A Constitution is a document that establishes the rules for a national government. It sets up a legislative, executive and judicial branch with checks and balances among them. It also defines and protects various individual freedoms. The Constitution of the United States is an amazing document that has survived and endured for more than 200 years, even though it was written in a world that is vastly different from the one we live in now.
The framers of the Constitution were guided by a desire to retain as much state sovereignty as possible and assign to the central government only those tasks that the states could not handle individually. The framers were influenced by the failure of the Articles of Confederation, which proved to be unworkable in light of Shays’ Rebellion in 1786-1787 in Massachusetts and other events.
Article I gives the legislative power of the federal government to a bicameral Congress consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. This was a compromise between the large states, which wanted a legislature based on population and the small states, who wanted equal representation.
This article also sets out the process by which a bill becomes law. It requires that a bill be passed by two-thirds of both the House and the Senate. It also provides for the president’s right to veto legislation, but it also provides that Congress can override presidential vetoes with two-thirds majorities of both houses.
In Article II the framers set out the details of the executive branch. It establishes the office of the presidency, provides for the electoral college and lays out the rules for selecting the president and his eligibility.