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Constitution Structure and Powers

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Constitution Structure and Powers

Use the reference chart and the Constitution scenario below. For written responses, explain your reasoning and support it with details from the chart or scenario.

Part

Main purpose

Preamble

States the Constitution’s goals; begins “We the People.”

Articles I–III

Establish Congress, the presidency, and the federal courts.

Article IV

Addresses relationships among states and between states and the federal government.

Article V

Sets out how amendments can be proposed and ratified.

Article VI

Includes the Supremacy Clause: the Constitution and valid federal laws are supreme over conflicting state laws.

Article VII

Explained the process for ratifying the Constitution.

Amendments

Formal additions or changes; the first ten are the Bill of Rights.

Mission Brief: A New Cybersecurity Law

Congress passes a law requiring certain companies that operate essential services to report serious cyberattacks to a federal agency. Congress argues that the law helps protect interstate commerce and national security. The law does not name cybersecurity in the Constitution. A company challenges the law, arguing that Congress has exceeded its powers. The president directs the agency to carry out the law. A federal court considers whether the law is constitutional.

Read the Structure

1.Which choice correctly identifies the Constitution’s three broad components?

Preamble, Articles, and Amendments
Congress, president, and Supreme Court
Declaration, laws, and court decisions
Federal, state, and local governments

2.According to the chart, what is the main purpose of the Preamble, and what words begin it?

3.True or false: Articles I, II, and III establish the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, respectively.

TrueFalse

4.Match each constitutional article to its main subject.

Article I
Article II
Article III
Article V

The president and the executive branch
The amendment process
Congress and the legislative branch
The federal judiciary

Investigate the Powers

5.Congress’s power to coin money is listed in Article I, Section 8. Is this an enumerated or an implied power? Explain what makes it that type.

6.The Necessary and Proper Clause lets Congress make laws needed to carry out its listed powers. What is this clause commonly called?

7.In the cybersecurity scenario, Congress claims its law supports interstate commerce and national security. Identify one constitutional power or clause that could support the law, and explain why the power is not simply a lawmaking power over every subject.

8.In the scenario, the president directs the agency to carry out the law and a federal court reviews the challenge. Which branch carries out the law, and which branch interprets whether it is constitutional?

9.A state passes a law that directly conflicts with a valid federal law made under the Constitution. Which constitutional clause addresses this conflict, and what general rule does it establish?

10.Explain why the Constitution includes an amendment process in Article V. In your answer, describe one benefit of allowing change and one reason the process should require broad agreement.