CQ Press : Current Events In Context : Consitution Day - "Constitutional Powers of the President"

CQ Press : Current Events In Context : Consitution Day - "Constitutional Powers of the President"



Constitutional powers of the president. (2003). In M. Nelson (Ed.), The Presidency A to Z. Washington: CQ Press. Retrieved August 19, 2005, from CQ Electronic Library, CQ Encyclopedia of American Government.
Constitutional Powers of the President

The powers and duties of the president are outlined in Article II of the Constitution. Although the Constitution grants far fewer explicit powers to the president in Article II than it does to Congress in Article I, the ambiguity and vagueness of Article II have made it possible for presidents to expand their authority greatly beyond that specifically listed in the Constitution.

The two passages in the Constitution that have provided the basis for the expansion of presidential authority are Article II, Section 1, which grants “the executive Power” to the president, and Section 3, which makes the president responsible for the enforcement of federal laws: “he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.”

The uncertainty in the Constitution about the president's powers reflects the ambivalence of the framers of the Constitution over the office they were creating. On one hand, the framers saw the president as a nonhereditary, elected official responsible to the people, while, on the other, they were concerned about the effects of too much democracy and the possibility that the president would respond to popular demands in ways that hurt minority rights. Similarly, the Constitution gives the president sweeping powers over the administration of the federal government, while also subjecting it to congressional constraints.

The following brief descriptions cover the chief categories of presidential powers created by the Constitution.

Chief Executive

Although the founders placed a high priority on the president's executive duties, the Constitution provides very few instructions about the president's tasks as head of the executive branch. Specific presidential administrative powers have evolved as the presidency has matured.

The Constitution does not make direct provision for the vast administrative structure that the president must oversee. It does, however, authorize the president to demand written reports from the “principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject, relating to the Duties of their respective Offices.” This clause implies a division of labor within the executive branch and clearly establishes a hierarchy with the president as the chief administrative officer.

Appointment and Removal Power

One of the most important administrative powers of the president is to appoint people to fill high-level positions in the administration. Article II, Section 2, gives the president the power to select top officials, subject to Senate approval.

In the nineteenth century presidents and Congress had much greater appointment powers, sharing in the use of the patronage system to distribute all types of government jobs to their friends and political supporters. The enactment of civil service laws largely put an end to that practice, so that today about 90 percent of executive branch positions are covered by the merit systems, leaving only the most senior positions to be filled by presidential appointees. Nevertheless, presidents' powers to choose personnel for these positions enable them to help set the direction for the bureaucracy. The Constitution does not explicitly authorize the president to remove federal officeholders, even though that power with respect to top officials would seem to be a major aspect of the president's administrative control. The president's removal power was not confirmed by the Supreme Court until 1926, and the Court has since limited this power over certain federal agencies. (See The Presidency A to Z Appointment and Removal Power.)

Budgeting

The Constitution does not clearly establish a budgetary process or spell out the presidency's role in such a process. Because of this ambiguity, presidents have been able to bring much of the process under their control. Article I of the Constitution gives Congress power over taxes and spending, while Article II, Section 3, gives presidents the power to recommend fiscal policies.

The power to control the budget process is one of the most important administrative prerogatives of the presidency. Often, it is the president who decides where and how money should be spent. In the last part of the twentieth century, the presidency assumed an increasingly important role in determining federal spending.



The Constitution lays out the powers and duties of the president. Here the founders take turns signing their names. (Source: Library of Congress.)

Law Enforcement

The president's role in law enforcement rests on the constitutional requirement that the president “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.” The president serves as chief executive of what has become a vast law enforcement apparatus. Should assistance be needed, the president can invoke the authority of “commander in chief” and deploy the armed forces, including units of state militia, to enforce the law.

Presidential law enforcement powers have grown in rough proportion to enlargements in the responsibilities and power of the national government itself. Over the years Congress has added greatly to the law enforcement duties of the president. One dramatic example of this use of presidential power came in 1962, when John F. Kennedy ordered U.S. marshals and regular army troops to quell riots protesting a court order that required the University of Mississippi to integrate its student body by admitting a black student, James Meredith.

Clemency

The Constitution gives the president the “Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” The framers specifically included this power to enable the president to make well-timed offers of pardon to those in domestic rebellion against the government, when such a move might help restore order.

The clemency authority of the president is extensive. It applies to any federal process or offender, except officials who have been impeached. The best-known use of the clemency power in recent decades was Gerald R. Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon for offenses committed during the Watergate affair. In addition, Ford and Jimmy Carter issued amnesties, which are pardons covering a whole group of people, for draft evaders during the Vietnam War. Bill Clinton ran into controversy when he issued 140 pardons and 36 commutations on January 20, 2001, his last day in office.

Legislative

The Constitution is reticent about the president's role in legislating, yet the relationship between Congress and the executive is the most important aspect of the U.S. system of government. More than two hundred years of history have seen an immense and fundamental expansion in the array of resources the president can use to influence public policy.

Veto

Perhaps the chief legal weapon presidents have in their relationship with Congress is the veto power, which enables presidents to prevent all but the most popular pieces of legislation from becoming law against their wishes.

Under the Constitution, presidents may respond to a bill passed by Congress in one of three ways. They may sign it, veto the bill by returning it to Congress, or do nothing. If they do nothing, the bill becomes law after the passage of ten days, excluding Sundays. If Congress adjourns sooner than ten days after the bill passed, however, the bill dies, under the “pocket veto” provision. If the president vetoes a bill, Congress can still enact it into law by repassing the measure with two-thirds majorities in both chambers. Such overrides are relatively rare, however; from 1789 through 2002, only 106 of 2,551 presidential vetoes were overridden, about 4 percent.

Legislative Proposals

The Constitution also authorizes the president to “recommend to [Congress's] Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.” Unlike the veto, which is a limited and somewhat negative instrument for stopping legislation, the duty to recommend legislation has over time become the primary mechanism by which chief executives influence the nation's political agenda. Given the presidency's relatively weak array of formal devices for mandating government policy, no other facet of the office today is as critical to presidential success or failure. The ability to shape the agenda of government—to decide what is or is not a priority—is in essence the power to influence what government will or will not do.

Throughout most of the nineteenth century, the president had little power to define the national agenda. Congress dominated government, and presidents were not expected to formulate legislative proposals. The turning point in the transformation of the presidency into the chief initiator of major legislation came in 1933, when Franklin D. Roosevelt responded to the crisis of the Great Depression with a flood of legislative proposals, known as the “first hundred days,” that both dominated the congressional agenda and brought about a historic change in the role of the federal government in national life. Although few presidents since have been as successful as Roosevelt, his tenure has become the model for the office.

Executive Orders

The section of the Constitution that allots to the president “executive power” is one of the least specific but potentially most important in the document. When paired with the provision requiring presidents to take care that laws are faithfully executed, the executive power clause provides for a range of implied powers whose extent and potency have grown beyond anything the framers could have foreseen.

An offshoot of the implied powers doctrine is the The Presidency A to Z executive order. This critical instrument of active presidential power is nowhere defined in the Constitution but generally is construed as a presidential directive that becomes law without prior congressional approval. It is based either on existing statutes or on the president's other constitutional responsibilities. Executive orders usually pertain specifically to government agencies and officials, but their effects often reach to the average citizen. For example, in 1965 Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order 11246 which required companies that win federal government contracts to create programs for hiring more minorities, significantly affecting private sector employment practices. For the most part, presidents issue executive orders to establish executive branch agencies, to modify bureaucratic rules or actions, to change decision-making procedures, or to give substance and force to statutes.

Emergency Powers

In times of crisis presidents often lay claim to extraordinary powers to preserve the nation. Such emergency powers are neither granted expressly to the president nor delegated to Congress by the Constitution. Instead, they are judged to reside purely in the need for leaders to protect national sovereignty and domestic order. The mandate in Article II that the president “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution and uphold its provisions is considered to contain implicitly the notion of emergency powers.

The most significant use of presidential emergency powers was made by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. Faced with the secession of the southern states, Lincoln claimed numerous emergency war powers to save the Union, in the process becoming what some have called a “constitutional dictator.” The most controversial use of the emergency power in the twentieth century came in 1951 when Harry Truman, who had put the nation on emergency footing after North Korea invaded South Korea, ordered the seizure of strike-threatened steel mills to avoid potential shortages. Truman based his action on the president's inherent authority to meet national emergencies. However, the Supreme Court later ruled that the seizure was unconstitutional.

In November 2001, in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, George W. Bush authorized the use of military tribunals for trying foreigners accused of terrorist acts against the United States. Bush said that emergency powers under the commander-in-chief clause gave him the latitude to put these measures into place.

Foreign Affairs

The Constitution grants few foreign affairs powers to the president. Although it gives the president authority to make treaties and appoint ambassadors, it allots Congress a range of powers in the area that are at least equal to those of the president. Indeed, the constitutional division of foreign affairs power has been described as “an invitation to struggle.”

Nevertheless, presidents in recent decades have won interbranch struggles for primacy in foreign relations. Although Congress sometimes can block or modify presidential foreign policy initiatives, the president has dominated the formulation and initiation of foreign policy.

Treaty Powers

Article II, Section 2, Clause 2, gives the president power to make treaties with other countries, subject to ratification by a two-thirds majority of the Senate. This provision sets up a classic division of power between the legislative and executive branches. The primary responsibility for conducting treaty negotiations lies with the president, but the president cannot bring about a final agreement without the concurrence of most senators.

Nevertheless, the executive branch has established itself as the dominant branch in treaty making. As the sole organ of communication with foreign countries, as the commander in chief, and as the head of the foreign policy bureaucracy, presidents are equipped with the means needed to control most phases of the treaty-making process. Presidents can stop the process at any time, if they think the pact would be voted down on a full Senate vote, or if they dislike any changes the Senate has made. In 1980, for example, Jimmy Carter withdrew the SALT II treaty with the Soviet Union from Senate consideration after Soviet troops invaded Afghanistan.

Executive Agreements

An The Presidency A to Z executive agreement is a pact other than a treaty made by the president with a foreign government. Presidents have asserted that their constitutional powers give them authority to make these pacts without Senate approval. For presidents, the executive agreement is a particularly powerful foreign policy tool because it allows them to act without seeking congressional backing. The chief limitation on executive agreements is that, unlike treaties, they do not supersede any U.S. laws with which they might conflict.

The executive agreement power was used as early as 1803, when Thomas Jefferson arranged for the Louisiana Purchase without congressional approval. Throughout the nineteenth century presidents made little use of the power, concluding on average only one executive agreement per year. The use of such agreements grew dramatically in the twentieth century. Between 1945 and 1996 only 6 percent of all international agreements entered into by the United States were treaties. Executive agreements are now used to conduct business once reserved for treaties. For example, trade agreements, the annexation of territory, military commitments, and arms control pacts have all been concluded through executive agreements.

Recognition and Appointment Powers

Although the Constitution does not explicitly grant presidents the power to recognize foreign governments, it is generally accepted that they have this power as a result of their authority to send and receive ambassadors. Because the acts of sending an ambassador to a country and receiving its representative imply recognition of the legitimacy of the foreign government involved, presidents have successfully claimed exclusive authority to decide which foreign governments will be recognized by the United States. It follows, then, that they have the power to terminate relations with another nation as well.

The constitutional power to appoint ambassadors is also important because the success of a president's foreign policy depends somewhat on the personalities and abilities of the people who fill important diplomatic posts. Many ambassadorships are given to foreign service officials with years of experience, but presidents also take advantage of this power of appointment for various purposes. For many years, ambassadorships to small countries, preferably those with pleasant climates, have been used as rewards for major financial contributors or political allies of the president. Presidents also have used high-visibility appointments to make political statements, such as when Jimmy Carter appointed civil rights activist Andrew Young to be ambassador to the United Nations, or when Ronald Reagan picked conservative foreign policy analyst Jeane Kirkpatrick for the same post.

Commander in Chief

Reflecting the clear consensus at the Constitutional Convention that the nation's highest civilian officer should have charge of the military, the Constitution states that the president “shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States.” That is the only statement in the document about the president's war-making power. Because the precise authority of the office of commander in chief is left undefined, presidents have been able to argue that they possess any power needed to improve the nation's defenses in peacetime or to help it prevail over an enemy in wartime, without usurping the power of the other branches or violating the law.

The Constitution does not give the president complete domination over the war-making function. The power to declare war is reserved for Congress, as is the ability to raise and maintain an army. Nevertheless, presidential use of the power to order U.S. forces into combat without a congressional declaration of war increased greatly during the twentieth century. Particularly during the half-century of cold war conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union, presidents claimed the right to deploy military forces on their own initiative. Presidents also had the support of congressional resolutions authorizing them to use force, such as the Tonkin Gulf resolution which Lyndon Johnson claimed as his legal authority for carrying out the war in Vietnam.

In 1973 Congress responded to Richard Nixon's continuing prosecution of the Vietnam War by passing the War Powers Act over Nixon's veto. The most important and controversial provisions of the law outlined the situations under which presidents could commit troops, permitted Congress at any time to order the president to disengage troops involved in an undeclared war, and required the president to withdraw armed forces from a conflict within sixty to ninety days unless Congress specifically authorized its continuation. The law has failed to substantially change presidential war-making prerogatives, however. Presidents since Nixon have strongly refused to invoke the law, and only once—in speeding the removal of U.S. forces from Lebanon in 1982—has the law forced a compromise over the use of military power. In 1991 George Bush allowed a dramatic debate and vote in Congress over authorization of his use of force in the Persian Gulf without admitting that his actions were subject to the War Powers Act. In the fall of 2002, George W. Bush sought, and eventually received, congressional authorization to use military force against Saddam Hussein's regime.

Chief of State

The president also serves as the chief of state of the United States, presiding over ceremonial functions. This office, which in countries with constitutional monarchies is carried out by the king or queen, serves as a symbol of the permanence of the national state. The president's role as chief of state as described in the Constitution includes the obligation to take the oath of office, deliver an annual State of the Union message, and receive ambassadors from other countries. Although the president's ceremonial functions do not constitute a major source of power, they elevate the office above other offices and institutions and create a leadership mystique that can be of great help to a president in achieving policy goals.





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U.S. Constitution - Article 1 Section 8 - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net

U.S. Constitution - Article 1 Section 8 - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net

U.S. Constitution - Article 1 Section 8

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Article 1 - The Legislative Branch
Section 8 - Powers of Congress

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The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To borrow money on the credit of the United States;

To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;

To establish Post Offices and Post Roads;

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;

To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

To provide and maintain a Navy;

To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings; And

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

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Citizenship
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FAQ: Why was the power to coin money given to the Federal Government?
FAQ: Who can declare war?

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FindLaw: U.S. Constitution: Article I

FindLaw: U.S. Constitution: Article I

U.S. Constitution: Article I

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Article I

Article Text | Annotations

Section 1.

All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.

Section 2.

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons. The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

Section 3.

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six Years; and each Senator shall have one Vote.

Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first Election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the sixth Year, so that one third may be chosen every second Year; and if Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, during the Recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary Appointments until the next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such Vacancies.

No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.

The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.

The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the Vice President, or when he shall exercise the Office of President of the United States.

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.

Section 4.

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing Senators.

The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by Law appoint a different Day.

Section 5.

Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.

Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

Section 6.

The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been encreased during such time; and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either House during his Continuance in Office.

Section 7.

All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other Bills.

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a law, be presented to the President of the United States: If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law

Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the Concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules and Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.

Section 8.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;

To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;

To establish Post Offices and post Roads;

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;

To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

To provide and maintain a Navy;

To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of Particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards and other needful Buildings;--And

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

Section 9.

The Migration or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.

The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.

No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.

No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census of Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.

No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.

No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear or pay Duties in another.

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince or foreign State.

Section 10.

No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.

No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress.

No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.

AnnotationsArticle I - Legislative Department

• Section 1. Legislative Powers
• Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances
  • The Theory Elaborated and Implemented
  • Judicial Enforcement
• Bicameralism
• Enumerated, Implied, Resulting, and Inherent Powers
• Delegation of Legislative Power
  • Origin of the Doctrine of Nondelegability
  • Delegation Which Is Permissible
    • Filling Up the Details
    • Contingent Legislation
  • The Effective Demise of the Nondelegation Doctrine
    • The Regulatory State
    • Standards
    • Foreign Affairs
    • Delegations to the States
    • Delegation to Private Persons
    • Delegation and Individual Liberties
  • Punishment of Violations
• Congressional Investigations
  • Source of the Power to Investigate
  • Investigations of Conduct of Executive Department
  • Investigations of Members of Congress
  • Investigations in Aid of Legislation
    • Purpose
    • Protection of Witnesses: Pertinency and Related Matters
    • Protection of Witnesses: Constitutional Guarantees
  • Sanctions of the Investigatory Power: Contempt
• Section 2. The House of Representatives
• Clause 1. Congressional Districting
  • Elector Qualifications
• Clause 2. Qualifications of Members of Congress
  • When the Qualifications Must Be Possessed
  • Exclusivity of Constitutional Qualifications
  • Congressional Additions
  • State Additions
• Clause 3. Apportionment of Seats in the House
  • The Census Requirement
• Clause 4. Vacancies
• Clause 5. Officers and Power of Impeachment
• Section 3. The Senate
• Clause 1. Composition and Selection
• Clause 2. Classes of Senators
• Clause 3. Qualifications
• Clause 4. The Vice President
• Clause 5. Officers
• Clause 6. Trial of Impeachments
• Clause 7. Judgments on Impeachment
• Section 4. Elections
• Clause 1. Congressional Power to Regulate
  • Federal Legislation Protecting Electoral Process
• Clause 2. Time of Assembling
• Section 5. Powers and Duties of the Houses
• Clause 1. Power to Judge Elections
• Clause 2. Rules of Proceedings
• Clause 3. Duty to Keep a Journal
• Clause 4. Adjournments
• POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE HOUSES
  • Power To Judge Elections
  • ''A Quorum to Do Business''
  • Rules of Proceedings
  • Powers of the Houses Over Members
  • Duty To Keep a Journal
• Section 6. Rights and Disabilities of Members
• Clause 1. Compensation and Immunities
  • Congressional Pay
  • Privilege from Arrest
  • Privilege of Speech or Debate
    • Members
    • Congressional Employees
• Clause 2. Disabilities
  • Appointment to Executive Office
  • Incompatible Offices
• Section 7. Legislative Process
• Clause 1. Revenue Bills
• Clause 2. Approval by the President
  • The Veto Power
• Clause 3. Presentation of Resolutions
  • The Legislative Veto
• Section 8. Powers of Congress
• Clause 1. Power to Tax and Spend
  • Kinds of Taxes Permitted
    • Decline of the Forbidden Subject Matter Test
    • Federal Taxation of State Interests
    • Scope of State Immunity from Federal Taxation
    • Uniformity Requirement
  • Purposes of Taxation
    • Regulation by Taxation
    • Extermination by Taxation
    • Promotion of Business: Protective Tariff
  • Spending for the General Welfare
    • Scope of the Power
  • Social Security Act Cases
  • An Unrestrained Federal Spending Power
  • Conditional Grants-In-Aid
  • Earmarked Funds
  • Debts of the United States
• Clause 2. Borrowing Power
• Clause 3. Commerce Power
  • Power to Regulate Commerce
    • Purposes Served by the Grant
    • Definition of Terms
      • Commerce
      • Among the Several States
      • Regulate
      • Necessary and Proper Clause
      • Federalism Limits on Exercise of Commerce Power
      • Illegal Commerce
  • Interstate versus Foreign Commerce
  • Instruments of Commerce
  • Congressional Regulation of Waterways
    • Navigation
    • Hydroelectric Power; Flood Control
  • Congressional Regulation of Land Transportation
    • Federal Stimulation of Land Transportation
    • Federal Regulation of Land Transportation
    • Federal Regulation of Intrastate Rates (The Shreveport Doctrine)
    • Federal Protection of Labor in Interstate Rail Transportation
    • Regulation of Other Agents of Carriage and Communications
  • Congressional Regulation of Commerce as Traffic
    • The Sherman Act: Sugar Trust Case
    • Sherman Act Revived
    • The ''Current of Commerce'' Concept: The Swift Case
    • The Danbury Hatters Case
    • Stockyards and Grain Futures Acts
    • Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Congressional Regulation of Production and Industrial Relations: Antidepression Legislation
    • National Industrial Recovery Act
    • Agricultural Adjustment Act
    • Bituminous Coal Conservation Act
    • Railroad Retirement Act
    • National Labor Relations Act
    • Fair Labor Standards Act
    • Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act
  • Acts of Congress Prohibiting Commerce
    • Foreign Commerce: Jefferson's Embargo
    • Foreign Commerce: Protective Tariffs
    • Foreign Commerce: Banned Articles
    • Interstate Commerce: Power to Prohibit Questioned
    • Interstate Commerce: National Prohibitions and State Police Power
    • The Lottery Case
    • The Darby Case
  • The Commerce Clause as a Source of National Police Power
    • Is There an Intrastate Barrier to Congress' Commerce Power?
    • Civil Rights
    • Criminal Law
  • The Commerce Clause as a Restraint on State Powers
    • Doctrinal Background
    • The State Proprietary Activity Exception
    • Congressional Authorization of Impermissible State Action
  • State Taxation and Regulation: The Old Law
    • General Considerations
    • Taxation
    • Regulation
  • State Taxation and Regulation: The Modern Law
    • General Considerations
    • Taxation
    • Regulation
  • Foreign Commerce and State Powers
  • Concurrent Federal and State Jurisdiction
    • The General Issue: Preemption
      • Preemption Standards
      • The Standards Applied
      • Federal Versus State Labor Laws
  • Commerce With Indian Tribes
• Clause 4. Naturalization and Bankruptcies
  • Naturalization and Citizenship
    • Nature and Scope of Congress' Power
    • Categories of Citizens: Birth and Naturalization
    • The Naturalization of Aliens
  • Rights of Naturalized Persons
  • Expatriation: Loss of Citizenship
  • Aliens
    • The Power of Congress to Exclude Aliens
    • Deportation
  • Bankruptcy
    • Persons Who May Be Released from Debt
    • Liberalization of Relief Granted and Expansion of the Rights of the Trustee
    • Constitutional Limitations on the Bankruptcy Power
    • Constitutional Status of State Insolvency Laws: Preemption
• Clauses 5 and 6. Money
  • Fiscal and Monetary Powers of Congress
    • Coinage, Weights, and Measures
    • Punishment of Counterfeiting
    • Borrowing Power versus Fiscal Power
• Clause 7. Post Office
  • Postal Power
    • ''Establish''
    • Power to Protect the Mails
    • Power to Prevent Harmful Use of the Postal Facilities
    • Exclusive Power as an Adjunct to Other Powers
    • State Regulations Affecting the Mails
• Clause 8. Copyrights and Patents
  • Copyrights and Patents
    • Scope of the Power
    • Patentable Discoveries
    • Procedure in Issuing Patents
    • Nature and Scope of the Right Secured
    • Power of Congress over Patent Rights
    • State Power Affecting Payments and Copyrights
    • Trade-Marks and Advertisements
• Clause 9. Creation of Courts
• Clause 10. Maritime Crimes
  • Piracies, Felonies, and Offenses Against the Law of Nations
    • Origin of the Clause
    • Definition of Offenses
    • Extraterritorial Reach of the Power
• Clauses 11, 12, 13, and 14. War; Military Establishment
  • The War Power
    • Source and Scope
      • Three Theories
      • An Inherent Power
      • A Complexus of Granted Powers
    • Declaration of War
  • The Power to Raise and Maintain Armed Forces
    • Purpose of Specific Grants
    • Time Limit on Appropriations for the Army
    • Conscription
    • Care of the Armed Forces
    • Trial and Punishment of Offenses: Servicemen, Civilian Employees, and Dependents
      • Servicemen
      • Civilians and Dependents
  • War Legislation
    • War Powers in Peacetime
    • Delegation of Legislative Power in Wartime
  • Constitutional Rights in Wartime
    • Constitution and the Advance of the Flag
      • Theater of Military Operations
      • Enemy Country
      • Enemy Property
      • Prizes of War
    • The Constitution at Home in Wartime
      • Personal Liberty
      • Enemy Aliens
      • Eminent Domain
      • Rent and Price Controls
• Clauses 15 and 16. The Militia
  • The Militia Clause
    • Calling Out the Militia
    • Regulation of the Militia
• Clause 17. District of Columbia; Federal Property
  • Seat of the Government
  • Authority Over Places Purchased
    • ''Places''
    • Duration of Federal Jurisdiction
    • Reservation of Jurisdiction by States
• Clause 18. Necessary and Proper Clause
  • Coefficient or Elastic Clause
    • Scope of Incidental Powers
    • Operation of Coefficient Clause
    • Definition of Punishment and Crimes
    • Chartering of Banks
    • Currency Regulations
    • Power to Charter Corporations
    • Courts and Judicial Proceedings
    • Special Acts Concerning Claims
    • Maritime Law
• Section 9. Powers Denied to Congress
• Clause 1. Importation of Slaves
  • General Purpose of Sec. 9
• Clause 2. Habeas Corpus Suspension
• Clause 3. Bills of Attainder and Ex Post Facto Laws
  • Bills of Attainder
  • Ex Post Facto Laws
    • Definition
    • What Constitutes Punishment
    • Change in Place or Mode of Trial
• Clause 4. Taxes
  • Direct Taxes
    • The Hylton Case
    • From the Hylton to the Pollock Case
    • Restriction of the Pollock Decision
    • Miscellaneous
• Clause 5. Duties on Exports from States
  • Taxes on Exports
    • Stamp Taxes
• Clause 6. Preference to Ports
  • The ''No Preference'' Clause
• Clause 7. Appropriations and Accounting of Public Money
  • Appropriations
  • Payment of Claims
• Clause 8. Titles of Nobility; Presents
• Section 10. Powers Denied to the States
• Clause 1. Not to Make Treaties, Coin Money, Pass Ex Post Facto Laws, Impair Contracts
  • Treaties, Alliances, or Confederations
  • Bills of Credit
  • Legal Tender
  • Bills of Attainder
  • Ex Post Facto Laws
    • Scope of the Provision
    • Denial of Future Privileges to Past Offenders
    • Changes in Punishment
    • Changes in Procedure
  • Obligation of Contracts
    • ''Law'' Defined
    • Status of Judicial Decisions
    • ''Obligation'' Defined
    • ''Impair'' Defined
    • Vested Rights Not Included
    • Public Grants That Are Not ''Contracts''
    • Tax Exemptions: When Not ''Contracts''
    • ''Contracts'' Include Public Contracts and Corporate Charters
    • Corporate Charters: Different Ways of Regarding
    • Reservation of Right to Alter or Repeal Corporate Charters
    • Corporation Subject to the Law and Police Power
    • Strict Construction of Charters, Tax Exemptions
    • Strict Construction and the Police Power
    • Doctrine of Inalienability as Applied to Eminent Domain, Taxing, and Police Powers
    • Private Contracts
    • Remedy a Part of the Private Obligation
    • Private Contracts and the Police Power
    • Evaluation of the Clause Today
• Clause 2. Not to Levy Duties on Exports and Imports
  • Duties on Exports and Imports
    • Scope
    • Privilege Taxes
    • Property Taxes
    • Inspection Laws
• Clause 3. Not to Lay Tonnage Duties, Keep Troops, Make Compacts, or Engage in War
  • Tonnage Duties
  • Keeping Troops
  • Interstate Compacts
  • Background of Clause
  • Subject Matter of Interstate Compacts
  • Consent of Congress
  • Grants of Franchise to Corporations by Two States
  • Legal Effects of Interstate Compacts
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