The CONSTITUTION [APUSH Review Unit 3 Topic 9 (3.9)] Period 3: 1754-1800

Summary

In this episode of Heimler's History, the focus is on the U.S. Constitution's main content, specifically federalism and the separation of powers. Federalism is clarified as a power-sharing mechanism between national and state governments, not a dominance of one over the other. The supremacy clause and enumerated powers are highlighted, showing where federal law takes precedence. The video also explains the Constitution's three branches of government and their checks and balances, designed to prevent tyranny by distributing power and reflecting the framers' understanding of human nature.

Takeaways

• 🏛️ The U.S. Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation to address the failures of the federal government under the previous system.
• 🤝 Federalism is the sharing of power between the national government and state governments, not a hierarchy where one is more powerful than the other.
• 📜 Article VI of the Constitution, the supremacy clause, establishes that national law supersedes state law in cases of contradiction.
• 📊 Enumerated powers, listed in Article I Section 8, grant specific authorities to the federal government, such as the power to declare war.
• 🔟 The Tenth Amendment reserves powers not delegated to the federal government to the states, covering areas like defining marriage or divorce.
• 🏛️ The Constitution establishes three branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial, each with distinct roles and responsibilities.
• ⚖️ The judicial branch, though initially less defined, gained significant power and became a major player in federal governance.
• 🔄 The separation of powers is designed to provide checks and balances, preventing any single branch from having total control.
• 🚫 The president has the power to veto legislation, which is a check on the legislative branch, but Congress can override this veto with a two-thirds majority.
• 🧐 The framers of the Constitution were aware of the potential for human corruption and designed the government structure to protect against tyranny by distributing power.

Q & A

What was the main reason for replacing the Articles of Confederation with the Constitution?

The main reason was that the federal government under the Articles of Confederation was far too weak to be effective.

What are the two major themes of the Constitution discussed in the script?

The two major themes discussed are federalism and the separation of powers.

What does federalism mean in the context of the U.S. Constitution?

Federalism means the sharing of power between the national government and the state governments, not that one has more power than the other.

What is the supremacy clause, and how does it relate to federalism?

The supremacy clause, found in Article VI of the Constitution, states that national law trumps state law whenever they contradict, indicating that in cases of conflict, the federal government's laws take precedence.

What are the enumerated powers of Congress, and where are they found in the Constitution?

The enumerated powers of Congress are the specific powers granted to the federal government, which are listed in Article I Section 8 of the Constitution.

How does the Tenth Amendment affect the balance of power between the federal government and the states?

The Tenth Amendment reserves powers not delegated to the United States to the states, meaning that powers not listed in Article I Section 8 belong to the state governments.

What are the three branches of government established by the Constitution?

The three branches of government are the legislative branch (responsible for making laws), the executive branch (responsible for carrying out and enforcing laws), and the judicial branch (responsible for interpreting laws).

What is the purpose of the separation of powers among the three branches of government?

The purpose of the separation of powers is to prevent any one branch from having too much power by allowing each branch to check and balance the others.

How does the system of checks and balances work between the legislative and executive branches?

The legislative branch creates and proposes laws, but the president must approve and sign them for them to become binding. If the president disapproves, they can veto the law, which Congress can then override with a two-thirds majority vote.

What did James Madison argue in Federalist 51 regarding human nature and government?

James Madison argued in Federalist 51 that if men were angels, no government would be necessary, implying that because humans are not perfect and can abuse power, it's essential to distribute power to prevent tyranny.

Outlines

00:00

📜 Introduction to the U.S. Constitution

This paragraph introduces the topic of the U.S. Constitution's main content, following the discussion on the Articles of Confederation from the previous video. It sets the stage for an exploration of the Constitution's provisions, emphasizing the shift from a weak federal government under the Articles to a more powerful one under the new Constitution. The video aims to clarify common misconceptions about federalism and the separation of powers, which are central themes of the Constitution.

Keywords

💡Constitution of the United States

The Constitution of the United States is the supreme legal document that establishes the framework of the federal government of the United States, outlining the principles by which the United States is governed. In the video, the Constitution is highlighted as a replacement for the Articles of Confederation, aiming to strengthen the federal government's power and effectiveness. The video discusses how the Constitution embodies key principles like federalism and separation of powers, which are crucial for understanding American governance.

💡Federalism

Federalism refers to the division of power between a central authority (the federal government) and constituent political units (the states). The video script clarifies that federalism is not about one level of government being more powerful than the other but about sharing power. It is a central theme in the Constitution, ensuring a balance of power between the national and state governments. The script uses the example of the supremacy clause in Article VI and the enumerated powers in Article I Section 8 to illustrate how federalism works in practice.

💡Separation of Powers

The separation of powers is a model for the governance of a state, wherein the responsibilities and powers of government are divided into distinct branches to prevent abuse of power. In the video, the three branches of the U.S. government are identified as legislative, executive, and judicial. The script explains how each branch has specific roles and how they check and balance each other to maintain a system of governance that prevents any one branch from gaining too much power.

💡Articles of Confederation

The Articles of Confederation was the first written constitution of the United States and served as a governing document before it was replaced by the Constitution. The video script points out that the Articles were deemed a failure because they created a federal government that was too weak to be effective, leading to the creation of the Constitution to address this issue.

💡Enumerated Powers

Enumerated powers are the specific powers granted to the federal government as listed in the Constitution, particularly in Article I Section 8. The video script uses the example of the power to declare war to illustrate an enumerated power, highlighting how these powers are explicitly given to the federal government and are part of the federalism structure.

💡Supremacy Clause

The Supremacy Clause, found in Article VI of the Constitution, establishes that the Constitution, federal laws, and treaties are the supreme law of the land, and that state laws must be in accordance with them. The video script explains that when there is a conflict between federal and state law, the Supremacy Clause ensures that national law prevails.

💡Tenth Amendment

The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution reserves all powers not delegated to the federal government to the states or the people. The video script discusses how the Tenth Amendment is a part of the federalism concept, emphasizing that powers not listed in the Constitution belong to the states, thus balancing the distribution of power between the national and state governments.

💡Legislative Branch

The legislative branch of the U.S. government is responsible for making laws and is composed of the U.S. Congress, which includes the Senate and the House of Representatives. The video script describes the legislative branch as one of the three branches of government, each with its own distinct function, and how it interacts with the other branches through the system of checks and balances.

💡Executive Branch

The executive branch, headed by the President of the United States, is responsible for enforcing and administering the laws created by the legislative branch. The video script explains the executive branch's role in the separation of powers and how the president can veto legislation passed by Congress, which is then subject to being overridden by a two-thirds majority vote.

💡Judicial Branch

The judicial branch, primarily the Supreme Court, is responsible for interpreting laws and ensuring they align with the Constitution. The video script notes that while the judicial branch was not initially given much power in the Constitution, it later became a significant player in federal power through its role in interpreting the Constitution and reviewing the legality of laws.

💡Checks and Balances

Checks and balances is a system of mechanisms in the Constitution designed to prevent any one branch of government from gaining too much power. The video script provides an example of how the legislative branch can propose laws, but the executive branch can veto them, and Congress can override the veto, demonstrating how each branch has the ability to check the power of the others.

Highlights

Introduction to the main content of the U.S. Constitution.

Explanation of why the Articles of Confederation was replaced by the Constitution.

Historical context of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.

The concept of federalism and its importance in the Constitution.

Clarification that federalism is about sharing power, not one level of government being more powerful.

Article VI of the Constitution and the supremacy clause.

Enumerated powers of Congress as outlined in Article I Section 8.

Example of an enumerated power: the federal government's power to declare war.

The Tenth Amendment and its role in reserving powers to the states.

Discussion of the separation of powers among the three branches of government.

Roles of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches as established by the Constitution.

The growth of the judicial branch's power and the Supreme Court's significance.

Check and balance system among the branches to prevent the abuse of power.

Presidential veto power and Congress's ability to override it with a two-thirds majority vote.

James Madison's argument in Federalist 51 about the necessity of government due to human nature.

The framers' intention to distribute power to protect against tyranny.

Conclusion and recommendation for students to achieve academic success.

Transcripts

Well hey there and welcome back to Heimler’s  History. We’ve been going through Unit 3 of  

the AP U.S. History curriculum, and in the last  video we saw how the Articles of Confederation  

was replaced by the Constitution of the  United States as America’s new governing  

document. In this video we’re going to look  at the main content of the Constitution,  

and I can see that them brain cows are  ready to get milked, so let’s get to it.

So if you’ll recall from the last  video, delegates from the states met in  

Philadelphia in 1787 at the Constitutional  Convention. Here they hammered out a new  

governing document through debate and  compromise which expanded the power and  

influence of the federal government. And they did  this because no small part of the failure of the  

Articles of Confederation was that the federal  government was far too weak to be effective.

So let’s have a look at the major provisions  of the Constitution. And we’ll by no means  

look at everything, but in order to taste  a little of the constitutional sauce we  

really need to look at two major themes:  federalism and the separation of powers.

Let’s start with federalism. Now this term is  a perpetual scourge to high school students  

everywhere, and they often misinterpret  it. And the reason students so often get  

it wrong is because federalism sounds like the  federal government, and the federal government  

is the national government. So when you hear  that the Constitution embodies federalism,  

what you immediately think is, Oh  that means the federal governing is  

more powerful than the states. But that is  emphatically NOT what federalism means. So  

I’m about to tell you what it means and  I want you to write it down, bold it,  

highlight it, underline it, tattoo it on  your forehead so you don’t get it wrong.

Federalism just means the sharing of power between  the national government and the state government.  

Say it with me now. Federalism is the sharing of  power between state and national governments. It  

doesn’t mean that one has more power than the  other, it just means that they share the power  

to govern a people. Okay, assuming your forehead  tattoo is finished and healed up, let me continue.

Now, with respect to federalism, even though  I just said neither the national government  

nor the state government was more powerful  than the other, I’m about to complicate it a  

little. Article VI of the Constitution,  also known as the supremacy clause,  

does in fact state that national law trumps state  law whenever they contradict. On the other hand,  

there are only certain national laws that fall  under this category, and these are called the  

enumerated powers of Congress which are given  to us in Article I Section 8. An example of an  

enumerated power of the federal government is the  power to declare war. If the federal government  

declares war on Canada, for example, and Rhode  Island is like, yeah we’re not into that,  

then sorry, Rhode Island, supremacy clause,  we bout to invade Canada. So with respect to  

the powers outlined in Article I Section 8,  the federal government has the trump card.

But then we get the Tenth Amendment which  shifts power over to the states. It says,  

“The powers not delegated to the United States…  are reserved to the states.” Which basically  

means that power NOT listed in Article I  Section 8 belongs to the state governments.  

This included powers like defining legal  relationships like marriage or divorce, etc.

So that’s how federalism plays out in the  Constitution. Some powers are explicitly given to  

the federal government, and others are reserved  exclusively for the states. Power is shared.

But in addition to federalism, the new  Constitution also provided for a separation of  

powers between the three branches of government.  The three branches established by the Constitution  

are as follows. The legislative branch which is  responsible for making laws. The executive branch,  

which is to say a president, which is responsible  for carrying out and enforcing the laws. And the  

judicial branch, or the Supreme Court, which is  responsible for interpreting laws to make sure  

they align with the Constitution. Side  note, the judicial branch wasn’t given  

much love in the Constitution, but in the  next few videos we’ll see how the Supreme  

Court got its big boy pants on and became a  major player with respect to federal power.

Now the last thing you need to know about this  separation of powers in the federal government  

is that the framers of the Constitution set it  up this way so that each branch could check and  

balance the power of the other. No one branch  of government had all the power. For example,  

the legislative branch creates and proposes  laws, but the president must approve and  

sign it in order for the law to become  binding. If the president doesn’t approve,  

then the president has the executive power  of veto which puts the kibosh on the proposed  

law and that is a check on the power of Congress.  However, as a check on the power of the executive,  

Congress can override the veto with a  two-thirds majority vote. And that’s just  

one example of the many ways the three  branches check and balance each other.

But the Constitution’s provision for both  federalism and the separation of power in  

the three branches really comes down to this.  The framers of the Constitution were under  

no delusions about human nature. They understood  that humans are, by nature, turds, and will  

always abuse the power given to them. Which  is why James Madison argued in Federalist 51,  

“If men were angels no government would  be necessary.” That being the case,  

the framers took special care to distribute the  power to govern over several different entities,  

and this was their plan to protect  the American people from tyranny.

Okay that’s what you need to know about Unit 3  topic 9 of the AP U.S. History curriculum. If  

you’re enjoying your new forehead tattoo,  you might also enjoy getting an A in your  

class and a five on your exam in May, and  to that end I recommend that you grab my  

then go ahead and subscribe right here and I  will remain your obedient servant. Heimler out.