Part 3: Legislative Branch-The Senate

Legislative Branch-The Senate

Section 3 of the first Article of the US Constitution pertains to the Senate. Clause 1 of this section states that the Senate will be made up of 2 duly chosen Senators from each state, each will serve a 6 year term, and each will have one vote in Congress. Originally each states legislature chose the 2 Senators for their state, but the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, gave the citizens the right to elect them.

The first Congress (1789-91), according to the provision in Clause 2, was divided as equally as possible into three groups. The term for the Senators in the first group expired after 2 years, and the term for the Senators in the second group expired after 4. This was done to create a system that held elections for Senators every 2 years. Every Senator since then is elected for the full six year term, but every 2 years 1/3 of the Senate is up for re-election.

Unlike the process for the House of Representatives, if there is a vacancy in the Senate, the Governor of the state can choose a replacement to fill in until a special election can be held as long as the states legislature has given that power to the Governor.

In order to run for the office of Senator the candidate must be 30 years old, a US citizen for 9 years, and a resident of the state they are seeking to represent. The Vice President of the US is president of the Senate and can only vote in order to break a tie. The Senate is allowed to choose their officers and a fill in for the Vice President in case the VP is absent.

Further, the Senate is given the sole power to try impeachments. During the impeachment process they are under oath. When the President is tried the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over the proceedings. The President cannot be impeached unless 2/3 of the members present agree. Impeachments can only remove the person on trial from office and they are never allowed to hold any office thereafter. However, that person may still be subject to criminal or civil charges.

Next: The Organization of Congress

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Part 1: What Does the Constitution Say

After many months of heated debate and several rewrites, our founding fathers finally produced a document concrete enough to provide for a strong central government without adversely impacting the freedom of the people. At the same time, this document was flexible enough to allow for change as times and needs changed.

As we go through the text of our Constitution, we will see how this was done.

The US Constitution begins with the Preamble. This serves as an introduction and states the purpose for the articles to follow while also conferring power to them. The preamble reads:

“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.”

As we go through this series you will see the thought and care that went into choosing every word. I hope you’re ready. It will take a while to get through the whole document, but once you do you will be glad you did. You will have a greater appreciation for your freedom, a fuller understanding of how our government works, and a firm grasp on the issues that we face today as well as what you can do about them.

The first three articles created the three branches of government and delineated powers granted and forbidden to each. This was to create a system called checks and balance. With the system, no single branch can act independently of the others. Each branch is accountable to the others in some way (which we’ll examine as we go) and all three are accountable to “We the People”.

Next: The Legislative Branch

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My Bright Idea! (Oh and the Articles of Confederation)

Hardly a day goes by without me hearing of someone and their rights. They are either fighting for their rights or claiming their right to something. But how many of us really know what our rights are? I know I had a general idea- I have the right to be safe in my home, I have the right to be paid for my work, etc. – but I suffered from a lack of understanding regarding my rights and how they came to exist in this country.

Then it came to me! I should read the U.S. Constitution! What a great idea! Sheer genius! In making this decision I realized that it was quite an undertaking, but I knew that to fully grasp my rights and the rights of others it was something I had to do.

In order to properly understand our government, our rights, and our privileges I thought it best to go back in time to discover what our foundation was. But where to start! I didn’t think I needed to go back as far as the first settlers so after doing some research I realized I only needed to go back to the place where our government began to take its present shape. Thankfully I didn’t have to go very far.

After declaring independence from Britain, the citizens of this country found themselves with no central government. Each state created plans for their individual government but most people were troubled at the prospect of forming a central government. From their experience with Europe they knew a centralized government usually did not favor the people.

Despite this apprehension, they did agree that all the states shared some common interests and they needed a system to address them. In the process, no one wanted to lose the freedoms they had been fighting so desperately for. The Articles of Confederation were a baby step in that direction.

At that time there were 13 states. Each state had supreme lawmaking authority. That meant that the people who governed North Carolina could make any law they wanted without any other states interference. On closer examination you realize that the states were then not accountable to anyone. Without accountable there would certainly have been abuse of power.

In 1777 the Continental Congress, a convention made up of delegates from each state, created the Articles of Confederation. This was essentially a treaty forming a “friendship” among the states. Under these articles each state was still sovereign. The articles addressed things like a common military defense, freedom of movement among the states, how the delegates would be chosen and how many votes each state had, foreign relations and declarations of war, as well as how their required activities would be funded.

Although they began the process of approving this treaty in 1777, it wasn’t until 1781 that the last state formally accepted the agreement. Then 8 years later it was replaced by the United States Constitution.

Tomorrow: The United States Constitution