The U.S. Constitution has seven short articles and 27 amendments leaving out a significant amount of detail, giving lawmaking to be done by statute. Over 200 years has passed since it was created and very little of it has been altered. It is concise in its words but is also flexible in its interpretation. According to the book, Governing Texas, the U.S. Constitution was written “to overcome the liabilities of the Articles of Confederation and create government that could act effectively in the public welfare in a variety of policy areas” (Champagne et al. 63). The U.S. Constitution focuses on the public versus the Texas Constitution, which focuses on protecting the public from too much governmental power. The Texas Constitution strongly implies the fundamental idea of limited government and has extensive, intricate articles and amendments. In 2016, it contained 16 articles and 491 amendments. Governing Texas states that the Texas Constitution “was written to prevent the expansion of government authority and return of a system of political power that was perceived as acting against the interests of the people.” (Champagne et al. …show more content…
Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges addressed same-sex marriage. The court ruled 5-4 that marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed to same-sex couples by the equal protection clause and the due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. Proposition 2 is a violation of the equal protection clause and denies the liberty of same-sex couples the right to marry and it should be deleted from the Texas Constitution for that reason. Texas recognizes marriage licenses from other states for heterosexual couples and ought to for same-sex marriage licenses since the U.S. Constitution has ruled them to be constitutional. Churches and private organizations have the right to their religious beliefs. Government institutions must follow the law and should not deny a person their fundamental right of
The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document that set outs the structure and how the government functions. This present bill was put into place on February 15, 1876, and is the seventh bill in Texas history including the Mexican Constitution. The reason Texas Constitution is so long is because Texas is one of the largest states in America and its amendments range from the proposed amendments, which range from a measure allowing El Paso County to finance parks and recreational areas, to a measure facilitating partnerships between cities, counties or government agencies, will bring the total number of amendments considered by Texas voters to 656 since the state Constitution. Political Participation is any activity that shapes, affects,
The Texas Constitution, a piece of paper that was created in order to help the people and the state. The Texas Constitution provides many ideas and articles that would be used throughout the state’s government, legislature, and community. Some of which that would be great for many propositions, and some that are simply not reasonable according to time. Which is why the Texas Constitution has its pros and cons, whether it is within its lack of modernity, or its reasonable understanding of the Bill of Rights. To start off, the Texas Constitution can be seen to have strength within its ability to understand the Bill of Rights.
The Constitution of 1836 is notably the most important Texan Constitution. This Constitution was written to list out and define the functions of the government of the Republic of Texas. The reason why Texas declared its independence to Mexico was due to escalating tensions between Texas and Mexico. Texas declared its independence in 1836, and established itself as the Republic of Texas, and created a new constitution. The Texas Constitution of 1836 borrowed many ideas from the U.S. Constitution. The new charter was brief, and was composed of less than 6,500 words. Its features included, separation of powers into three branches—legislative, executive, and judicial—with a system of checks and balances. It created a bicameral legislature, with
Hodges, the Supreme Court adjudges the banning of same-sex marriage as violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court clearly establishes that marriage is a fundamental right because marriage is “decisions among the most intimate that an individual can make” (Obergefell v. Hodges, 12) and that individual autonomy should be protected under liberty. The Court also reasons that same-sex couples have the rights to enjoy intimate association that come with marriage. Because the Due Process Clause protects liberty of the citizens and rights to marriage is one of the fundamental liberties, prohibition of same-sex marriage violates the Due Process Clause. For Equal Protection Clause, the Court states that “same-sex couples are denied all the benefits afforded to opposite-sex couples and are barred from exercising a fundamental right” (Obergefell v. Hodges, 17). Because it is solely the sexual preference of the same-sex couples that deprives them of these benefits, the Court argues that the prohibition of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional under the Equal Protection
The Texas State Constitution is the document that describes the structure and function of the government. Texas has had seven constitutions, and the current one is the one that was ratified in 1876. The current constitution is among the largest of state constitutions in the United States, coming in fourth behind Alabama, California, and South Carolina. This constitution has many strengths and weaknesses; one weakness being that it limits the way government can be involved in certain problems that arise. This document has its positive attributes and its negative ones, but it is a necessity for the state to be able to function.
The Constitution establishes the structure of government in the United States, starting with the fundamental principle that the will of the people is the basis of the legitimacy of government. The Constitution’s first ten amendments, adopted in 1791 and known as the Bill of Rights including the checks and balances between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, as well as the reservation of significant authority and autonomy for the states joined together in a federal system—have been the basic building blocks of a government of the people, by the people, and for the people throughout U.S.
Texas has been through a lot of changes and constitutions. After constants debates of what the constitution should be, the current Texas constitution was established in 1876 and is the 7th constitution Texas has had. It created 3 branches of government: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. The current constitution has great qualities, but it also contains a lot of weaknesses that shouldn’t be ignored for the sake of pride.
The constitution mandates the legislators to hold biennial sessions; however, the governor also has the constitutional power to call for special or emergency sessions. Accordingly, the constitution empowers the legislators to amend the constitution, set policies, and also manage all state run institutional affairs. As mentioned in the first question, the constitution empowers the legislators to conduction processes such as legislative oversight and constituent functions, which are necessary whenever it comes to the implementation of government policies and programs. In a nutshell, the constitution of Texas simply provides a means for the legislators to follow the law especially when it comes to performing critical functions of the
The state is made up of different sectors all in existence and intertwined each other. The constitution serves many functions in the operations of the government and the life of the people governed. The document houses the rules of the land and the conditions governing the way the various sectors of the economy react and act in a mutual status. The constitution is the key to the viable existence of the people of Texas providing the fundamental rules and laws for the inception and operations of legal laws (Brown et al., 2014). Likewise, the constitution outlines the underlying breakdown of the way the individual powers and limits to the powers in place exist.
The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document representing the structure and function of the Texas government. The current Constitution took effect on February 15, 1876 and is the sixth Constitution in the history of Texas. When first constructed, the Texas Constitution was a poorly organized document that did not explain clearly the responsibility for government actions. Since its conception (through June 2011), there have been 646 proposed amendments and 476 adopted amendments added to this document. The Texas Constitution is also highly restrictive; it only grants enumerated powers to the State of Texas and does not allow for implied powers. The constant change to this Constitution has added to its poor organized condition that is extremely difficult to understand, even by the courts.
According to DOMA, “In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife” (sec 3). Until recently 2013, the US Supreme Court finally delivered the verdict that declared section 3 of the DOMA, which is the rejection of right to gay marriage is unconstitutional (Shapiro 208). In “Gay Marriage Is A Fundamental Right” by Nathan Goetting, “The right to many, and to marry the person of one's choice, is a fundamental right and a necessary aspect of human happiness. This has been an explicitly stated abiding principle since the Court used its power of judicial review to strike down as unconstitutional a legislature's definition of marriage in 1967.” Currently, 17 states in the United States have legalized the right to same sex marriage. The realization of DOMA is unconstitutional has further evidenced that gay marriage is one of the civil right that should not be taken away by the government, and it is an inevitable changes that open doors for equality and equity.
There has been seven Texas Constitutions since 1827 including our current Constitution, which was established on 1876. Our current constitution has been amended hundreds of times because of its tight restrictions. The Legislative department is the dominant branch of the Texas Constitution it is subject to check and balances in the tripartite system. The Executive department limits the government’s power, and the judicial powers is divided into smaller courts. These three branches of the Texas are examples of how restricted and limited our constitution is.
constitution forms a unitary executive that emphases executive power in the President. In the legislative branch, the Texas has very detailed and specific restrictions over the taxes and spending policies but, U.S. constitution restricts the tax policies which senators and Representatives may write into law. The Texas Judicial branch has six types of courts, out of six, some has coinciding jurisdiction and has two high courts out of which one is for civil hearing and one is for criminal. The U.S. constitution has only three courts and the Judicial branch system is not as complicated as Taxes Judicial branch.
National document has shown to be more flexible. The governor’s role is weak when compared to that of the presidency. The Texas court system is a far more complex system and is considered to be confusing, yet the national is fairly simple in relation. The U.S Constitution is rarely amended, but the Texas Constitution is amended frequently.
Constitutions are a necessary tool in keeping a Nation running in a smooth manner. One is also necessary in keeping the components, which are states, running in an ordered way. The constitution of Texas has a long historical trail from 1827 to 1876 and there are many events that occurred during this time period. The current Texas constitution has many strengths and weaknesses and there have been revisions made to this document. This document limits the way government can be involved in certain problems that arise in Texas. The Texas constitution is a document with positives and negatives but it is definitely a necessity.