Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson, was signed by 56 delegates on July 4, 1776
The "Great Compromise" the split of Congress into two chambers so that each state would have fair representation - 16th July 1787
US Constitution - written in Philidelphia on 17th September 1787, ratified in 1789
The 13 colonies first used the Articles of Confederation which did not secure much power in a central government and by 1786 they were unable to quell the uprisings, so they needed a Constitution
Marbury v Madison - 1803 - The Supreme Court ruled that the Judicial Branch could declare a law unconstitutional and thus veto it
McCulloch v Maryland - 1819 - The Supreme Court ruled that states cannot tax federal institutions (e.g. banks)
Plessy v Ferguson - 1896 - The Supreme Court ruled that segregation is constitutional as long as facilities are equal
The Bill of Rights - 1791 - established the first 10 amendments, all of which were required by 5 of the other states if they were to sign onto the constitution, only 17 more amendments have been made since
The Reconstruction Amendments - 13th, ending slavery (1865); 14th, African American citizenship (1868); 15th, African American vote (1870); all created in response to the civil war
22nd amendment - only 2 terms for each president
25th amendment - if the president is seen to be unfit by 2/3 of congress they can be removed
26th amendment - 18-21 year olds can vote
19th amendment - gave women the right to vote
only 2% of all suggested amendments between 1791 and 2019 were adopted
in 2013 the Supreme Court overturned the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, allowing gay marriage
1974 - US v Nixon - Supreme Court used judicial review to examine the constitutionality of the president's actions
Biden used bipartisanship to get through his infrastructure bill in 2021
George W Bush used bipartisanship to increase funding for schools in 2001
when the country was young there was need for unification of the 13 states because they were still under threat from britain
E Pluribus Unum - Out of many, one
10th amendment - states have the right to make their own laws, essentially the federalism amendment, does not clearly set out where the balance of power sits between states and federal government
The Confederate State Alliance lasted from 1861 to 1865.
"The Constitution is what the judges say it is" - Chief Justice Hughes, 1907
"It was the 13th, the first amendment in the nation's history to expand the power of the federal government rather than restraining it, that initiated a redefinition of federalism" - Eric Forner, political writer, The Second Founding
Nixon's "New Federalism" was a policy that gave more power to the states by giving out block grants for states to use at their own discretion
"When the legislative, executive and judicial branches are united in the same person there can be no liberty" - Montesquieu, Spirit of the Laws
There are 37 trifecta states in the USA, 23 are Republican and 14 are democratic
The British tried to regain the USA in 1812
74% of Americans did not like the idea of a female president in 1960
74% of Americans did not like Congress in 2019. At the same time only 83% disliked Afganistan
Women make up only 27% of Congress but 51% of the population
Hispanic Americans make up only 9% of Congress but 18% of the population
99% of Congress people have been to university as opposed to 35% of the population
The average age of Congress people is 59 years but the average age in the country is 35
Atheists make up only 0.2% of Congress but 23% of the population
In 1992, the year of the woman, the number of women elected doubled
A person in Wyoming has 68X the influence in the senate than a person in California
Christians make up 89% of Congress but 71% of the population
Amtrak Joe - name for Joe Biden because he travelled by train to campaign in 2020
Dennis Chavez was the first Hispanic American to be elected into the senate in 1974. The next two were in 2005