Constitution of the
United States
Preamble
We the
People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union,
establish Justice, insure domestic
Tranquility, provide for the common
defence,
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.
Article I
- The Legislative Branch
Section
1
- The Legislature
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
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.
Section
3
- The Senate
The
Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each
State, (chosen by the Legislature thereof,) for six Years; and
each Senator shall have one Vote.
Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first
Election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three Classes.
The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the
Expiration of the second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of
the fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the sixth
Year, so that one third may be chosen every second Year; (and if
Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, during the Recess of the
Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary
Appointments until the next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then
fill such Vacancies.)
No
person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of
thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and
who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he
shall be chosen.
The Vice
President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but
shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.
The
Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and also a President
pro tempore, in the absence of the
Vice President, or when he shall exercise the Office of President of the
United States.
The
Senate shall have the sole Power to try all
Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on
Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried,
the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted
without the Concurrence of two thirds
of the Members present.
Judgment
in Cases of Impeachment shall not
extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold
and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States:
but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to
Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.
Section
4
- Elections, Meetings
The
Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and
Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature
thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such
Regulations, except as to the Place of Chusing Senators.
The
Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting
shall (be on the first Monday in December,) unless they shall by
Law appoint a different Day.
Section
5
- Membership, Rules, Journals, Adjournment
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 Behavior, 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.
Section
6
- Compensation
(The
Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their
Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the
United States.)
They shall in all Cases, except Treason,
Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their
Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to
and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either
House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.
No
Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was
elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the
United States which shall have been created, or the
Emoluments whereof shall have been
increased during such time; and no Person holding any Office under the
United States, shall be a Member of either House during his Continuance
in Office.
Section
7
- Revenue Bills, Legislative Process, Presidential Veto
All
bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of
Representatives; but the Senate may propose or
concur with Amendments as on other
Bills.
Every
Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the
Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of
the United States; If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall
return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have
originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal,
and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds
of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together
with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be
reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall
become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be
determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and
against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House
respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within
ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him,
the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless
the Congress by their Adjournment
prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law.
Every
Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the
Concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be
necessary (except on a question of
Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United
States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved by him,
or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the
Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules and
Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.
Section
8
- Powers of Congress
The
Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties,
Imposts and
Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and
general Welfare of the United States;
but all Duties, Imposts and
Excises shall be uniform throughout
the United States;
To
borrow money on the credit of the United States;
To
regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States,
and with the Indian Tribes;
To
establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the
subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
To coin
Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the
Standard of Weights and Measures;
To
provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current
Coin of the United States;
To
establish Post Offices and Post Roads;
To
promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited
Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective
Writings and Discoveries;
To
constitute Tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
To
define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and
Offenses against the Law of Nations;
To
declare War, grant Letters of Marque
and Reprisal, and make Rules
concerning Captures on Land and Water;
To raise
and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be
for a longer Term than two Years;
To
provide and maintain a Navy;
To make
Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To
provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union,
suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
To
provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for
governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the
United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of
the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the
discipline prescribed by Congress;
To
exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such
District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of
particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of
the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over
all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in
which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals,
dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings; And
To
make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into
Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this
Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any
Department or Officer thereof.
Section
9
- Limits on Congress
The
Migration or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now
existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the
Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a
tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten
dollars for each Person.
The
privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus
shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion
the public Safety may require it.
No Bill
of Attainder or
ex post facto Law shall be passed.
(No
capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to
the Census or Enumeration herein
before directed to be taken.)
No Tax
or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.
No
Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to
the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound
to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in
another.
No Money
shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations
made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and
Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.
No
Title of Nobility shall be granted by
the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust
under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any
present, Emolument, Office, or Title,
of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince or foreign State.
Section
10
- Powers prohibited of States
No State
shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant
Letters of Marque and
Reprisal; coin Money; emit
Bills of Credit; make any Thing but
gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of
Attainder, Ex
Post Facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or
grant any Title of Nobility.
No State
shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any
Imposts or Duties on Imports or
Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing
it's inspection Laws: and the net
Produce of all Duties and Imposts,
laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the
Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the
Revision and Control of the Congress.
No
State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any duty of Tonnage,
keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement
or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in
War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not
admit of delay.
Article II
- The Executive Branch
Section
1
- The President
The
executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of
America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and,
together with the Vice-President chosen for the same Term, be elected,
as follows:
Each
State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may
direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and
Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but
no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or
Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.
(The
Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for
two persons, of whom one at least shall not lie an Inhabitant of the
same State with themselves. And they shall make a List of all the
Persons voted for, and of the Number of Votes for each; which List they
shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the Seat of the
Government of the United States, directed to the President of the
Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate
and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes
shall then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes
shall be the President, if such Number be a Majority of the whole Number
of Electors appointed; and if there be more than one who have such
Majority, and have an equal Number of Votes, then the House of
Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot one of them for
President; and if no Person have a Majority, then from the five highest
on the List the said House shall in like Manner chuse the President. But
in chusing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the
Representation from each State having one Vote; a quorum for this
Purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two-thirds of the
States, and a Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a Choice.
In every Case, after the Choice of the President, the Person having the
greatest Number of Votes of the Electors shall be the Vice President.
But if there should remain two or more who have equal Votes, the Senate
shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice-President.)
The
Congress may determine the time of chusing the Electors, and the Day on
which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the same
throughout the United States.
No
person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States,
at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to
the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that
Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty-five Years, and
been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.
(In Case
of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death,
Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said
Office, the same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress
may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or
Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what
Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act
accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be
elected.)
The
President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a
Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the
Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive
within that Period any other Emolument
from the United States, or any of them.
Before
he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following
Oath or Affirmation:
"I do
solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of
President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability,
preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
Section
2
- Civilian Power over Military, Cabinet, Pardon Power, Appointments
The
President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United
States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the
actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in
writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments,
upon any subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and
he shall have Power to Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against
the United States, except in Cases of
Impeachment.
He
shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to
make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present
concur; and he shall nominate, and by
and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint
Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme
Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments
are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by
Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior
Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of
Law, or in the Heads of Departments.
The
President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen
during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall
expire at the End of their next Session.
Section
3
- State of the Union, Convening Congress
He shall
from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the
Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall
judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions,
convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement
between them, with Respect to the Time of
Adjournment, he may adjourn
them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors
and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be
faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United
States.
Section
4
- Disqualification
The
President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States,
shall be removed from Office on Impeachment
for, and Conviction of, Treason,
Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
Article III
- The Judicial Branch
Section
1
- Judicial powers
The
judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme
Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time
ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior
Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at
stated Times, receive for their Services a Compensation which shall not
be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
Section
2
- Trial by Jury, Original Jurisdiction, Jury Trials
(The
judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising
under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties
made, or which shall be made, under their Authority; to all Cases
affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls; to all Cases
of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction; to Controversies to which the
United States shall be a Party; to Controversies between two or more
States; between a State and Citizens of another State; between Citizens
of different States; between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands
under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens
thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.)
In all
Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and
those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have
original jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the
Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to Law and
Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress
shall make.
The
Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of
Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in
the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not
committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places
as the Congress may by Law have directed.
Section
3
- Treason
Treason
against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against
them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No
Person shall be convicted of
Treason
unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on
Confession in open Court.
The
Congress shall have power to declare the Punishment of
Treason, but no Attainder of
Treason shall work
Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture
except during the Life of the Person attainted.
Article IV
- The States
Section
1
- Each State to Honor all others
Full
Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts,
Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress
may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and
Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.
Section
2
- State citizens, Extradition
The
Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and
Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
A Person
charged in any State with Treason,
Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and be found in
another State, shall on demand of the executive Authority of the State
from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having
Jurisdiction of the Crime.
(No
Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof,
escaping into another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation
therein, be discharged from such Service or Labour, But shall be
delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such Service or Labour may be
due.)
Section
3
- New States
New
States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new
States shall be formed or erected within the
Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the
Junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without the Consent
of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
The
Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and
Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the
United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as
to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular
State.
Section
4
- Republican government
The
United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a
Republican Form of Government, and
shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the
Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be
convened) against domestic Violence.
Article V
- Amendment
The
Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary,
shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of
the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a
Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be
valid to all Intents and Purposes, as part of this Constitution, when
ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or
by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of
Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment
which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight
shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth
Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent,
shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.
Article VI
- Debts, Supremacy, Oaths
All
Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of
this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under
this Constitution, as under the Confederation.
This
Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in
Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under
the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the
Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in
the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.
The
Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the
several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers,
both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by
Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test
shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust
under the United States.
Article VII
- Ratification
The
Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient for
the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying
the Same.
Done
in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the
Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven
hundred and Eighty seven and of the Independence of the United States of
America the Twelfth. In Witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed our
Names.
Go
Washington - President and deputy from Virginia
New
Hampshire - John Langdon, Nicholas Gilman
Massachusetts - Nathaniel Gorham, Rufus King
Connecticut - Wm Saml Johnson, Roger Sherman
New York
- Alexander Hamilton
New
Jersey - Wil Livingston, David Brearley, Wm Paterson, Jona. Dayton
Pennsylvania- B Franklin, Thomas Mifflin, Robert Morris, Geo. Clymer,
Thos FitzSimons, Jared Ingersoll, James Wilson, Gouv Morris
Delaware
- Geo. Read, Gunning Bedford jun, John Dickinson, Richard Bassett, Jaco.
Broom
Maryland
- James McHenry, Dan of St Tho Jenifer, Danl Carroll
Virginia
- John Blair, James Madison Jr.
North
Carolina - Wm Blount, Richd Dobbs Spaight, Hu Williamson
South
Carolina - J. Rutledge, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Charles Pinckney,
Pierce Butler
Georgia
- William Few, Abr Baldwin
Attest:
William Jackson, Secretary
The Amendments
Amendment 1
- Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression.
Ratified 12/15/1791.
Congress
shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Amendment 2
- Right to Bear Arms. Ratified 12/15/1791.
A well
regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the
right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
Amendment 3
- Quartering of Soldiers. Ratified 12/15/1791.
No
Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the
consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be
prescribed by law.
Amendment 4
- Search and Seizure. Ratified 12/15/1791.
The
right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and
effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be
violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause,
supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place
to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Amendment 5
- Trial and Punishment, Compensation for Takings. Ratified 12/15/1791.
No
person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous
crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in
cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in
actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person
be subject for the same offense to be twice
put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any
criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life,
liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private
property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Amendment 6
- Right to Speedy Trial, Confrontation of Witnesses. Ratified
12/15/1791.
In all
criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and
public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the
crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been
previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and
cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against
him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor,
and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.
Amendment 7
- Trial by Jury in Civil Cases. Ratified 12/15/1791.
In Suits
at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty
dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact
tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the
United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
Amendment 8
- Cruel and Unusual Punishment. Ratified 12/15/1791.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
Amendment 9
- Construction of Constitution. Ratified 12/15/1791.
The
enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
Amendment 10
- Powers of the States and People. Ratified 12/15/1791.
The
powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor
prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively,
or to the people.
Amendment 11
- Judicial Limits. Ratified 2/7/1795.
The
Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to
any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the
United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects
of any Foreign State.
Amendment 12
- Choosing the President, Vice-President. Ratified 6/15/1804.
The
Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for
President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an
inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their
ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the
person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists
of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as
Vice-President and of the number of votes for each, which lists they
shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the
government of the United States, directed to the President of the
Senate;
The
President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House
of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then
be counted;
The
person having the greatest Number of votes for President, shall be the
President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors
appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons
having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those
voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose
immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President,
the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state
having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or
members from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states
shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives
shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve
upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the
Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or
other constitutional disability of the President.
The
person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be
the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of
Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two
highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President;
a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number
of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a
choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of
President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United
States.
Amendment 13
- Slavery Abolished. Ratified 12/6/1865.
1.
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for
crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist
within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
2.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation.
Amendment 14
- Citizenship Rights. Ratified 7/9/1868.
1. All
persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the
jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State
wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall
abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States;
nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property,
without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
2.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according
to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in
each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at
any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President
of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and
Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof,
is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one
years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged,
except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of
representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the
number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male
citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
3. No
person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of
President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military,
under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously
taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United
States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or
judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United
States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the
same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may
by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
4. The
validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law,
including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for
services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be
questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or
pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion
against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of
any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held
illegal and void.
5. The
Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the
provisions of this article.
Amendment 15
- Race No Bar to Vote. Ratified 2/3/1870.
1. The
right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color,
or previous condition of servitude.
2. The
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation.
Amendment 16
- Status of Income Tax Clarified. Ratified 2/3/1913.
The
Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from
whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States,
and without regard to any census or enumeration.
Amendment 17
- Senators Elected by Popular Vote. Ratified 4/8/1913.
The
Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each
State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator
shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the
qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the
State legislatures.
When
vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the
executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill
such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower
the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people
fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.
This
amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of
any Senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.
Amendment 18
- Liquor Abolished. Ratified 1/16/1919. Repealed by 21st
Amendment, 12/5/1933.
1. After
one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or
transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof
into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all
territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is
hereby prohibited.
2. The
Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce
this article by appropriate legislation.
3. This
article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an
amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several States,
as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the
submission hereof to the States by the Congress.
Amendment 19
- Women's Suffrage. Ratified 8/18/1920.
The
right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Congress
shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Amendment 20
- Presidential, Congressional Terms. Ratified 1/23/1933.
1. The
terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th
day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on
the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended
if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors
shall then begin.
2.
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such
meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall
by law appoint a different day.
3. If,
at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the
President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become
President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time
fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall
have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as
President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may
by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice
President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as
President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected,
and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice
President shall have qualified.
4. The
Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the
persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President
whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the
case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose
a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon
them.
5.
Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following
the ratification of this article.
6. This
article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an
amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of
the several States within seven years from the date of its submission.
Amendment 21
–Amendment 18 Repealed. Ratified 12/5/1933.
1. The
eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States
is hereby repealed.
2. The
transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession
of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating
liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.
3. The
article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an
amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as
provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the
submission hereof to the States by the Congress.
Amendment 22
- Presidential Term Limits. Ratified 2/27/1951.
1. No
person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice,
and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as
President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person
was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President
more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding
the office of President, when this Article was proposed by the Congress,
and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of
President, or acting as President, during the term within which this
Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting
as President during the remainder of such term.
2. This
article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an
amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of
the several States within seven years from the date of its submission to
the States by the Congress.
Amendment 23
- Presidential Vote for District of Columbia. Ratified 3/29/1961.
1. The
District constituting the seat of Government of the United States shall
appoint in such manner as the Congress may direct: A number of electors
of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators
and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled
if it were a State, but in no event more than the least populous State;
they shall be in addition to those appointed by the States, but they
shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and
Vice President, to be electors appointed by a State; and they shall meet
in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth
article of amendment.
2. The
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation.
Amendment 24
– Poll Tax Barred. Ratified 1/23/1964.
1. The
right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other
election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or
Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not
be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of
failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.
2. The
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation.
Amendment 25
- Presidential Disability and Succession. Ratified 2/10/1967.
1. In
case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or
resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
2.
Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the
President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon
confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
3.
Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the
Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written
declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his
office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the
contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice
President as Acting President.
4.
Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal
officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress
may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written
declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and
duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the
powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of
the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written
declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and
duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either
the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body
as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the
President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable
to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress
shall decide the issue, assembling within forty eight hours for that
purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty one days after
receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in
session, within twenty one days after Congress is required to assemble,
determines by two thirds vote of both Houses that the President is
unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice
President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President;
otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his
office.
Amendment 26
- Voting Age Set to 18 Years. Ratified 7/1/1971.
1. The
right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or
older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or
by any State on account of age.
2. The
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation.
Amendment 27
- Limiting Changes to Congressional Pay. Ratified 5/7/1992.
No law,
varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and
Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives
shall have intervened. |