Constitution Week Spotlight

Our Constitution is a living document. Thirty-three amendments have been proposed by the U.S. Congress; 27 of those have been ratified and are part of the Constitution. The process of adding an amendment is intentionally onerous to prevent arbitrary changes. An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Alternatively, two-thirds of the states may call for a convention for that purpose. An amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures or three-fourths of conventions called in each state. The president has no veto power over an amendment bill.

Know your Constitution. See if you can answer these three questions:

1) According to Article III, Section 3 of our Constitution, a person can be convicted of treason only if:

a. there are at least two witnesses to the same act

b. the person confesses in court

c. either a or b

2) Until the 25th Amendment was passed, what would happen if a vice president died in office?

a. The president appointed a new vice president

b. There would be no vice president until the next presidential election

c. The Speaker of the House would become vice president

3) The president and vice president of the United States:

a. must certify residency in the District of Columbia within 30 days after election

b. may not be inhabitants of the same state

c. must spend 75% of their time in the District of Columbia

This Constitution Week Spotlight was provided by Lieutenant George Farragut Chapter National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. For more information about DAR, please visit the chapter’s website at lgfdar.com.

Answers: 1) c. either a or b; 2) b. There would be no vice president until the next presidential election; 3) b. may not be inhabitants of the same state