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The Constitution and the Founders
110 posts, newest first (page 4 of 5).
Patrick Henry Against James Madison, the Richmond Debate That Decided VirginiaIn June 1788 Patrick Henry warned of a consolidated government and Madison answered him point by point. Virginia ratified 89 to 79. Who was right? Massachusetts Saved the Constitution in 1788 by Ratifying and Asking for MoreMassachusetts ratified 187 to 168 by saying yes and recommending amendments, a formula that carried the close states and led to the Bill of Rights. From Delaware to Rhode Island, the Ratification Fight State by StateRatification ran from December 7, 1787 to May 29, 1790, and the big states nearly sank it. Every state's date, vote and fight, in order. Nine of Thirteen, Why Article VII Sidestepped the Articles of ConfederationThe Articles needed every state to agree to any change. The Framers sent the Constitution to the people's conventions instead, and made nine enough. When Ratifying Conventions Argued Over Article VI's Ban on Religious TestsIn 1788 devout delegates feared a Constitution with no religious test. Other believers defended the ban as a shield for faith, and they won the argument. The Supremacy Clause Makes Federal Law Supreme Only When Made in PursuanceFederal law beats state law only when Congress acts within its powers, and Washington may never draft state officers to run its programs. How a State Legislature Applies for an Article V Convention, Step by StepThe state route to amending the Constitution runs through your legislature. Here are the steps, from the resolution's text to the 38th ratification. A Convention of States Is the Founders' Safety Valve, Weighed HonestlyArticle V gave the states their own road to amendments. Here is the fair case for and against using it, and why the safeguards favor trying. How New States Join the Union, From Vermont in 1791 to Hawaii in 1959Article IV lets Congress admit new states but forbids carving one out of another without consent. Thirty-seven admissions show how the rule worked. A Republican Form of Government Is a Promise Article IV Makes to Every StateThe Guarantee Clause promises every state a republican government. Here is what republican meant in 1787 and why courts leave the promise to Congress. Article IV Stops States From Punishing Americans for Being From Somewhere ElseThe Privileges and Immunities Clause bars states from treating Americans from other states as outsiders in work, property and the courts. Full Faith and Credit Makes an Ohio Judgment Count in Texas, Within LimitsArticle IV binds states to honor each other's judgments so the Union works as one legal community. It binds them far less to each other's laws. The Seventh Amendment Guarantees a Civil Jury for Twenty Dollars and Means ItThe Seventh Amendment preserves the civil jury, and SEC v. Jarkesy (2024) showed it reaches agencies that try to impose penalties without one. Treason Is the One Crime the Constitution Defines, and It Defines It NarrowlyThe Founders limited treason to war and aid to enemies, and demanded two witnesses to one overt act, because kings used treason against their critics. Brutus Warned in 1788 That Unelected Judges Would Swallow the StatesThe Anti-Federalist Brutus predicted judges would read the Constitution by its spirit and enlarge national power. Which predictions came true? Neither Force Nor Will, Hamilton's Federalist 78 Read Line by LineFederalist 78 says judges have neither force nor will but merely judgment. Read in order, it is a standard every judge can be measured against. Article III Lets Congress Shape the Federal Courts, and It Rarely DoesArticle III creates one Supreme Court and hands Congress the rest. Here is the text, the history and the tools Congress holds but seldom uses. Seven Myths About the Electoral College That Fall Apart Against the RecordSeven popular charges against the Electoral College, tested against Madison's notes, Federalist 68 and the text of Article II. None survives. The Election of 1800 Broke the Electoral College and the 12th Amendment Fixed ItIn 1800 a tie between Jefferson and his own running mate sent the presidency to the House for 36 ballots, and the 12th Amendment repaired the flaw. The Committee of Eleven Invented the Electoral College in the Final WeeksThe Convention voted again and again to let Congress pick the president, until a committee in September 1787 proposed electors chosen by each state. Natural Born Citizen, the Phrase the Founders Borrowed and Never DefinedThe Constitution requires the president to be a natural born citizen, a phrase adopted without debate and never squarely defined by the Supreme Court. The Line-Item Veto Died in 1998 Because the Presentment Clause Says SoClinton v. City of New York struck down the line-item veto because a president may sign or veto a whole bill and nothing in between. Conservatives should cheer. Two-Thirds of the Senate, How the Treaty Clause Was Built to Be HardThe Treaty Clause demands two-thirds of the Senate so binding promises abroad carry broad national consent, and executive agreements test that design. Hamilton Defended a Pardon Power With No Senate Check in Federalist 74Federalist 74 explains why the Framers put mercy in one person's hands, with no Senate veto and no treason exception, and what that choice costs and buys.
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