American Constitutional Law: Amending Constitution
Abstract
A political organization has taken the position that one of the ways to "fix congress" is to impose term limits on members of the Senate and House of Representatives. The initial research reflects that it will be necessary to amend the U.S. Constitution to accomplish this.
The paper sets a plan detailing how the organization will accomplish its goal.American Constitutional Law: Amending ConstitutionIn order to impose term limits on members of the Senate and House of Representatives, it is necessary to define, whether it can be done by passing an appropriate law, or by amending the Constitution of the U.S.
Why Amending The U.S. Constitution Would Be Necessary Versus Passing A Law
The Procedure of passing laws in the United States starts from drafting a Bill by either the House of Representatives (hereinafter - the House) or Senate, both forming the Congress – the main legislative body in the US. Every Bill shall pass through the House by simple majority (218 of 435) and the Senate (51 of 100) and then be approved or vetoed by the President of the United States. If not signed, the Bill with objections returns to the House, in which it shall have originated, for reconsideration (Brannen & Baker, 2005).Nevertheless the main reason that passing a law on the issue is inappropriate is that all the laws cannot contradict the Constitution. In the case Marbury v. Madison 5 U.S. 137 (1803) it was stated by the U.S. Supreme Court that Congress does not have the power to pass laws that override the Constitution (Justia Law, n.d.). Therefore in that case the Court formed the precedent of judicial reviews in the US under article III of the Constitution. In the decision on the case U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton 514 U.S. 779 (1995) the Court ruled that States cannot impose additional restrictions, such as term limits, on its representatives in the federal government beyond those provided by the Constitution (Justia Law, n.d.).
The decision is based on the sections 2 and 3 of article 1 of the Constitution, which clearly states that the House shall be composed of Members chosen every second year, and the Senate of the U.S. shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen for the period of six years (Senate.gov, n.d.). This means that any laws passed by any legislation body on the State or Federal Level will be considered as contradictory to the Constitution of the United States of America.Therefore, the initial research reflects that it will be necessary to amend the U.S. Constitution to impose term limits on members of the Senate and House of Representatives, as it is important to understand that no law can be passed for this matter.
The Necessary Elements to be Considered Before Drafting Language to Amend The U.S. ConstitutionIn view of the cannons of construction and interpretation, there are three necessary elements that must be considered before drafting language to amend the U.S. Constitution, namely: the action being taken, …
