The Personal Website of Mark W. Dawson

Constitutional Terms and Words

Below are some of the more frequent terms and words in the Constitution or phrases that are utilized to encapsulate some of the concepts of the Constitution. This article defines these more frequent terms, words, and phrases, many of which I have utilized in my Articles and Chirps. Many of these terms, words, and phrases were familiar to the people of the time but are less familiar today. Also, over time, some of these terms, words, and phrases' meanings have changed, as is common in the English language. Therefore, it is important to understand the meaning of these terms, words, and phrases in the context of the times in which they were written. Where appropriate, I have hyperlinked to my Articles or Chirps that have discussed these terms, words, and phrases in more detail.

A Living, Breathing Document

Many say that our Constitution is a Living, Breathing Document, and by this, they mean that they can interpret it in the manner they want and change the meaning of words to suit their ends. The Constitution is a living document in that it lives through the process of amending, based upon the will of the people and/or the states, and this change should only be through the Constitutional Amendment process. It is a breathing document in that it has ambiguity built-in so that each generation can interpret it as their needs arise (but it should only do so within the bounds of what the founder's purpose was in creating that ambiguity). However, under no circumstances should the Constitution be interpreted in such a way as to infringe upon the liberties and freedoms of the American people. Fidelity to the Constitution, as it is intended, is the only way we can assure Peace and Justice in our society. . However, the Constitution is not just a document but a compact between the American people and their government as I have written in my Article, “A Compact and a Contract - Not A Living, Breathing Document”.

Adjournment

To suspend until a later stated time.

Adjudicate

To make a decision in a legal case or proceeding, as where a judge or arbitrator rules on some disputed issue or claim between the parties utilizing the Rule of Law.

Amendments

Article V of the Constitution allows and prescribes the manner in which the Constitution can be changed through Amendments. More information about these Amendments can be obtained by visiting the Constitution Center website that has brief articles about these Amendments. The following are succinct definitions of these Constitutional Amendments:

1st Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the First Amendment to the Constitution provides for the Liberty and Freedom of all Americans to practice their religion, to speak their thoughts, to have a free and unencumbered press, to peaceable assembly, and to petition the Government.

2nd Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Second Amendment to the Constitution allows for Americans to keep and bear firearms for the protection of themselves and their family, defense of their neighbors, and preservation of their rights against government encroachment. It ipso facto allows firearms for the purposes of hunting and fishing.

3rd Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Third Amendment to the Constitution forbids the government from housing the armed forces in private property, except in the time of war.

4th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution provides for the privacy of persons and property, unless warrants are issued based upon probable cause and explicit as to the nature of what is to be searched or seized.

5th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution prevents the Federal government from charging a person without an indictment, placing them in double jeopardy, requiring them to testify against themselves (self-incrimination), requires a legal due process for trial, and prohibits the government from the confiscation (takings) of property without just compensation.

6th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution requires a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury from the jurisdiction where the crime was committed, and for the Defendant to be fully informed of all the charges against them, to confront witnesses against themselves, to be able to compel witnesses in their favor and to have a lawyer to defend themselves.

7th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Seventh Amendment to the Constitution preserves the right of a trial by jury and that due process of law must be observed in all government actions.

8th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution forbids excessive bail or fines and does not allow for cruel or unusual punishments for persons convicted of a crime.

9th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Ninth Amendment to the Constitution was adopted due to the concern that if you enumerate the rights of Americans in the first eight Amendments that it may be construed that these were the only rights of Americans. This Amendment declared that Americans had other rights (Natural Rights) that were not defined in the Constitution but that were nevertheless rights that all Americans have. It would be left for the Courts to adjudicate and determine what these rights are and when government actions were challenged in lawsuits as a violation of the Natural Rights of a person.

10th Amendment

In the Bill of Rights, the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution was adopted due to the concern that the Federal government would encroach upon the rights of a State or the people and exercise powers that rightfully were within the jurisdiction of a State. This Amendment forbade any such encroachment or the exercise of powers by the Federal government that are not enumerated within the Constitution.

11th Amendment

The Eleventh Amendment of the Constitution prohibits the federal courts from hearing certain lawsuits against states. The Amendment has also been interpreted to mean that state courts do not have to hear certain suits against the State if those suits are based on federal law.

12th Amendment

The Twelfth Amendment of the Constitution cannot be understood outside of the Electoral College, which was set out in the Constitution as the mechanism by which Americans select their presidents. This Amendment clarifies and improves the original Electoral College language in the Constitution.

13th Amendment

The Thirteenth Amendment of the Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in America and all territories within its jurisdiction. Involuntary servitude is allowed as a punishment upon the conviction of a crime (Imprisonment is considered involuntary servitude).

14th Amendment

The Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution was a response to the former Confederate States trying to impose a de facto form of involuntary servitude upon their former slaves. Its five sections placed constraints upon State laws and government to assure the Liberties and Freedoms of all persons within a State. Section 1 defines citizenship of the United States and State citizenship, and that all States shall not make or enforce any law that abridges the privileges or immunities of citizens, that all citizens have Due Process of Law, and that all citizens have equal protection of the laws. Section 2 defines the voting rights (male and twenty-one years and older) of all citizens of the States and the elective offices for which they had the voting franchise. It also defined the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives based on citizenship. Section 3 prohibited persons that had engaged in an insurrection or rebellion against the United States from holding any elective office or office of trust within the United States. Section 4 guaranteed the debt of the United States for actions in suppressing insurrection or rebellion but denied the debt of those engaged in insurrection or rebellion, nor allowed for the compensation for losses incurred as a result of their engaging in insurrection or rebellion. Section 5 gave Congress the authority and power to legislate and enforce this Amendment.

15th Amendment

The Fifteenth Amendment of the Constitution protected the right to vote and assured that it is not denied or abridged based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude (slavery or involuntary servitude).

16th Amendment

The Sixteenth Amendment of the Constitution allowed for individual income taxes, which were previously forbidden by the Apportionment clause of the Constitution.

17th Amendment

The Seventeenth Amendment of the Constitution provided for the direct election of Senators by the voters of a State, which previously was the duty and responsibility of the State legislators.

18th Amendment

The Eighteenth Amendment of the Constitution banned the manufacture, sale, transportation, importation, or exportation of intoxicating liquors in the United States.

19th Amendment

The Nineteenth Amendment of the Constitution extended and protected the right to vote for women, which came about as a result of the Woman’s Suffrage movement.

20th Amendment

The Twentieth Amendment of the Constitution defined the terms of the President and the Vice President of the United States and various other administrative procedures for the functioning of Congress and the office of the Presidency and Vice-Presidency.

21st Amendment

The Twenty-First Amendment of the Constitution repealed the 18th Amendment, which banned the manufacture, sale, transportation, importation, or exportation of intoxicating liquors in the United States.

22nd Amendment

The Twenty-Second Amendment of the Constitution placed term limits on the President of the United States.

23rd Amendment

The Twenty-Third Amendment of the Constitution allowed for an elected representative from the District of Columbia (D.C.) in the House of Representatives.

24th Amendment

The Twenty-Fourth Amendment of the Constitution prohibited all poll or other taxes in the exercise of a person’s voting franchise.

25th Amendment

The Twenty-Fifth Amendment of the Constitution defined the succession of the President of the United States in the event of their death or their incapacitation to perform their duties and responsibilities.

26th Amendment

The Twenty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution extended the voting franchise to persons who are eighteen years of age or older.

27th Amendment

The Twenty-Seventh Amendment of the Constitution prohibited varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives until after an election for the House of Representatives.

Appellate

A higher court that has the power to review decisions of lower courts as to their propriety and appropriateness and to assure that Due Process of Law was followed. This does not give them the right to determine the merits of the case but only to assure that the rule of law was properly adhered to.

Apportionment

To distribute proportionately. In the context of the Constitution, apportionment means that each state gets a number appropriate to its population. For example, Representatives are apportioned among the states, with the most populous getting the greater share. Direct taxes (of which there are none today except for the Income Tax, which was allowed by the Sixteenth Amendment of the Constitution) were to be charged to the states in this manner as well.

The need for apportionment of taxes, and the reason for it, is difficult for us to imagine today, but there were good reasons for it. The following is an explanation of the need for the Direct Tax Apportionment clause. It was written by Supreme Court Justice Paterson in Hylton v US (3 US 171 [1796]):

“The constitution declares that a capitation tax is a direct tax; and both in theory and practice, a tax on land is deemed to be a direct tax... The provision was made in favor of the southern states; they possessed a large number of slaves; they had extensive tracts of territory, thinly settled, and not very productive. A majority of the states had but few slaves, and several of them a limited territory, well settled, and in a high state of cultivation. The southern states, if no provision had been introduced in the constitution, would have been wholly at the mercy of the other states. Congress in such case, might tax slaves, at discretion or arbitrarily, and land in every part of the Union, after the same rate or measure: so much a head, in the first instance, and so much an acre, in the second. To guard them against imposition, in these particulars, was the reason of introducing the clause in the constitution.”

Bill of Attainder Clause

Article 1 Section 9 of the Constitution precludes Congress from passing a law that singles out an individual for punishment without trial, as such a law would infringe on the civil rights of the individual. In the context of the Constitution, a Bill of Attainder includes any bill that has a negative effect on a single person or group. Originally, a Bill of Attainder sentenced an individual to death, though this detail is no longer required to have an enactment be ruled a Bill of Attainder.

Bill of Credit

A bill of credit is some sort of paper medium by which value is exchanged between the government and individuals. Money is a bill of credit, but a bill of credit need not be money as Treasury Bonds are a Bill of Credit. Non-monetary Bills of Credit cannot be substituted from money for legal tender, as they must be redeemed for money that can then be utilized as legal tender. Therefore, an interest-bearing certificate that was issued by Missouri and was usable in the payment of taxes was thus ruled by the Supreme Court to be an unconstitutional bill of credit.

Bill of Rights, The

The first ten Amendments to the Constitution are referred to as the Bill of Rights, as they were passed to assure the Liberties and Freedoms that all Americans possessed under the Constitution. These rights are considered ‘Essential’ rights, as I have written in my Article, “The Rights That Structure Liberty and Freedom”.

Branches of Government

The Constitution ordained that the Federal government be composed of three branches: The Legislative Branch, The Executive Branch, and The Judicial Branch. Each branch has its own duties, responsibilities, and powers that do not overlap but complement each other. The Legislative Branch creates the laws, The Executive Branch enforces the laws, and The Judicial Branch adjudicates the laws. This is referred to as a Separation of Powers between the branches. Each Branch of Government is equal in importance to each other, and each branch must jealously guard their duties, responsibilities, and powers against encroachments by the other branches to guard the Liberties and Freedoms of all Americans.

More information on the branches of government and their functions can be reviewed on the “U.S. Government Overview” section of my “Politics” webpage Observation.

Politics

Commerce Clause

Article 1 Section 9 of the Constitution gave Congress the power to regulate the trade between nations, States, and among Indian tribes, but not to regulate trade within a State.

Concurrence

To have the same opinion; to agree and concurrence (usually by a majority, but sometimes by three-fifths or two-thirds concurrence).

Corruption of Blood

Corruption of Blood was part of the ancient English penalty for treason. It was usually part of a Bill of Attainder, which normally sentenced the accused to death. The corruption of blood would forbid the accused's family from inheriting his wealth and property. Such bills and punishments were often inflicted upon Tories by colonial governments immediately following independence. Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution prohibits such Corruption of Blood as punishment. This harkens back to the biblical prohibition that ‘The sins of the father shall not be vested upon the son’.

Deprive

To deprive is to: 1. To take something away from; divest. 2. To keep from the possession of something. In the context of the Constitution, it is meant to restrict government actions that are often phrased as ‘shall not’ in the Constitution.

Domestic Tranquility

One of the concerns of the Framers was that the government prior to that under the Constitution was unable, by force or persuasion, to quell rebellion or quarrels amongst the states. The government watched in horror as Shay's Rebellion transpired just before the Convention, and some states had very nearly gone to war with each other over territory (such as between Pennsylvania and Connecticut over Wilkes-Barre). One of the main goals of the Convention, then, was to ensure the federal government had powers to squash rebellion and to smooth tensions between states.

Double Jeopardy

Double jeopardy is what would happen if someone were to be charged with a crime and be found innocent and then be charged with the same crime a second time. For example, if you are charged with stealing a car, and a jury finds you innocent, you cannot be charged with stealing the car again. Double jeopardy in America is forbidden by the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.

Due Process Clauses

The 5th and 14th Amendments of the Constitution require that the Federal and State governments must observe Equal Protection procedures when they attempt to deny a person of life, liberty, or property. This requires that the Judicial system establish a Just Process, Just Charging, Just Trials, Just Sentencing, and Just Imprisonment and Paroles, as outlined in my Article, "Justice and The Rule of Law in America".

Electoral College

The means by which Americans elect a President and Vice President of the United States.

Emolument

The product (as salary or fees) of employment.

Enumerate

To enumerate is to: 1: to determine the number of: count or 2: to list. In the context of the Constitution, this often meant to list the Limited and Enumerated powers of the Federal government and to conduct a Census or to count groups of citizens for legislative purposes.

Equal Protection Clause

The 14th Amendment of the Constitution requires that States cannot unreasonably discriminate against individuals. They must treat people "equally". Therefore, no person or organization may be treated favorably or prejudicially in law or a court of law.

Establishment Clause

The 1st Amendment of the Constitution forbids Congress from establishing an "official religion”. This, in effect, provides for a separation of government from the church but does not preclude a church from becoming involved in the political process nor infringe upon the rights of the members of a church to practice their religious beliefs in the conduct of their private and public lives (the Free Exercise Clause), as explained in the section “Religion and Politics” of my Article on Religiosity. Contrary to popular belief, the Constitution says nothing about the separation of church and state, as this phrase comes from some of Thomas Jefferson's personal correspondence. It should also be remembered that Thomas Jefferson was not involved in drafting the Constitution, as he was the Ambassador to France at the time of the drafting of the Constitution.

Ex post facto

Anything that the government does that is formulated, enacted, or operating retroactively (from the Latin meaning of what is done afterward). In U.S. Constitutional Law, the definition of what is ex post facto is more limited. The first definition of what exactly constitutes an ex post facto law is found in Calder v Bull (3 US 386 [1798]), in the opinion of Justice Chase:

“1st. Every law that makes an action done before the passing of the law, and which was innocent when done, criminal; and punishes such action. 2nd. Every law that aggravates a crime, or makes it greater than it was, when committed. 3rd. Every law that changes the punishment, and inflicts a greater punishment, than the law annexed to the crime, when committed. 4th. Every law that alters the legal rules of evidence, and receives less, or different, testimony, than the law required at the time of the commission of the offense, in order to convict the offender.”

Excise

A tax on the manufacture, sale, or consumption of goods within a country.

Franchise

In law, a statutory right or privilege that is granted to a person or group by a government (especially the rights of citizenship and the right to vote).

Free Exercise Clause

In the 1st Amendment of the Constitution, Congress cannot pass laws that ban nor constrict the freedom of worship. Other than religious activities that infringe on the civil rights of others or criminal actions by religious persons or groups, the Free Exercise Clause allows them to practice their religion as they see fit. This has provoked much discussion and debate as to what infringes upon civil rights or criminal actions that can be constricted. Such constrictions are often adjudicated by the courts to determine if the constrictions are constitutional or not. However, broad latitudes are often given to Churches, while individual religious belief actions are often more constricted.

Full Faith and Credit Clause

In Article 4 Section 1 of the Constitution, the Full Faith and Credit Clause refers to the recognition, acceptance, and enforcement of the orders and judgments of another jurisdiction in legal proceedings. Specifically, it is the recognition of one state’s legal decisions by another state. This section helps to ensure that judicial decisions made in one jurisdiction will be recognized and honored in every other jurisdiction. One purpose for this is that it prevents someone from moving to another jurisdiction to avoid a court judgment or to file a new lawsuit in an attempt to obtain a more favorable outcome on a matter that has already been decided. It also prevents an alleged or convicted criminal from fleeing to another state to avoid trial or imprisonment. It also means that one State must recognize the legal documents of another state, such as a birth and death certificate, issued by any other state. It also says that Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such Acts, Records, and Proceedings shall be provided and the effect from the circumstances or sources of the provisioning.

General Welfare Clause

In Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, the Preamble to this article speaks of the general Welfare of the United States. This Article and Section lists the Limited and Enumerated Powers of Congress and thereby the Federal Government. Consequently, this general welfare clause, as it is in the Preamble to this section, is only applicable to the enumerated powers therein listed in this section. And as it does not speak of persons, but only of the United States, this power is only to provide for all of the people as opposed to providing for selected persons or groups of persons.

In the Preamble to the Constitution, it speaks of one of the purposes of the Constitution is to “promote the general welfare”. But as this term is in the Preamble, it has no legal jurisprudence and grants no powers to the Federal government, as the powers of the Federal government are contained in the Articles and Sections of the Constitution and its Amendments.

Health, happiness, or prosperity and well-being are ‘Welfare’ in today's context, and it generally means organized efforts on the part of public or private organizations to benefit the poor, or simply public assistance. Thus, today’s meaning of welfare is not the meaning of the word as it was used in the Constitution. It is also an unfortunate fact that many Americans today conflate the terms ‘The Common Good’ and ‘The Greater Good’, and many Americans believe these terms are in the Constitution. However, the Constitution only speaks of the “general Welfare” in the Preamble and in Article I, Section. 8 of the Constitution. As I have Chirp on, “02/02/22 The Greater Good versus The Common Good”, these terms have separate meanings that would allow or disallow various government powers and actions that may or may not be constitutional. Therefore, we must distinguish between the terms and utilize them properly when we apply them to the Constitution.

Impartial

Not partial or biased; unprejudiced.

Impeachment

In the U.S. and Great Britain, a proceeding by a legislature for the removal from office of a public official charged with misconduct in office was referred to as an impeachment. Impeachment comprises both the act of formulating the accusation and the resulting trial of the charges; it is frequently but erroneously taken to mean only the removal from office of an accused public official. An impeachment trial may result in either an acquittal or a verdict of guilty. In the latter case, the impeached official is removed from office; and if the charges warrant such action, the official is also remanded to the proper authorities for trial before a court.

Impost

A tax or duty.

Infringe

To 1: violate, transgress, or 2: encroach, trespass on someone or something. In the context of the Constitution, phrases like "shall not be infringed," "shall make no law," and "shall not be violated" sound absolute, but the Supreme Court has ruled that some laws can, in fact, encroach on these phrases. For example, though there is freedom of speech, you cannot slander or libel someone; even though you can own a firearm, you cannot own functioning artillery or bombs.

Ipso facto

Latin, for by the fact itself, is something that is true by its very nature. Many Constitutional terms and phrases contain ipso facto within themselves, which means that a specific outcome is a direct consequence or a resultant effect of the term or phrase. For instance, the right to freely travel between States is not explicitly stated in the Constitution but is ipso facto a right as a result of the Commerce Clause in the Constitution.

Jurisdiction

The power, right, or authority to interpret and apply the law: the limits or territory within which authority may be exercised.

Letter of Marque

A letter of marque was issued by a nation to a privateer or mercenary to act on behalf of that nation for the purpose of retaliating against another nation for some wrong, such as a border incursion or seizure. This is an archaic term, as such actions today are forbidden under international law.

Limited and Enumerated Powers

In Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution, certain powers are explicitly listed that delegate the extent to which the Federal government has authority. Other powers are sprinkled throughout the Constitution, and they are explicit and definitive. In the context of the Constitution, various sections of the Articles in the Constitution enumerate the powers of the government, and thereby, unenumerated powers of government are ipso facto suspect as to their constitutionality.

Necessary and Proper Clause ("elastic clause")

In Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution, this term gives Congress the authority to pass laws and regulations that fall within the jurisdiction of its Limited and Enumerated powers (see the previous definition), and all other powers of the Federal government, vested to the Federal government by the Constitution. Consequently, Congress may not pass laws and regulations that fall outside of its jurisdiction.

Nobility, Title of

Nobility is technically a station in society that is had simply by being born into the right family. The class of persons, well-characterized by the aristocracy of Great Britain, were considered to be higher in status and power because of the family name. A title of nobility indicated that status, where a person was a king, queen, prince, princess, count, countess, duke, duchess, baron, or baroness; these titles were granted by the monarch at some point in the family history and passed from parent to child. The Framers of the Constitution wished to ensure that no such system of heredity developed in the United States and specifically prohibited any state or the federal government from granting any title of nobility. This assured a meritocracy in America rather than an aristocracy.

Office of Trust

Any person who is appointed, rather than hired, that assumes duties and responsibilities under our Constitutional government. Usually, but not always, such persons need to be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate to take office. It is also usual that such a person takes an oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. As such, the President and Vice-President and all Executive Officers, all Congresspersons and Senators, and all Justices and Judges have an Office of Trust in the United States.

Ordain

To order by or as if by decree. The only ordination within the Constitution was for the purposes of the adoption of the Constitution, as all other execution of the powers of the Federal government must be accomplished through Constitutional processes.

Poll Tax

A poll tax has had two historical meanings. The older is that of a fee that had to be paid to satisfy taxpayer requirements in voting laws. In some places, only people who could demonstrate a financial tie to a community were permitted to vote in that community. For those who did not otherwise own property or pay taxes, this sort of poll tax was sufficient to allow voting. More recently, however, a poll tax is a tax that must be paid by anyone wishing to cast a vote. Poll taxes of this sort were generally low, perhaps a dollar or two, but high enough to make voting uneconomical for poor people. The 24th Amendment of the Constitution bars both of these types of poll tax.

Post road

A road over which mail is carried.

Posterity

For the purposes of 1. Future generations and 2. All of a person's descendants.

Preamble to the Constitution

"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

This introduction to the Constitution identifies the broad purposes of the Constitution, but it has no legal jurisprudence.

Privileges and Immunities Clause

In Article. IV. Section. 2. of the United States Constitution, also known as the Comity Clause, prevents a state from treating citizens of other states in a discriminatory manner. Additionally, a right of interstate travel may be ipso facto inferred from this clause as intrastate travel was not prohibited by any State.

Privileges or Immunities Clause

In the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, the States had a proactive duty to assure that the rights of the people, as defined by the Constitution, were applied in all their laws and governmental actions. Unfortunately, a Supreme Court decision (the Slaughter-House Cases), shortly after this Amendment was passed, effectively eviscerated this clause and shifted the balance to the "Due Process Clause" of the 14th Amendment. With this shift, it was possible for a State to possibly violate the privileges and immunities of its people if it were done by means of due process.

The Privileges and Immunities Clause and the Privileges or Immunities Clause have different meanings and distinguishments that impact their application. The connector and/or is the distinguishing indication between these two clauses, and the connector and/or implies different criteria for the application of these clauses. The Privileges and Immunities Clause deals with how States treat persons of other States while they are resident in their State, while The Privileges or Immunities Clause deals with how States must treat all persons resident within their State.

Pro tempore

For the time being and temporarily. It is also referred to as Pro Tem.

Quarter

To provide shelter to someone or something.

Quorum

The number of members required to be present for business to be legally conducted.

Redress

The ability to 1. To set right, remedy, or rectify 2. To make amends for, 3. Satisfaction for a wrong done; reparation or, 4. Correction. In terms of the Constitution, it refers to a person or a group's ability to organize and petition the government for changes in the law or for them to institute a lawsuit to redress what they believe is a violation of their rights.

Reprisal

An act taken by a nation, short of war, to gain redress for an action taken against that nation. For example, the seizing a ship in retaliation for a seized ship. This is an archaic term, as such actions today are forbidden under international law.

Republic

A Republic government is one in which 1: a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and is usually a president; also: a nation or other political unit having such a government 2: a government in which supreme power is held by the citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives governing according to law; also: a nation or other political unit having such a form of government. In the context of the Constitution, both definitions apply. However, how to interpret the operation and functioning of a Republic is open to interpretation based on your reading of the Constitution, as I have written in my Article, "A Republican Constitution or a Democratic Constitution".

Self-incrimination

In the Bill of Rights, the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution prevents the government from coercing a person to testify against themselves in all interactions with the government. It also presumes that no admission of guilt can be inferred by invoking this right.

Separation of Powers

The concept where each Branch of Government has separate and distinct powers that do not overlap with each other. One Branch of Government may not cede or delegate its powers to another branch. Where such an overlap occurs, or there is a transfer or delegation of powers between the branches, it would be unconstitutional. Without a Separation of Powers, the government would have less difficulty infringing upon the rights of Americans.

Speech and Debate Clause

In Article I, Section 6, Clause 1 of the Constitution, the Speech and Debate Clause protects lawmakers from persecution or retaliation from other branches of government because of what they say or how they vote for any Speech or Debate in either the House or the Senate. They are also protected from any arrest or detention in going to or from Congress, or participating in any activities within Congress.

Suffrage

The capability to 1. Vote or 2. The right or privilege of voting; a franchise.

Treason

The offense of attempting to overthrow the government of one's country or of assisting its enemies in war.

Writ of Habeas Corpus, The

In Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution, a Writ of Habeas Corpus was established that could be issued to bring a party before a court to prevent unlawful restraint [i.e., the Latin term for you should have the body]. Since the time of the Magna Carta, a Writ of Habeas Corpus was considered essential to preserve the Liberties and Freedoms of all persons. The basic premise behind habeas corpus is that you cannot be held against your will without just cause. To put it another way, you cannot be jailed if there are no charges against you. If you are being held, and you demand it, the courts must issue a writ of habeas corpus, which forces those holding you to answer as to why you are being held. If there is no good or compelling reason for your being held the court, then you must be set free. It is important to note that of all the civil liberties we take for granted today as a part of the Bill of Rights, the importance of the Writ of Habeas Corpus is illustrated by the fact that it was the sole liberty thought important enough to be included in the original text of the Constitution.