A constitution is defined as the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation, state, or those of such nature are governed. The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law over our nation as a set of rules in which our country is run. In addition to following the rules of the national constitution Texas also has its own constitution as wall as every other state’s; Texas’s is among the longest. Similarly to the United States Constitution, the structure and function of the government is described throughout, although in this case it is specifically addressed to the state of Texas. Originally this document was initially adopted in 1876, currently the document consist of a preamble seventeen articles and …show more content…
There is an extreme importance on protecting the liberties of American citizens and their various individualized lives. By delegating power and authority, this prevents a concentration in power; the U.S and Texas Constitutions are similar for the separation of powers, along with checks and balances as well as both containing the bill of rights. Each has their own concept of federalism inscribed in each document, the largest importance and difference is the U.S Constitutions supremacy clause and the necessary and improper clause for a lot of issues can be classified into these categories. The creation of even the ideology of a constitution is amazing, “it came mainly from the predecessors of classical economic thought, what little the Framers’ generation derived from Adam Smith was not the central principles about markets and government that we today associate with classical thought” (Hovenkamp 9). The ideas of a constitution and its principles can be looked at in reading through and understanding what the governments purpose if so we can understand how there functions will show and relate to us. The Texas constitution does the best at avoiding any political power against the interest of the people defined in the bill of right the individual rights are always addressed well and each individual is equal and heard. The restriction of powers for the government
First, the strengths need to be acknowledged; Texas has always been about their own freedom and their own individuality and the constitution reflects that. The constitution establishes rights such as “freedom of speech, press, and assembly” (Collier et al 62). This is great because it provides a sense of security for the
In the Texas Constitution it talks about information that just deals with Texas alone, that the U.S. Constitution doesn't have. For one, it talks about Education. Explaining how it shall be the duty of the Legislature of the state to establish and make suitable provisions for the support and maintenance of an efficient system of public free schools. The Texas Constitution also includes information about corporations, municipal and private. It has the Spanish and Mexican Land titles under it which no other state has in their constitution. And finally the Texas Constitution establishes rules concerning railroads.
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.
Texas and California are two states in the US that are comparable in terms of their population, resources, size, economy and constitution. The Texas Constitution is the foundation of the statehood of Texas within which the government operates in the same way that U.S. constitution governs the affairs of the whole country with its allocated power. The Texas constitution has a huge influence on the daily lives of Texans Possibly even more than the U.S. Constitution. Although all states have its own constitution, Texas and California have different ways in which they gained their constitution. Like most state in the U.S. The state of California gained its constitution after the civil war, the constitution was ratified in 1879 and It is similar to the Texas constitution in many ways. Both constitutions are founded on the unanimous vote of its people and are grounded by the rule of
The United States Constitution and Texas Constitution are similar, but not indistinguishable. The constitution was made to prevent tyranny in the states from the idea of the Federalists who wanted to build a strong form of government that gave people rights without giving their representatives too much power. Additionally, both constitutions form a bicameral form of government, a House of Representatives, and a Senate. The Federalists wanted a strong central government to help the economic and social tensions; however, the Anti-Federalist feared the elite. Based on that, the purpose for a government was to protect liberty, which meant the reason for writing the constitution was to enable the government with certain limitations; that way the citizens would have rights by electing representatives. The most significant differences are the importance of why the constitutions were formed, the functions of the unitary or plural representation executives and the limited ability of the legislative power.
The Texas Constitution has evolved in many ways throughout history. Before the current constitution there were five predecessors. There were many factors that effected each of the five constitutions. After very long governance by Spain and Mexico and a small war with Mexico, the Texans finally won their independence. The first constitution had become official in September of 1836. This first constitution was called the Republic Of Texas Constitution. After struggling for about nine years to become apart of the Union, Texas’s second constitution was created. The Second constitution was called the Statehood Constitution and was thought to be one of the best constitutions of time. The Jacksonian Democracy greatly influenced the Statehood Constitution. The idea of the Jacksonian Democracy was to increase the people’s participation in the government. This Constitution lasted about 16 years until Texas joined the Confederate Sates of America in 1861. This third constitution was called the Civil War Constitution. The main goal was to modify the
The U.S. constitution and the Texas constitution have similarities and differences. Both constitutions have a Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights is a summary of the rights given to all people. These constitutions also talk about suffrage and taxes. Just like how both of these constitutions have similarities, they also have differences. The Texas constitution is longer than the U.S. constitution and discusses the rights first. It also deals with state and local issues not brought up in the U.S. constitution. Both constitutions have a Bill of Rights, but the Texas constitution discusses citizens’ rights at the beginning of article one. The Texas Bill of Rights has the same protections for citizens like the U.S. Bill of Rights does, but the Texas Bill of Rights extends beyond federal protections. The executive branch is the branch that the president is in charge of. The definition of the executive branch is “The branch of federal and state government that is broadly
From numerous points of view, the U.S. Constitution and Texas Constitutions are very much alike. They both epitomize the standards of delegate equitable government, in which power shows from the general population. Both contain a bill of rights that shields common freedoms from government violation. Both accommodate a dual council with a House of Representatives and a Senate. Also, both look for an arrangement of balanced governance and partition of forces between administrative, official, and legal branches of government. Not to mention they both divide government control amongst upper and lower levels of government. In the U.S. Constitution, the states are subordinate to the federal government, and in the Texas Constitution the regions are subordinate to the state government. Be that as it may, even with these general components, the two constitutions are very different as well. These distinctions result from the way
The U.S. Constitution and Texas Constitution have numerous differences. As mentioned in our textbook, key differences between the two constitutions include how frequently they are amended, the difficulty of the court system, flexibility with allowing the government to act, and the strength of office. The U.S constitution is rarely amended, with a relatively simple court system. It is also more flexible with allowing the government to act, while maintaining presidency as a strong office. While, the Texas constitution is amended frequently, with a complex and confusing court system and weak governorship office.
Bigger is not always better, in the case of the Texas Constitution having the second longest state Constitution and the fourth most amended Constitution in the United States, makes it a difficult and complicated document. The Texas Constitution has been rewritten a total of six times since becoming independent from Mexico. The most recent being the Constitution of 1876, which is excessively detailed and exact due to the framers fear of a strong state government. The framers of the constitution placed strategically in the body of the Constitution rules restricting the government’s power. Making it inconvenient and difficult to reform the current Texas Constitution.
Both the Texas and the U.S. Constitution have a Bill of Rights, checks and balances, and have divided government via lower and higher powers. The U.S. Constitution was created to give the government power, in contrast the Texas constitution made sure that the main government does not have too much power over the Texas citizens. The founding fathers of the Texas constitution were wary of the government wielding too much power so they wanted to be careful to protect themselves.
The Texas Constitution and the U.S. Constitution share many similarities, but also are very different. Both documents share basic principles of a democratic government. The Texas and U.S. Constitution both contain civil liberty protections and protections against government transgression. Both constitutions share a federal government system in which the smaller areas or states have less power than the national government. Bicameral houses, checks and balances, and separation of powers are prevalent in both documents. Even though these two constitutions have many similarities, they also share many differences. The differences stem from the origin of their creation, the U.S. Constitution was created to replace the Articles of Confederation because
Considerably, Texas Constitution was no walk in the park; on the contrary, it was a struggle from the beginning. 1836 was the first Coahuila y Tejas Constitution; Texas won independence from Mexico. Texas Constitution addressed personal property, land ownership, water rights, and community property. Majority of the delegates who participated in creating the constitution of 1836 was from the southern United States, meaning Texas was a Republican state. With this in mind, Texas constitution was similar, if not somewhat direct copy of the National Constitution, Texas created a limited government, bicameralism, separation of powers, and popular sovereignty system. Furthermore, presidents and Legislatures were elected; the president had the power to appoint the cabinet; it also called for a secretary of war and navy; they were later canceled when Texas joined the US. Texas went on to create the three branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial, this was a step to create separation of powers while the actual how the structure worked created checks and
Every state in the Union has created and implemented its own constitution. These constitutions provide the legal framework by which government operates. They also identify the specific role of government, and endow it with certain powers and authority. A constitution also creates a system for how power is to be delegated and distributed through the creation of branches and individual offices. Along with the authority it provides, constitutions create limits on this power of government, and establish checks and balances to further limit the scope of each individual branch and officeholder. Most importantly, constitutions provide unalienable rights to citizens that cannot be refused, or abridged by government. Each state’s constitution is different, however, all of them serve these functions, in order to, create a lasting government that acts in the best interests of its citizenry.
In the 1700s when the United States had detached itself from British rule it was then seen as a plutocracy. The U.S established as a democracy; a government of the people and by the people. However, this establishment was in favor of the rich, educated, and powerful and anyone who was categorized or known as elites and it has remained in favor of these people ever since. Yes we can say we have witnessed variations and seen a semi-democratic rise in the past two centuries, but we have remained a plutocracy hidden behind the word that people use to cover its true identity, democracy. Those like the framers, the public opinion role, interest groups, and money all portray our hidden plutocracy.