumonic Device - FAQSPRTERS

1 st Amendment (BOR) Freedoms “Stinky AP People Reek” Freedom of… – Speech – speak your thoughts – Assembly – peaceful discussion groups – Press – print your thoughts – Petition – voice grievances against gov’t – Religion – free exercise of … You can do these without the government arresting you

2 nd Amendment (BOR) Arms, Right to Bear Militias are integral to security, so people have right to keep & bear arms Are militias required for security now? If not, is this obsolete?

3 rd Amendment (BOR) Quartering of Troops No Quartering of soldiers in peacetime Quartering during time of war only when prescribed by law

4 th Amendment (BOR) Search & Seizure You and your property cannot be searched or seized without probable cause Probable Cause is always required – Sufficient evidence to issue a warrant Warrants – – – Legal document that gives authorities permission to search Warrant must detail what is to be searched/seized and why Not always required Consent search Plain view Detention: Frisking

5 th Amendment (BOR) Protections of the Accused To be tried, must be charged with a crime by a Grand Jury – formally brings individuals up on charges Must receive fair trial (due process) No double jeopardy – tried twice for same crime No self-incrimination – Right to remain silent – Don’t need to testify against oneself Eminent domain – property cannot be seized without compensation

6 th Amendment (BOR) Rights of the Accused Right to speedy trial Right to a jury trial (in district where crime was committed) – Petit Jury – hears & rules on cases Right to an attorney Right to secure witnesses

7 th Amendment (BOR) Trial by Jury in Civil Cases If your suit exceeds $20

8 th Amendment (BOR) Excessive… No excessive… – Bail – Fines – Punishment (cruel and unusual)

9 th Amendment (BOR) Rights Unenumerated Can’t possibly list all the rights of people – I have right to chew gum, breath, walk down the street on my hands, backwards singing Brittany Spears songs This says just because a right is not listed in the Constitution/Amendments does not mean that people don’t have that right

10 th Amendment (BOR) States Powers not delegated to the Federal government by the Constitution are State powers, unless specifically prohibited to the States – Drivers’ Licenses – Education – Death Penalty

11 th Amendment – 1796 Can’t Sue States Caused by Chisholm v. Georgia case in the early 1790 s Alexander Chisholm of SC sued Georgia for payment for clothing sold during Revolutionary War Georgia claimed it was not a federal matter and did not show Supreme Court ruled it was OK for citizens to sue the state – Led to more lawsuits States collectively push to pass this amendment Said…States can only be sued if they agree to be sued – States usually don’t invoke this …bad PR

12 th Amendment – 1804 President/VP – Separate Tickets Election of 1800 prompted this – In the day, candidate with most electoral votes wins Presidency, 2 nd place – VP – Election of 1800 – Each elector casts two votes Jefferson & Aaron Burr tie – Went to the House to determine Presidency – Both tried to gain influence – Alexander Hamilton pushed for Jefferson among Federalists Didn’t agree with Jefferson’s politics, but he thought Burr too much of a loose cannon…Jefferson won To assure that this would not happen again, the 12 th amendment allowed for two separate votes for President & VP – Candidates run on a combined ticket, but there are separate ballots – Electors now cast one vote for President and another vote for VP This is how it works today, so we are effectively choosing electors when we go to the polls

Civil War Amendments 13 th Amendment 14 th Amendment 15 th Amendment

13 th Amendment – 1865 Abolition of Slavery Abolished slavery Eliminated Slave Trade and Commerce Clause & Fugitive Slave Clause

14 th Amendment – 1868 African-American Citizenship Established citizenship rights for African Americans – Cannot violate natural rights w/o due process of law – Eliminates 3/5 clause Also stated that Confederate politicians may not serve in state or federal politics in US, unless Congress approves

15 th Amendment – 1870 Universal Male Suffrage Provided African Americans the right to vote Cannot deny right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude

Progressive Era Amendments 16 th Amendment 17 th Amendment 18 th Amendment 19 th Amendment Fix the problems of the Gilded Age

16 th Amendment – 1913 Income Tax Gave Congress the power to collect taxes on income – US needed a new source of income – Tariffs were a major source of income prior to 1913 – Retaliatory tariffs were hurting exports

17 th Amendment – 1913 Direct Election of Senators Prior to 1913, Senators were chosen by state legislators. The people now directly vote for their Senators

18 th Amendment – 1918 Prohibition Times were tough in America for workers – Long working days – Low pay – Kept people in poverty Men would go out and have too many root beers Wives did not appreciate absent, drunk and potentially abusive husbands wasting money – Women petition to prohibit alcohol Amendment prohibits the manufacture, sale or transportation of liquor – Lasts until 1933

19 th Amendment – 1920 Women’s Suffrage Women gain right to vote

FDR Amendments 20 th Amendment 21 st Amendment 22 nd Amendment

20 th Amendment – 1933 Lame Duck Prior to 1933, Presidents would take office on the March 3 rd after they won the election. Lame duck period is the time between a presidential election and when the new President takes over – Necessary Allows outgoing President to wrap things up Gives new President time to learn the ropes, assemble a staff Might take time to count votes No longer need a large span of time since communication and transportation were so good New President will take office on January 20 th

21 st Amendment – 1933 Repeal Prohibition Repeals the 18 th Amendment Problems with 18 th Amendment – Unenforceable Speakeasies – people were drinking illegally – Created the mob Solutions – Created jobs in the middle of the Great Depression (Breweries & Distilleries) – Government can tax alcohol

22 nd Amendment – 1951 Term Limits FDR remained President from 1933 -1945 Republicans were rising to power in the early fifties and didn’t like the fact that FDR was in office for so long Created term limits for President – 2 elected terms or 10 years max

23 rd Amendment – 1961 District of Columbia Can Vote Prior to 1961, people in the District of Columbia could not vote for President – Voting for President was reserved for states – It was the seat of government, no one but politicians lived there – Folks moved there to support the politicians – Population exceeded 13 of the states Provides D. C. with the number of electoral votes equal or less than the least populace state

24 th Amendment – 1964 Poll Taxes Abolished Right to vote cannot be denied to any person because they failed to pay a poll tax or any other tax Poll Taxes were used after reconstruction to circumvent the 15 th Amendment – Literacy Tests and Grandfather Clause were also used – Poll tax did nothing to prevent this – Voting Rights Act of 1965

25 th Amendment – 1967 Presidential Succession If the President resigns, is incapacitated or killed, the VP is the acting President – President can declare the VP in charge or – The VP and a majority of cabinet members can declare the President unfit, and therefore the VP would be acting President New President must fill the VP role with Congressional approval *** Caveat to Presidential Succession Act of 1947

26 th Amendment – 1971 Voting Age to 18 Prior to 1971 you needed to be 21 years old to vote In the wake of Vietnam, made more sense to change this to 18 years old

27 th Amendment – 1992 Congressional Pay Raises Congress passes legislation to give themselves pay raises Amendment says that compensation changes cannot take effect until after the next election cycle *** Initially submitted in the Bill of Rights, but removed.