The American and French Constitutions

Résumé du document

Ce document est un exposé complet et entièrement rédigé (en anglais), qui compare les constitutions en France et aux Etats-Unis.
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This document is a complete and entirely written exposition (in English), which compares the constitutions in France and in the United States.

Extraits

[...] As for 88-3, citizens from other member states cannot be elected to executive positions. This shows the difference between a federation with equal citizens and states that must participate in some sort of mutual defense, and a sovereign country belonging to a supra-national organization. Article which deals with the amending of the constitution, states that modifications may be proposed by two thirds of the Congress and require the approval of three fourths of the states. In France, the initiative may come from the president himself or congresspeople, and can be adopted either by referendum, where the simple majority applies or through the chambers in congress with three fifths of all the representatives (not per house, which may show an imbalance between national assembly and senate). [...]

[...] Besides, the ideology of Enlightenment (above all Montesquieu's theory of powers) was trending among the elites, both established and emerging, and having a new continent to tame and to build upon was a fantastic opportunity to start over society on premises sounder than the corrupt Old World, including to come back to a Golden Age for the most religious (which will all later lead to the City Upon the Hill and the Manifest Destiny). For these reasons, the U.S. constitution states in its preamble that it aims at protecting its citizens against the tyranny of the state and its arbitrary power, so they may live in "Tranquility" and thrive on "Liberty", with an emphasis on "Justice" and the "general Welfare". The specificities To achieve these goals, the U.S. [...]

[...] The American and French Constitutions The purpose of the American constitution To understand what the American constitution was written for, we must first look at the historical and political background of the late 18th century. The constitution was formally signed in 1787 by the delegates of each of the Thirteen Colonies, among whom George Washington, Ben-jamin Franklin before they merged into a single country. These had functioned as independent, though weak, states since 1776 and the Declaration of Independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. [...]

[...] Comparison of some articles and main actors Article 4 deals with relations between states and regarding the union. It states that all citizens, whatever their state of origin or residence, are entitled to the same advantages and laws, and that if one flees from justice in a state, others must deliver him. This is similar to France's article 88-2, which states that the conditions to enforce European search warrants are prescribed by law (which can be technically eased or tightened, or even repealed, without the procedure of constitutional amendment). [...]

[...] constitution immediately sets out at organizing the form of government, by instituting the system of checks and balances to separate (split) powers in order to avoid concentration of it in the hands of one. The first three articles, out of seven, state one after the other how the legislative (by far the longest article), the executive and the judiciary branches must be organized, and what they may or may not do. As a federal country, all states are equally represented, hence the same number of senators. However, the federal grip forbids all states to take part in treaties, alliances and confederations. Besides, the constitution lacks dispositions for states wishing to secede. [...]