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The United States Constitution – Article 1 (cont.)

June 11, 2009 // Posted in United States Constitution  |  No Comments

Article 1, Sections 1 & 2 are in a previous post.

You know…I can copy and paste the entirety of the constitution, but that would not really be beneficial.  Instead, from here on out, I’ll just outline what each section talks about.  For the complete text of the U.S. Constitution, please Clicky Here! or purchase you own copy and read it.  It’s well worth the read, and will even surprise you.

Section 3. This section outlines that there will be two Senators from each state, and each carry only one vote.  They must be 35 years old or older and have lived in the state that they are representing for at least 9 years.  It also tells of the two year election separation; how to fill vacancies and states that the Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate.

The Senate also has the power of impeachment and outlines the rules for such.

Section 4. This section outlines that elections for the Senate and the House of Reps. are prescribed in each state by its Legislature, but the congress can change the election laws and regulations.  It also says that the Congress has to assemble at least once per year.

Section 5. Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.

Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

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I left section 5 intact because I’d like to get your comments on it.  Does it not state that the sitting congress gets to approve the newly elected members?  And doesn’t that kind of fly in the face of the electorate of the state that voted the new member in?  Perhaps I’m reading into this incorrectly, however, recently Senator Burress was appointed by Gov. Bloggo of Illinois, and the sitting Senate would not allow him in (initially).

Now, I understand what was going on in that situation, but the problem I’m having is that the sitting body can chose to allow or not allow someone into the club…even though the individual was properly elected or appointed to the position.

Someone set me straight on this, but all comments are welcome.

Hendo

The United States Constitution – Article One

May 29, 2009 // Posted in Politics, United States Constitution  |  No Comments

The United States Constitution is a very profound and powerful document.  Here I will post the different articles and sections, but because some sections are rather large, I will post only a few sections at a time.

If you’re interested, there are a lot of places online to check out the whole document.  My favorite place is here…Clicky Here!

Article I

Section 1. All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.

Section 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons. The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

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So Article One, Section One outlines the legislation branch of government being of two houses…the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Article Two outlines the make up of the House of Representatives and the qualifications for the job.

Boring stuff really, unless you’re one (like me) who likes the intricacies of how things work.  If you keep in mind the time period of which this document was written, you have to marvel at it’s attention to detail.  And if you compare it to maybe some corporation bylaws, you can actually appreciate the simplicity of such a powerful document.

More to follow, but please comment at will.

The United States Constitution – The Preamble

May 12, 2009 // Posted in United States Constitution (Tags: ) |  2 Comments

     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.


That’s a hell of a sentence, isn’t it?  In 7th grade, we had to memorize this for our History class.  This was in 1977.  Question:  Is this still tought in grade school?


This is a powerful sentence.  It launched a new nation, and that nation prospered more than any other nation in the history of mankind for over two hundred years.  So lets look at this sentence for a minute:

It states right off the bat, that the People of the United States of America formerly declare that this nation is a nation of laws and that it’s government will provide for the nations defence.  It also states that Liberty will always be secured; meaning that you and your children, and their children, etc. will always have their personal freedoms, away from the control of the government.  Think about this for a minute.  In just one sentence, you know the founding backbone of this country, and why people from all over the world have traveled to live here…even if it was a dangerous jouney in front of them.  And they still do to this day.

Now there is one part of this sentence that I have heard differing opinions on.  The part that says “promote the general Welfare”.  There are some that say that this statement alone gives the government the responsibility to provide healthcare.  I disagree.  Maybe I’m taking it too literal, but when I hear “promote”, I don’t misinterpret that to mean “provide”.   But since some very dear friends of mine are far better educated than I, I did some homework and here’s what I got:

PROMOTE:  ”to help or encourage to exist or flourish; further: to promote world peace.”

PROVIDE:  ”to make available; furnish: to provide employees with various benefits.”

(Thanks to the Internet, I found these definitions at http://www.dictionary.com)

Now in my view, and according to Dictionary.com, “to help or encourage”, in this case, means that it is to regulate the insurance industries from ripping off people who need medical attention and to legislate that frivolous law suits are seen for what they are and should hold physicians harmless from the gold digging litigation.  If the statement was “to provide the general Welfare”, then I would say that the government should provide healthcare to all.  So since we are a nation of Laws, and “Promote” and “Provide” hold to separate meetings, I submit that “Promote the general Welfare” means to encourage good health and good health practices…NOT that the government will provide you healthcare.

I want to know what you think.  Submit your comments, and lets discuss.

Hendo