The Constitution of the United States: The Preamble Thomas Jefferson once said "It is every Americans ' right and obligation to read and interpret the Constitution for himself."[1] In honor of that sentiment, the following are a few thoughts on the preamble Constitution of the United States. The supreme Law of the U.S. is the Constitution. The authors included a preamble that summarized the core values and purpose of this Constitution. “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United …show more content…
We the people of the U.S. have a voice. We are able to elect our own representatives. We are able to assemble together to petition our government. Our Congress and our president are subject to our approval via voting. In the United States, we are intended to have the power to govern ourselves. In Order to Form a More Perfect Union The current Constitution that we have was not our founder’s first attempt at establishing a government. The Articles of Confederation lack a practicality that our founders knew was necessary for our society. A comparatively stronger central government than was present under the Articles of Confederation was requisite, a central government that would solidify the union of the States. This phrase is also a manifestation of their resolve to continue to search for ways to advance and improve society, as is empirically evident by the process to amend the Constitution, which they included. Establish …show more content…
Declaration of Independence states “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”[5] By this can be concluded that a government is just when before the law all men are equal, That we the people have rights, and it is the role of the government to protect and insure those rights. By establishing a government to fulfill that purpose is to establish justice. Insure Domestic Tranquility and Provide for the Common Defense The years up to and just after the formation of the U.S. were anything but tranquil. War waged. In order for this new nation to progress and experience liberty, our founders established a government that could provide peace domestically, and protect from foreign invasion. Historically the United States has been in many wars. In spite of this the U.S. military has become the characterization of steadfast and formidable in the world. Promote the General
As I mentioned before, the Preamble was created September 17, 1787, as a promise to protect the citizens of the United States. Some people may disagree with this statement. The Preamble begins with “ We the people of the United States,” meaning the citizens of
The year of 1776 was a time of revolution, independence, and patriotism. American colonists had severed their umbilical cord to the Mother Country and declared themselves “Free and Independent States”.1 The chains of monarchy had been thrown off and a new government was formed. Shying away from a totalitarian government, the Second Continental Congress drafted a document called the Articles of Confederation which established a loose union of the states. It was an attempt at self-government that ended in failure. The Articles of Confederation had many defects which included a weak central government that lacked the power to tax, regulate trade, required equal representation and a unanimous vote to amend the Articles, and had only a legislative branch. As a result the United States lacked respect from foreign countries. These flaws were so severe that a new government had to be drafted and as a result the Constitution was born. This document remedied the weak points of the federal government and created one that was strong and fair, yet still governed by the people.
After the American Revolution, America had earned it’s freedom from Britain. In order to govern this new country the Articles of Confederation was created. This document was flawed by the colonists fear of putting too much power into a central government. Knowing the document needed to be fixed a constitutional convention was called. The document created at this convention has been our constitution ever since. But even the Constitution was meet with criticism. One major concern when writing the constitution was how to protect the citizens rights. The Constitution did this through the preamble, the legislative process, the limit of presidential terms, the judicial branch, and the bill of rights.
Jefferson writes that given their “unalienable rights. . . Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness”, “it is the Right of the People. . . to institute a new Government”, one that will fairly represent them, to reestablish order (para 2). The Declaration of Independence does not seek to convince or even encourage action; rather, it aims to declare. There is no mistaking Jefferson’s words.
The king says “That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This quote/statement explains that all people have rights including men, all men are created equal, all men are treated the same as any other person. The Declaration of Independence also tells us that the Government also has the job to help people have the truths that they want or want to hear from them. “That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its foundation in such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.” This is stating that the people in America should abolish and alter their rights that they do have, the government that prevents the truths need to
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” (U.S. Constitution Preamble)
Following the failure of the Articles of Confederation, a debate arose discussing how a centralized government ought to be organized. The prevailing opinion ultimately belonged to the Federalists, whose philosophy was famously outlined in The Federalist Papers. Recognizing that in a free nation, man would naturally divide himself into factions, they chose not to remedy this problem by stopping it at its source; instead, they would limit its effects by placing strict structural safeguards within the government's framework. The Federalists defined a facti...
During the construction of the new Constitution, many of the most prominent and experienced political members of America’s society provided a framework on the future of the new country; they had in mind, because of the failures of the Articles of Confederation, a new kind of government where the national or Federal government would be the sovereign power, not the states. Because of the increased power of the national government over the individual states, many Americans feared it would hinder their ability to exercise their individual freedoms. Assuring the people, both Alexander Hamilton and James Madison insisted the new government under the constitution was “an expression of freedom, not its enemy,” declaring “the Constitution made political tyranny almost impossible.” (Foner, pg. 227) The checks and balances introduced under the new and more powerful national government would not allow the tyranny caused by a king under the Parliament system in Britain. They insisted that in order achieve a greater amount of freedom, a national government was needed to avoid the civil unrest during the system under the Articles of Confederation. Claiming that the new national government would be a “perfect balance between liberty and power,” it would avoid the disruption that liberty [civil unrest] and power [king’s abuse of power in England] caused. The “lackluster leadership” of the critics of the new constitution claimed that a large land area such as America could not work for such a diverse nation.
The document I chose to write about is the United States Constitution. When the thirteen British colonies in North America declared their independence in 1776, they laid down that “governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” The “colonies” had to establish a government, which would be the framework for the United States. The purpose of a written constitution is to define and therefore more specifically limit government powers. After the Articles of Confederation failed to work in the 13 colonies, the U.S. Constitution was created in 1787.
It has been said that the Declaration of independence is “what holds us together and legitimizes out political aspirations” (Eastland, 2014) and that leads to the outlining of the new government. The forefathers wanted government that would provide them with the rights they had as God fearing people. These basic rights included life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The rights the colonist added in the Declaration of Independence also stated that the government was to, under any circumstance, protect all citizen’s rights. The Declaration of Independence highlighted where the government’s power should come from; which would be the governed or the people. Lastly it is the responsibility and right of the people to keep the government running properly and if the government is not completing the task of protecting the rights of the people it is to be overthrown. With a very strong outline of a new philosophy of government the first purpose of the Declaration of Independences was established. This portion declared independence from the British rule and publically announced how they are going to do
The Declaration of Independence listed the grievances such as, “He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.” The next important step to the foundation of a new government was to gain peoples ambition by showing how the government would be run if a new party took over. This goal was achieved by stating the rights of man. “We hold these truths to be self evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This statement made people hopeful and feel kindly toward this new government.
People have their own perspective of a government that they envision for their people. Thomas Jefferson has been the president of the United States and ruled under a monarch. Jefferson couldn’t tolerate the abuse from a monarch, so he rebelled against the British crown. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote The Declaration of Independence, and declared the colonies were free from British rule. Before he became the author of The Declaration of Independence, Jefferson was established “ as an ardent republican and revolutionary” (Jacobus 77). Jacobus states Jefferson is, “one of the most versatile Americans of any generation” (Jacobus 78). In The Declaration of Independence, Jefferson and the founding fathers envisioned a government that would govern the people, and the people would be free. The people must be governed with rights, Jefferson implies it’s the government’s duty to guide and secure the people, therefore, he believes the government’s obligation to the individual is more important than the individuals obligation to the state.
“The Constitution leaves in its wake a long legacy, forever shaping the fate of many other countries. Whether those countries are currently in a state favorable to liberty or not, it is undeniable that the U.S. Constitution’s principles have caused people to rethink how to organize their political systems” (Hang). Time has only added value to the Constitution, for every time we reference it in our lives it is a testament of our trust and loyalty in what it states about our rights as individuals and the role the government plays in our lives. When it was written, the Constitution was the law of the land that gave people rights they had previously lived without. Similarly, we live lives of choice and independence because of the same document while other countries limit all the rights we are guaranteed in the Constitution. Simply put, “The Constitution is important because it protects individual freedom, and its fundamental principles govern the United States. The Constitution places the government 's power in the hands of the citizens. It limits the power of the government and establishes a system of checks and balances”
The Articles of Confederation was the first government of the United States. The Articles had created a very weak national government. At the time the Articles were approved, they had served the will of the people. Americans had just fought a war to get freedom from a great national authority--King George III (Patterson 34). But after this government was put to use, it was evident that it was not going to keep peace between the states. The conflicts got so frequent and malicious that George Washington wondered if the “United” States should be called a Union (Patterson 35). Shays’ Rebellion finally made it evident to the public that the government needed a change.
Our voice is heard by the leaders we choose, not all countries this option. Being able to help decide our rights and responsibilities is what make us American.