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[edit] Semi-ProtectI suggest that wikipedia semi-protect this article to prevent vandalism —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ccrowe1990 (talk • contribs) 02:58, 7 February 2008 (UTC) [edit] Full TextHow about giving the full text, and then an analysis. Or in the fashion on the American Declaration of Independence page, split the actual text and analysis side-by-side.
Hey guys whats up??? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.240.84.119 (talk) 21:38, 22 August 2008 (UTC) [edit] More than 13 statesThere were more than 13 states when the Constitution was ratified. The info box with the votes should include all the states' votes.
[edit] Correct word?Is that supposed to be "engrossed" or "embossed" in the second page? Rekrdskratcher 02:20, 22 February 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Long overdueI have created two talk page archives. I made sure each discussion had been closed for awhile. Veracious Rey 16:09, 20 December 2006 (UTC) I am missing in the article's TOC a link to the amendments. The are mentioned (with a link) at the top of the section on the contents but that is far from obvious for a first-time visitor to the page. Guido van Rossum (Dec 30, 2006) [edit] GalleryI added a gallery of pages 2-5, including the signatures. Page 1 is featured at the bottom. Veracious Rey 17:26, 20 December 2006 (UTC)
[edit] The Constitution
[edit] Where's the text?Is it just me, or is it unnecessarily difficult to find the actual text of the Constitution on this wiki? How about a "read the original text in its entirety" link on the main page? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.17.180.126 (talk) 21:51, 9 February 2007 (UTC). Agreed. Please bring back the Wikisource box. Mdiamante 05:41, 25 February 2007 (UTC)
[edit] San Marino? notAs the standard scholarship explains: San Marino does not have an official Constitution as such.' Page 211 of Fragmentation and the International Relations of Micro-states: Self-determination and Statehood (1996) by Jorri C. Duursma[3] in books.google.com Rjensen 15:23, 11 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Use of AbbreviationWhy use "v." for versus instead of "vs." ? --Sarge909 00:37, 16 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Cyrus??Is this true? Section 1.4 on historical influences talks about Cyrus and that the people who set up the constitution had to read two books and choose which system of government they wanted. This sounds extremely farfetched to me. --KarlFrei 13:24, 16 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Potential AmendmentsIn the article, several potential amendments are discussed as having entered "mainstream political debate." One that I know has at least been tossed around is an amendment to allow foreign-born citizens to serve as President. We're all smart people here, so I think we can guess who would benefit most from such an amendment. Stil, what are our criteria for "mainstream political debate?" -- A. 21:35, 20 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Influence of the BibleThe Bible was a major influence on the Constitution. That's indisputable. The source for this is Barton's book: Original Intent: The Courts, the Constitution, and Religion. http://www.amazon.com/Original-Intent-Courts-Constitution-Religion/dp/0925279579 I'm not sure how to put that in there. 208.255.6.195 18:23, 25 March 2007 (UTC)
-G —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.48.58.224 (talk) 03:18, 4 September 2008 (UTC) [edit] Massachusetts constitutionMassachusetts constitution seems to be older and still continuously in place. We probably should charge opening to something like "the oldest constitution of a sovereign state". Any thoughts? 151.204.253.82 04:35, 7 April 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Iroquois ConstitutionI think it would be useful to add some details about the influence of the Iroquois Constitution on the US Constitution. This appears to be completely and notably absent from the "Historical Influences" section. http://usinfo.state.gov/scv/Archive/2005/May/17-246412.html http://www.loc.gov/law/guide/usconst.html It has been debunked before but keeps resurfacing. --Purpleslog 16:36, 6 July 2007 (UTC) From http://www.usconstitution.net/constfaq_a6.html: Q103. "I have heard that the U.S. Constitution is based on a document called the 'Iroquois Confederation'. Is this true, and if so what parts of the Constitution came from this document?" A. The U.S. Constitution is not based on that of the Iroquois Confederation - but some of the delegates to the Convention knew of the Confederation (notably Benjamin Franklin) and the two documents share many concepts, as do many constitutions. The Five Nations was a federal-style system, and it shared that with the U.S. You can find it online, though it is slightly difficult reading - the Indians spoke often in concept and metaphor. --Purpleslog 16:47, 6 July 2007 (UTC) Actually, the U.S. Government has even acknowledged the Great Law of Peace's contributions. ""Whereas the contutition of the original Thirteen Colonies into one republic was explicitly modeled upon th Iroquois Confederacy as were many of the democratic principles which were incorporated into the Constitution itself; and,"" This can be found here: [8] Also, along with this document, there is a book with almost 300 pages of testimony that preceded this declaration. This should be considered evidence enough to include it in the main article.--Roskerah (talk) 04:51, 5 December 2007 (UTC)
Which source? The link I posted, or the hearings that I mentioned? The link I posted is good. I will try to upload the 300 pager, but to me, the resolution should suffice.--Roskerah (talk) 05:01, 6 December 2007 (UTC) I was referring to the link you posted, which still is not accessible: Not Found The requested URL /archive/nl/9307/0057.html was not found on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request. Apache/1.3.37 Server at www.nativenet.uthscsa.edu Port 80 Tedickey (talk) 00:06, 7 December 2007 (UTC) Very Strange that it does not work now, but, I do have the whole thing in word. Here it is: ""HEARING BEFORE THE SELECT COMMlTTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE, ONE HUNDREDTH CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION ON S. Con. Res. 76 DECEMBER 2, 1987 To acknowledge the contribution of the Iroquois Confederacy of Nation the development of the United States Constitution and to reaffirm the continuing government-to-government relationship between tribes and the United States established in the Constitution. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNlTED STATES September 16, 1987 Mr Inouye (for himself, Mr, Evans, Mr DeConcini, Mr. Burdick, Mr McCain, Mr. Adams, Mr Boren, Mr Conrad, Mr Cranston, Mr D'Amato, Mr Dole, Mr Ford, Mr Fowler, Mr Levin, Mr Pell, Mr Pryor, Mr Reid, Mr Riegle, and Mr Stafford) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Select Committee on Indian Affairs. CONCURRENT RESOLUTION To acknowledge the contribution of the Iroquois Confederacy of Nations to the development of the United States Constitution and to reaffirm the continuing government-to-government relationship between Indian tribes and the United States established in the Constitution. Whereas the original framers of the Constitution, including most notably, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, are known to have, greatly admired the concepts, principles and government practices of the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy and, Whereas the constitution of the original Thirteen Colonies into one republic was explicitly modeled upon the Iroquois Confederacy as were many of the democratic principles which were incorporated into the Constitution itself; and, Whereas since the formation of the United States, the Congress has recognized the sovereign status of Indian tribes, and has, through the exercise of powers reserved to the Federal Government in the Commerce Clause of the Constitution (art. I s8, oI.9), dealt with Indian Tribes on a government to-government basis and has, through the treaty clause (art. 62, Cl.a) entered into three hundred and Seventy treaties with Indian tribal nations; and, Whereas from the first treaty entered into with an Indian nation, the treaty with the Delaware Indian of September 17, 1778, and thereafter in every Indian treaty until the cessation of treaty making in 1871, the Congress has assumed a trust responsibility and obligation to Indian tribes and their members to "exercise the utmost good faith in dealings with the Indians" as provided for in the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, (l Stat: 50); and, Whereas Congress has consistently reaffirmed these fundamental polices over the past two hundred years through legislation specifically designed to honor this special relationship; and, Whereas, the judicial system of the United States has consistently recognized and reaffirmed this special relationship: Now. Therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives Concurring), That (1) The Congress, on the occasion of the two hundredreth anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution, acknowledges the historical debt which this Republic of the United States of America owes to the Iroquois Confederacy and other Indian Nations for their demonstration of enlightened, democratic principals of Government and their example of a free association independent Indian Nations; (2) The Congress also hereby reaffirms the constitutionship recognized government-to-government relationship with Indian tribes, which has historically been the cornerstone of this Nation's Indian policy; (3) The Congress specifically acknowledges and reaffirms the responsibility and obligation of the United States Governments to Indian tribes, including Alaskan Natives, for their preservation, protection and enhancement, including the provision of health, education, social and economic assistance programs as necessary to assist tribes to perform their governmental responsibility to provide for the social and economic wellbeing of their members and to preserve tribal cultural identity and heritage; and (4) The Congress also acknowledges the need to exercise the utmost good faith in upholding its treaties with the various tribes, as the tribes understood them to be, and the duty of a great Nation to uphold its legal and moral obligation for the benefit of all its citizens so that they and their posterity may also continue to enjoy the rights they have enshrined in the United States Constitution for time immemorial."" It can be found here: [9] —Preceding unsigned comment added by Roskerah (talk • contribs) 03:49, 7 December 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Statutes of 1600The opening paragraph states that the status of the Statutes of 1600 as a true constitution is disputed by scholars. Does anyone have a source for this? I couldn't find a mention of it in the Statues article, I'm tagging this claim with{{Fact}} until a source can be cited. Naufana : talk 03:11, 7 July 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Fix or replace Articles of Confederation?A change was made to the article today (in the top infobox) indicating that the purpose of the Constitution was to replace the Articles, not to fix them. My understanding (correct me here if I'm wrong) is that the convention was called with the idea of fixing them, but instead a whole new Constitution was written (controversially). Should we give the purpose as a "fix" or a "replacement," or is there a succinct way to give the whole story within the infobox? Vbdrummer0 17:34, 10 July 2007 (UTC)
[edit] suggestions for a rather major rewriteHi. Though I've been a big fan and user of wikipedia for a while, this is my first contribution. I think whoever wrote this entry did a lot of good work but, since it is the most important document in US history, it needs some clean-up. The first issue to resolve is the scope - what do we mean by "constitution?" I think we have to limit it (for clarity and space) as much as possible to the document itself, including some propositions beyond controversy (i.e. Congress has enumerated powers, Federal Courts are of limited jurisdiction, etc.), some historical context, and links to the various other pages its treatment will require. So, here are my (bear with me) numerous suggestions. 1) THE LEAD: I would lose the part about San Marino's statutes - They are not a "constitution." Nor is the Magna Carta, for example, although it influenced both the US constitution and later English Law. So, If you're going to assert that it is the oldest living national constitution (which I believe it is), I would start with that. Next, I would moved down, edit, and provide a link for the details of the convention and later ratification. Also, it's not that it "has a central place in American law and political culture" but, in fact, is the basis (or source) of the entire legal and political system. If you want to further stress its' importance, I would replace "the supreme law..." (not entirely instructive) and add a fact. I would also lose the part about the "engrossed copy..." since, among others, that fact is repeated in the adjacent box. (Speaking of which, I don't think you can say "original copy.") Thus: "Ratified on September 17, 1789 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The Constitution of the United States of America is the world's oldest living national constitution. It establishes a democratic republic, and provides the basis for the American legal and political system. All military and government officers must take an oath to protect and preserve the constitution before entering public service. Many of its concepts derived from European and Ancient sources. Several of them, however, (Federalism, Elasticity and Judicial Review) constitute original contributions to democratic theory." 2) HISTORY: I would change this as being vague. In a sense, the "history" of the constitution includes all of history to the present (since it has ancient influence and is a living, changing document, the latter of which needs to be emphasized and clarified.) I agree it's important to go into the framers, the convention, the ratification, etc. but I don't think it should be so detailed on the main page. Perhaps instead of "history" it could be "ORIGINS," then a few words about them with links to more in-depth articles. To that end, I don't think, as asserted, Montesquieu, was the "most important" European influence. That needs attribution. Nor do I agree with the characterization of Polybius' writings or the conclusion that "he" was a significant source. Many ancient sources influenced the framers, notably Plutarch's account of Lycurgus (see, eg, The Federalist Nos. 6 (Hamilton) 18 (Madison and Hamilton) and 32 (Madison). These issues are important but need to be sourced and, for purposes of the main article, should simply be mentioned. 3) SLAVERY: As it stands, this is mentioned under the "work of the Philadelphia Convention." Instead, it needs to be in the discussion of the text. Also, although the current summary is basically correct, I think it doesn't reflect a subtlety of the text. Wiki says "3/5 of the number of slaves would be counted..." The text says: ..."the whole Number of free Persons...and...three fifths of all other Persons." The latter more strongly implies the nature of slaves as property (i.e. divisible). I don't think the main page should go into slavery more than that, but there should be a link to slavery in American history as well as the role it played in the constitutional debates. (Maybe, also, a link at the bottom to PLESSY V. FERGUSON, since segregation was a "constitutional" decision). 4) "THE BIBLE". I saw a comment that was concerned there was no mention of the the "undisputed" fact that the bible was a source. I don't really understand that. Although it's certainly true that many of the "framers" were (to varying degrees) people of Christian belief, what is notable about the constitution is that God isn't in it. In fact, the only mention of "religion" at all is to prohibit the government from establishing it or infringing the people's right to practice it. 5) THE PREAMBLE: I feel this needs to be edited in part, moved in part, and cut in part. I think a brief discussion of the sovereignty of the people is warranted but much of it is either extraneous (i.e. the part of it not conferring powers), wrong (i.e. the notion that the Federal Government is (doctrinally) no longer one of "enumerated powers,") misleading (i.e. the assertion that "we the people" is "one of the most quoted and referenced section" of the constitution), retrospective or misplaced (all the stuff about state sovereignty and separation of power.) Thus, this section should include the text and one paragraph of context. 6) THE ARTICLES: Pedantic, but I don't think the powers need to be bookended by their respective articles. The heading should be a summary of the article alone (i.e. Legislative power). a) LEGISLATIVE - many errors here. There is no debate (in the law) as to whether the powers listed are "enumerated." The sentencing following this assertion, to me, is incomprehensible. Further, McCullough v. Maryland held that, when exercising an enumerated power (in this case creating a national bank through the "necessary and proper" clause), the "supremacy clause" means that Congress' power, in that case, trumps state power. So, perhaps, McCullough could be cited for the proposition that enumerated powers include the "necessary and proper" clause, or there could be a link for a page on that extremely important case. Finally, the sentence about "free debate" doesn't seem to really provide any understanding of the "speech and debate clause" and I don't understand the assertion about the limit on "self-serving" behavior. Also, should be expanded to mention, among others, prohibition against titles of nobility, habeas corpus, ex post facto, etc. b) EXECUTIVE - this needs to be clarified and expanded. It is misleading to equate the Executive Branch with "the Presidency." Also, the discussion of succession and the 25th A, I think, is one of the least important and interesting elements for the purposes of the main article. c) JUDICIAL - again, clarify and expand. Main point is jurisdiction and the fact that the only Federal Court required by the constitution is the Supreme Court. d) STATES POWERS - this one is pretty good but needs some editing and controlling idea (I.e. "federalism.") e) PROCESS OF AMENDMENT: - again, pretty good, but needs some editing and controlling idea of "elasticity." (This is part of the original genius, after all, of this document). Stylistic note, there seem to be uses of obsolete words like "lest" and "amongst." Perhaps that's what happens when you read too much Madison but let's save them for the quotes. I'm skipping, now, to: f) Provision for amendment: I think this should be moved to e), and get rid of the "some people feel demographic changes..." etc. If you want to get into this legitimate debate, should be a separate article and requires attribution. Also, should move the MARBURY discussion to a concluding paragraph, perhaps, entitled "Constitutional Law." More to be said about the amendments but have to go, now. Thanks, wiki-munnity - looking forward to your thoughts.Sobeast 17:06, 1 August 2007 (UTC)Sobeast Wow Sobeast! I agree with everything that you have written! TTM(Talk to me) PubliusDaughter 05:30, 8 August 2007 (UTC) happy to talk about it. Looked for your user page but did not find one. Lack of response and apparent increase in number of unflagged, questionable articles indicates to me wikipedia struggling a little under its own weight gain.--Sobeast 02:28, 12 August 2007 (UTC)
The Constitution does say "In the Year of our Lord," which of course means Jesus. So there is a reference to God in it. Perhaps I'm nit-picking, but meh. Travis T. Cleveland (talk) 00:13, 9 February 2008 (UTC) [edit] Current Status of the ConstitutionThere needs to be some reference in the article to the actual current status of the Constitution, and particularly the Bill of Rights - not just their official or symbolic status. The lead defines it as the supreme law in the United States, but there is overwhelming scholarship and documentary evidence disputing that that is factually the case under present circumstances. Without any mention of the secret courts, kidnappings, torture, partial consolidation of branches, and unlimited search and seizure powers currently practiced by elements of the US government, the page is incomplete and anachronistic. Wercloud 02:56, 15 August 2007 (UTC) I think you are confusing "de jure" and "de facto." The US CONSTITUTION is the supreme law of the United States. About that, there is no controversy. The question is, is it being actually followed by the powers it attempts to restrict? There have been many constitutional crises over the course of American History and the document's epitaph has been written many times. Whether the current crisis (and I believe the evidence shows we are indeed in the middle of one) turns out to be the last, we don't know yet. So, until we do, I think the main article must restrict itself to the text as much as possible with a link, perhaps, to "Constitutional Crises" that can discuss MARBURY, MCCULLOUGH, THE CIVIL WAR, THE NEW DEAL, US V. NIXON and, yes, the present. --Sobeast 23:37, 15 August 2007 (UTC) [edit] San Marino/MedinaI have removed the following text from the lead:
One, this is in the Lead, which is a summary, not for detailed arguments. Two, there are no direct sources, just a disputed link to antoher internal article on San Marino. Three, it what fantasyland is the Constitution of Medina considered democratic, especially as it was written and imposed by one person? I find NO mention of it being that in the article on the document, much less a source to back up the claim. I have no problem with the section being elsewhere in the article, provided it has proper, direct sources to back up its claims. - BillCJ 17:17, 13 September 2007 (UTC) Concerning the source, here's the link : http://www.loc.gov/law/guide/sanmarino.html But i didn't understand why my information was removed. As i said, in a other place, people have to know that the Constitution of the USA is not the most ancient one. (The sentence before explains that some people argue about this fact) For a lot of people is clear, San Marino has the most ancient constitution of the world) Sources can be found even on the official website of the Gouvernment of San Marino. Best Regards. MMMD —Preceding unsigned comment added by 158.169.131.14 (talk) 14:28, 19 September 2007 (UTC)
San Marino's status as a true constitution is allegedly "disputed", so maybe it's a false constitution. Or maybe those San Marinese made up the whole story? After all, who has been to San Marino anyway. It is so small, it cannot be a real country, like America is so real. Send in the marines -- they'll sort this "dispute". Show me this dispute? By what silliness does one country's constitution be counted as 'real' or 'true' but not another? How are y'all rationalising this sort of thinking? Is this an absurd national pride issue? --129.78.64.101 (talk) 12:52, 4 March 2008 (UTC) [edit] Is it really a "law"?Quick jurisprudential question from an English lawyer and complete novice in all matters relating to the US Constitution. The article refers to the Constitution as "the supreme law" of the US. My question is this: is it correct to call it a law? Yes, the legality of all laws in the US flows from the Constitution but is it itself a law? Thanks. --ukexpat 17:17, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
Thus, by definition, the US Constitution is the "supreme law" and therefore can be called law. --CapitalR 17:23, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
Speaking from a strictly amateur viewpoint, I am not sure that one in normal parlance refers to the Constitution as "the law". In more modern grasp, a law is a rule based upon the guarantees and enumerated powers of the Constitution. For example I don't think one would refer to "free speech" as a law .... though there are many laws that are in place to either protect or limit it. As a matter of fact, if you read many of hte more modern ammendments, the last part of them usually states something to the effect of "Congress is authorized to pass any law necesary to properly enforce this" .... or something or other. Just an amateur opinion. LonelyBeacon 17:32, 17 September 2007 (UTC) [edit] great seal?umm...what's with the pic of the girls and thongs? Could someone change it please? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.146.83.68 (talk) 05:55, 25 September 2007 (UTC) [edit] Influence of the Fuero de LeónThe Spanish Parliament of the Kingdom of León (1188) was the first sample of modern parliamentarism in Western Europe's History. After coming to the power, the King Alfonso IX, before the situation of crisis of Kingdom of León, attacked by their two neighbors, Castile and Portugal, he decided to summon the "Royal Curia". This one was a medieval organisation composed by aristocrats and bishops. But, because of the gravity of the situation and ready to assemble the maximum political support, the king Alfonso IX took a revolutionary decision: he called the representatives of the urban middle class of the most important cities and assembled them with the nobility and the Church in "Cortes" or Parliament. For the first time since the Ancient Greece, not only the nobility and the Church were taking part in the elaboration of the laws of a country. León's Parliament approached topics that today are the base of the juridical classification of any democratic state: the limits of the executive power, the defense of the citizen opposite to the power public and deprived of the epoch and especially, the cleanliness of the judicial processes. In this respect it is necessary to to emphasize the right to the private property, the resource to being able to come to the Justice opposite to the King, the obligation of the King to consult to the Parliament to enter war, the "habeas corpus" and the inviolability of the domicile. From León's Parliament, Europe's numerous kingdoms assembled parliaments with participation of the cities: England, Catalonia, Aragón, Valencia. When the Founding Fathers of the United States of America elaborated the American constitution, one of the juridical models who studied they were the laws arisen from the parliament of the Kingdom of León.John Adams known the text of the Fuero of León in his travel to Spain, as it's related in his biography. —Preceding unsigned comment added by José-Vicente Álvarez (talk • contribs) 18:11, 27 September 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Typo in constitutionI am not an expert in this. But shouldn't there be any mention about the "Typo in constitution"? Google it and you will see what I am talking about.Farmanesh 01:00, 2 December 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Gouverneur MorrisThis article has zero mention of Gouverneur Morris, who was an author of a large part of this document. You'd think it would be relevant to mention him atleast once. 71.169.31.94 (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 18:10, 8 December 2007 (UTC) GARRETT DAYTON —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.228.46.185 (talk) 01:49, 17 December 2007 (UTC)
[edit] The first constitutionRe: "The U.S. Constitution is argued by many to be the oldest written national constitution."...the Articles of Confederation are generally regarded as the "first" constitution of the U.S. Doesn't that negate the above? Kfasimpaur 23:22, 19 December 2007 (UTC)
[edit] 1 Article Per Clause?I have noted that there is an ongoing trend for creating a separate article for enormous numbers of clauses in the Constitution. For example, we have articles on Wikipedia for the Fugitive Slave Clause, the Origination Clause, and the Postal Clause. I question this practice and think we need to be more deliberate about how we are managing this. I see at least two issues with this: 1. These clauses don't have standardized names, unless they are so notable that there is no doubt there should be a separate article. Examples of clauses for which there is no real dispute might be the Commerce, Due Process, Equal Protection, Free Exercise, Establishment, and Supremacy Clauses. For the rest, everybody just makes up a name for the clause that fits their needs; for example, what we're calling the "Postal Clause" could just as easily (and probably has been) called the "Post Office Clause," and the "Taxing & Spending Clause" has what seems like about a half-dozen names. They can't even always agree on spelling when they know the word they want; depending on who you ask, you can hear about the Guaranty or Guarantee Clause. 2. Nobody in American history has turned to an encyclopedia and said "I'd like to look up and learn more about the Postal Clause." Doing this risks making our treatment of the bits of the Constitution fragmented and disorganized. It also risks giving non-lawyers the impression that it is typical to break the document down to that level of specificity. I'm looking to develop some consensus on how to handle this. MrArticleOne (talk) 02:17, 9 February 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Capitalization of "President"The text of the constitution appears to be consistently using "President" (leading caps) when referring to the position, e.g., quoting from NARA:
however User:Dkempton74 appears to be singling out that term to lowercase it. Reviewing the bottom of the edit, I do see in the second amendment that "People" is not capitalized on NARA, but my attention was on the "President". The effect of the edit is to leave other branches of government with leading caps but not for the president. The initial edit was from Special:Contributions/216.161.135.117, whose comment does not provide a reliable source giving a guideline for this distinction, nor do the followup reverts from User:Dkempton74. Tedickey (talk) 23:05, 26 April 2008 (UTC) [edit] Constitution
[edit] Hemp PaperPlease put information that first samples of Constitution were made from hemp (cannabis) paper. Wormantson (talk) 07:12, 13 May 2008 (UTC)
[edit] May 14May 14 is stated as the date that delegates began to meet, but I've found no citation of this as the date in this article, can anyone verify this? 199.91.34.33 (talk) 15:05, 14 May 2008 (UTC)
[edit] "The Diagram"What in the world is that "block" diagram for? Where did it come from? It's about the dumbest thing I've ever seen. I suppose it's purpose is to illustrate the functional aspects of the three branches? Not good.--THE FOUNDERS INTENT TALK 23:57, 19 May 2008 (UTC)
Add your names here ;) [edit] Support keeping the diagram[edit] Oppose keeping the
[edit] Spellingthe preamble reads: "...provide for the common defence..." or is this an archaism i am unfamiliar with, or should it be spelled defense? 68.122.118.225 (talk) 21:21, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
interesting 24.23.212.36 (talk) 22:05, 7 June 2008 (UTC) [edit] Related DocumentsI'm adding the Magna Carta.Cameron Nedland (talk) 02:52, 8 July 2008 (UTC) The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom should be added. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.168.221.111 (talk) 15:01, 20 August 2008 (UTC) [edit] Child labor amendment text.The section on the child labor amendment says A child labor amendment proposed by the 68th Congress on June 2, 1924, which stipulates: "The Congress shall have power to limit, regulate, and prohibit the labor of persons under eighteen years of age." This amendment is now moot, since subsequent federal child labor laws have uniformly been upheld as a valid exercise of Congress' powers under the commerce clause. This amendment contains no expiration date for ratification. It may yet be ratified. The bolded part (my bolding) makes no sense to me. If the point of this amendment is to forbid the government from having power over child labor, how does existing child labor laws affect that? A constitutional amendment supersedes a court decision and/or a federal law.Bonewah (talk) 21:16, 12 July 2008 (UTC)
[edit] FA ReviewHi, I'm going to post this article for Featured article review due to what I see as issues in the Featured article criteria, primary 1B, and 2C. While there are numerous references, I'm dismayed by the lack of inline citation and specific references, and the general level of glossing over important subjects. Also, as the Featured article candidate review took place over four years ago, a time when FA applications are not as stringent as they are now, it seems like a good time to review it again. Cheers! Zidel333 (talk) 15:48, 17 September 2008 (UTC) [edit] Oldest and ShortestThe most recent edit in this vein points to an advocacy site. Can someone point to some source which is neutral, and (at a minimum) gives sizes/dates for the likely candidates? Tedickey (talk) 12:53, 22 September 2008 (UTC) [edit] Influences on other nations' constitutionsI tried searching this article and then searching for other articles, but I couldn't find anything appropriate. Is there a "see also" link that can be added which explains the influence the US Constitution has had on other nations' bodies of law over the past 200+ years? « plushpuffin (talk//contribs) 20:41, 3 October 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Education in United StatesAs I understand it, although I am British, children are compulsorally taught about the constitution at school. Is it worth including a section on this in the intro? WikiWebbie (talk) 22:53, 4 October 2008 (UTC) [edit] edit request{{editprotect}} Please change the link Fine in the Bill of Rights (1-10) section to not lead to a disambiguation page. It should link directly to Fine (penalty). Thanks, 75.161.222.150 (talk) 16:21, 10 October 2008 (UTC)
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