The Constitution sets out the basic principles in which the U.S. government was built on and operates today. The United States Constitution lays out the basic framework and procedures of our government, and sets out the limits within which each government must consider. The six basic principles are as followed: the government must adhere to popular sovereignty, obey the prinicple of limited government, create seperation of powers, establish checks and balances, enforce judicial review, and follow a system of federalism.
Principle |
Description |
In the Constitution |
Popular
Sovereignty |
The basic principle of American government which asserts that the people are the source of any and all governmental power, and the government can only exist with the consent of the people. |
Found in the Preamble |
Limited
Government |
The principle of American government which states that the government is limited in what it may do, and what each individual has rights that the government cannot take away.
|
Found in the Bill of Rights (Article 1, Section 9 [powers denied]) |
Separation
of Powers |
The basic principle of American government that the executive, legislative, and judicial powers are divided among three independent but coequal branches of government.
|
Found in Article 1, 2, and 3 |
Checks
and Balances |
A system of overlapping the powers of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches to permit each branch to check the actions of the others.
|
Found in Article 1, 2, and 3 |
Judicial
Review |
The power of a court to determine the constitutionality of a government action.
|
Found in Article 3 and in the Marbury v. Madision court case |
Federalism
|
A system of government in which a written constitution divides power between a central, or national, government and several regional governments.
|
Found in Article 4 and Amendment 10 |
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