Constitutional Law

ARTICLES I, II, AND III OF THE CONSTITUTION

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW/INDIVIDUAL #1

AMERICAN INTERCONTINENTAL UNIVERSITY

BY MICHELLE SUMMERS

February 14, 2015

The articles I, II, and III of the United States Constitution were made to help form the government of the United States.  They helped form the way that the three divisions of the government run and how no one division has all the power.  These articles show how each division runs and how they control each other.  Since the colonies were pulling away from England, they were determined not to ever have to go through the oppressiveness that England had put them through.  The Article of the Confederation was written, the federalists had fought for one central government.  The Colonists did not want this so they the framers of the Constitution wrote the articles to show how each section of government was to be run and what parts they were in charge of.  This rectified the centralization form of government.  The first three articles of the Constitution were to divide power equally to all divisions of the government.  It is these articles that moved power of one central government to three divisions.

The founders established three branches of government-the executive, the legislative, and the judicial.  The first three articles are the ones that best describe the functions of these branches.  Article One established the legislative branch which is Congress.  It then divided Congress into a Senate and House of Representatives.  Even though this was only one branch of government, they still didn’t want one division to have all the power.  Article Two established the executive branch which is the President and Vice President.  Things are still kept in check by the other two branches.  Article Three directs that the federal judicial power be placed in a Supreme Court and other courts as directed by Congress.