The Founding; A Dramatic Account of the Writing of the Constitution

286, [2] pages. Sources. Selected Bibliography. Index. No DJ present. This publication coincides with the Bicentennial of the convening of the Constitutional Convention. Reveals the explosive issues and the political battles which gave birth to the most important document in United States history. Fred Barbash was with The Washington Post for 30 plus years in a multitude of roles including but not limited to Supreme Court reporter, National editor, London bureau chief and founding editor of The Post's Morning Mix. He left The Post in May 2020. Fred Barbash was deputy national editor of the Washington Post and covered the Supreme Court for the Post from 1980 to 1985. He covered state, local and national government for the Post, after beginning his newspaper career at the Baltimore Sun. The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the national frame and constraints of government. The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, whereby the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III). Article IV, Article V, and Article VI embody concepts of federalism, describing the rights and responsibilities of state governments, the states in relationship to the federal government, and the shared process of constitutional amendment. Article VII establishes the procedure subsequently used by the 13 states to ratify it. The Constitution of the United States is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787. Delegates to the convention were chosen by the state legislatures of 12 of the 13 original states; Rhode Island refused to send delegates. The convention's initial mandate was limited to amending the Articles of Confederation, which had proven highly ineffective in meeting the young nation's needs. Almost immediately, however, delegates began considering measures to replace the Articles. Since the Constitution was ratified in 1789, it has been amended 27 times. The first ten amendments, known collectively as the Bill of Rights, offer specific protections of individual liberty and justice and place restrictions on the powers of government within the U.S. states. The majority of the 17 later amendments expand individual civil rights protections. Others address issues related to federal authority or modify government processes and procedures. Amendments to the United States Constitution, unlike ones made to many constitutions worldwide, are appended to the document. The first permanent constitution, it is interpreted, supplemented, and implemented by a large body of federal constitutional law and has influenced the constitutions of other nations.…