Constitutional Perspectives
Happy Constitution Day, y'all (if it is a happy Constitution Day, which I doubt...) and welcome to another installment of Constitutional Perspectives! Over the last few lessons, I've covered each branch of the federal government in sequence: Congress, the Presidency, and the judiciary. This is a
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to a special bonus edition of Constitutional Perspectives! The last installment covered the power, structure, and character of the federal judiciary. But I realized that I left something out. I told you all about the judges. But our country has another kind of judicial body as well: the
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Over the last few installments, I've (briefly) canvassed the structure and powers of the legislative and executive branches of the federal government. Today, then, it is time to tackle the third branch: the federal courts, also known as the judiciary. I suspect the
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! This is the second of two lessons in Level One about the Presidency. Last time I covered the structure of the Presidency; today, I'll be discussing the powers of the office. At the outset it is helpful to observe that presidential powers fall
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Last time we talked about the powers of Congress. That means today it is time to discuss the executive branch and the presidency. As with Congress, this will be split into two lessons, the first of them covering the structure of the institution, the second
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Last time, I canvassed the structure and composition of the United States Congress. Today I'll be looking instead at the powers of Congress. This will round out our examination of Article I, at least for the purposes of Level One. (There will, of
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Last time, I gave a rough sketch of the entire structure of the constitutional scheme. The Constitution, as I outlined it, divides powers three ways: between the People and the government as a whole; between the states and the Union; and between the three branches
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Last time, we wrapped up (for now) the story of where the Constitution came from. That means it's time to begin diving into matters of substance! Today I'll be laying out a quick sketch of basics of the entire constitutional scheme.
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome back to Constitutional Perspectives! Last time, I began to tell the Constitution's origin story – well, the Level One version of it, anyway. We left off in the mid-1780s, after the Treaty of Paris had ended the War for Independence. But the constitutional order of 1776, as formalized
Level One
Welcome back to Level One of Constitutional Perspectives! Last time, I covered what the Constitution is: the kind of thing it is, the basic function it performs. Next, I want to canvass where it comes from: the history, briefly told, of how the Constitution came to be. In fact it
Constitutional Perspectives
Welcome to Level One of Constitutional Perspectives! In today's lesson we'll be covering a simple question: what is this "Constitution" thing, anyway? As I mentioned in the introduction to the series, Level One is geared for readers who have zero prior knowledge of American