The Seventeenth Amendment

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each 
State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have 
one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for 
electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.
When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the 
executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such 
vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the 
executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the 
vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.
This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of 
any Senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.
The Seventeenth Amendment changed the way of how Senators were voted into office. Due to this Amendment, 
US senators would be voted into office by direct elections instead of by state legislatures as originally outlined in 
the Constitution. This method of electing Senators is still in use today.

This cartoon demonstrates an issue of monopolies running the senate due to the lack of direct elections by the people before 
the ratification of the seventeenth amendment. This was a problem due to direct appointment by state legislatures before the 
direct election of senators. Under the seventeenth amendment this was no longer an issue.



This article explains the seventeenth amendments path through becoming ratified. It does a good job of including details of 
other acts in the government that led up to this amendment.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Ninth Amendment

Image
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to  deny or disparage others retained by the people. The Ninth Amendment basically guarantees rights already not mentioned specifically in the US Constitution or  Bill of Rights to Americans. This Amendment was included to make clear that other powers and rights were  specifically assigned to the federal government. This amendment is useful in providing additional rights to  Americans not already explicitly stated. This cartoon is humorous as it demonstrates the openness of the ninth amendment. As its purpose and rights are open ended,  it can be humorously applied to situations such as demonstrated in the cartoon, although they might not have necessarily been  the founding fathers intentions. https://pacificlegal.org/whats-the-deal-with-the-9th-amendment/ This article explains the history of the ninth amendment and why it was included into the Constitution. It a...
Read more

The Sixteenth Amendment

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from  whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States,  and without regard to any census or enumeration. The Sixteenth Amendment gave Congress the right to collect income tax. This amendment is still significant  today as a century later Congress still collects income tax from workers. This amendment also reversed the  decision of Pollock v. Farmers' Loan and Trust Company (1895) which made it difficult to pass a national income  tax. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axKDFOVWb6c This video explains the impacts of the sixteenth amendment on the United States and citizen’s income. It also describes both  pro and anti sixteenth amendment viewpoints at the time of ratification. https://law.justia.com/constitution/us/amendment-16/01-income-tax.html This article explains the purpose of the sixteenth and why it is necessary for Congress to collect ...
Read more

The Fifth Amendment

Image
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime,  unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising  in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of  War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to  be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal  case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property,  without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use,  without just compensation. The Fifth Amendment is one of the most important to those accused of a crime as it provides the accused with a  variety of rights. It provides the right to a grand jury indictment, the restriction on double jeopardy, the guarantee  of due process of law, protection against self-incrimination, and the prevention of the government taking priv...
Read more