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US Constitution Then and Now Essay

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The United States government was founded on a written set of principles known as the Constitution. There have only been 17 amendments, or changes, since ratification. While the United States has evolved with time the role and function of the government, and the way the government guarantees civil rights and liberties, has also evolved. These changes have resulted from changing or broadening of the interpretation of the constitution. Although the core of the constitution has not changed, it has expanded and its interpretation has changed to keep up with societal demands. Whereas the six functions of government, as articulated in the Preamble remain the same, the functions have extended to govern issues not a factor during the …show more content…

Since the Constitution was written the government has had a hand in the economy, however the proverbial hand has grown bigger and stronger. For instance, the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, came to be around 1913 and its rulings have had varying levels of impact to the economy. FTC rulings include: do not call legislation, funeral industry regulation, and antitrust rulings in the petroleum industry. While the structure of the federal government was and still is the executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch, those branches have each taken on many more responsibilities as needed to keep up with the progression of America. Put in place by the founding fathers, Federalism was intended to balance the power of the national and state governments so that the national government could not acquire too much power. The executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch still exist today as when first created, on a much larger scale. Extensive modification in the executive branch since the late eighteenth century has been the growth of the number of departments, agencies, and other offices. In 1789, President George Washington's administration had three main departments: State, Treasury, and War. He had other offices that included the office of the Attorney General, the lead lawyer of the federal government. Washington's administration had a few hundred people at the

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