Questions tagged [constitution]
A constitution is a framework for government, and serves as a set of founding principles for the entity.
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How often is Article 49.3 of the French Constitution used?
According to recent news:
On Thursday, French Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne announced that the government was resorting to Article 49.3 of the Constitution to force the bill through parliament ...
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Can Rahul Gandhi ask other democratic nations to intervene in their democracy?
Rahul Gandhi a sitting Member of Parliament of India who went to London and asked Europe and USA to intervene in what he sees as the collapse of democracy in India, which is a sovereign nation.
Isn't ...
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In what way do "Pennsylvanians have a constitutional right to clean air and pure water"? State constitution or federal? Which article?
From CNN's February 22, 2023 Pennsylvania attorney general’s office will investigate Norfolk Southern after ‘criminal referral’ from state officials
“Our office has been monitoring the train ...
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Why has Libertarianism achieved so little as a political ideology in the World?
Since Libertarianism can be defined as a political philosophy that advocates only minimal state intervention in the free market and the private lives of citizens, but when it comes to actual policies, ...
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Is it possible to expand voting right by ordinary legislation provided that there is no explicit constitutional restriction?
I have noticed that while many constitutions guarantee voting rights for its citizens, these provisions are often phrased in a way that does not preclude expanding such right to people beyond the ...
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A country without judicial oversight (over the constitution)
Marbury v Madison is a United States Supreme Court decision which (among others, I'm cherrypicking) establishes the power of the judiciary to be the final authority on deciding what the constitution ...
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Could the US constitutionally cement single-party rule in this scenario?
Suppose that a political party ("X") controls a simple majority of both the House and Senate in addition the the presidency. At this point in time, the Supreme Court is not relevant.
All ...
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Requirements for citizens living outside the US to vote in elections
In the United States, people who are not residents of individual states cannot vote in federal elections for President, Senators, and Representatives. However, US troops stationed overseas are allowed ...
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How is the minimum age of candidacy for the Senate enforced?
According to this US Senate article, it can be enforced by the Senate. Could the Senate just not remove them? Or would that go to the courts? I remember something-or-other about the sovereign right of ...
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What motivated the amendment to the Algerian constitution allowing a 'special system' to be conferred upon municipalities?
In November 2020, Algerians approved a new constitution by referendum. One of the changes was to Article 16, to which the sentence in italics was added:
The local authorities of the State shall be ...
CDJB♦
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Which country has the most axiomatically defined laws?
Clarification: I am not seriously asking if a country has a constitution on the level of precision of formal logic. I meant which country exhibits “completeness” more than others, which tends in this ...
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What mechanisms exist for terminating the US constitution?
Donald Trump has called for the US constitution to be terminated. Apart from something akin to a civil war or dramatic societal upheaval, is there a mechanism which could enable the termination of the ...
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States’ rights (tenth amendment) [closed]
IF the US Supreme Court says "X" is a state matter, and the Constitution offers no appeal (to a nonexistent higher court), but a US congressman proposes (or votes for) a federal law about &...
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Who selects the General Secretary of Indian National Congress or Bhartiya Janata Party?
What is the process to select the general secretary of the party?
Does one have to be a publicly elected official to hold this post?
Are there any regulations in Indian Constitution?
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US presidential election: winning three times
Donald Trump has, according to his claims, been elected president twice by popular vote. However he has been denied the office due to claimed malfeasance of the state governments.
If his claims are ...
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Has the 25 Amendment Inability Clause ever been used to remove POTUS
The 25th Amendment of the US constitution is in the top of my mind. This deals with succession in the event of the resignation, death, or incapacity of POTUS. It also allows for temporary incapacity, ...
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How does Ret. US Supreme Court Justice Breyer propose to "...decide cases in a way that will prevent social discord stemming from religion"?
In CNN's September 26, 2022 excerpt from Who's Talking to Chris Wallace Ex-Supreme court justice visibly emotional discussing Roe v. Wade reversal, Retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer says:
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Is there a constitutional contradiction to prohibit discrimination based on nationality while restricting voting right based on nationality?
Many countries have constitutional provisions which prohibit discrimination based on certain characteristics (i.e. age, nationality, etc) while also - within the same constitution - having ...
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How does one identify an enemy of the Constitution in the United States?
What are the criteria? Is there an explicit list? If there is a list, how robust is it in the face of changing times?
Before one takes an oath to defend the Constitution against enemies foreign and ...
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If a US State passed a law regarding the eligibility of Presidents, could it be enforced?
Suppose (the citizens of) a state were tired of government shutdowns and they or their legislature passed a law prohibiting members of Congress and Presidents involved in a governmental shutdown from ...
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Reasons for time limits in constitutional amendments
The 18th, and 20th to 26th amendments, as well as the ERA and the DC Voting rights outdated proposed amendments, included time limits to their ratification. The time limit clauses vary in shape, form ...
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In what Western Countries has any party or coalition been elected gaining a supermajority or such majority permitting constitutional amendments?
For the sake of the argument, the "Western" countries should include all Member States of the EU, and countries conventionally understood to be part of the "West".
Any time after ...
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What will the powers of the The Indigenous Australian Voice be?
Australia is considering a referendum to alter its constitution to create an "Australian and Torres Strait Islander Voice".
The text of the amendment is as follows:
"There shall be a ...
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Assuming Russia vetoes EUFOR mandate extension in Bosnia, can Dodik legally "kick out" all EUFOR troops, including from the Croat-Muslim federation?
There has been speculation that Russia may veto an extension of the EUFOR mandate, which despite its name is apparently operating under a UNSC resolution.
Assuming that veto happens (and given the ...
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Can a state delegate the creation of a law to an unelected agent such as the Supreme Court?
This is with regard to the constitutionality of "trigger laws" such as those that went into effect, automatically, after the overturn of Roe vs. Wade.
I am neither a lawyer nor a politician, ...
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If instances of electoral fraud were found, or suspected, in a presidential election, what would be the constitutional procedure for resolution?
The Trump administration seemed to be of the view that if they could show that a state had suffered electoral fraud, the Vice President or the Attorney General could simply demand that those states ...
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At what point in the election process must someone aspiring to be president meet the requirements established in the constitution? [duplicate]
US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will reach the constitutionally required age to be eligible for presidency mere weeks before the 2024 Presidential elections. This means she definitely is ...
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Can the Federal Government Revoke Statehood?
Is this possible? Texas v. White says that states cannot unilaterally secede, but not that they cannot be kicked out. The Constitution (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Admission_to_the_Union#Text)
says ...
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Why does the government not introduce an amendment to the constitution to allow abortion?
Since the polls clearly show that the majority of the American people disagree with the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade, why does the US government not introduce an amendment to the ...
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How can the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consist of absolute monarchies if the UAE itself has a constitution?
It would seem that the constitution of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would limit the power of its monarchs to some degree, thus they wouldn't be absolute monarchs.
To what extent is the constitution ...
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Is there a formal notion of a declaration of war in the Ukrainian constitution?
In Feb 2022, president Zelensky declared martial law and general mobilization. Is there a more formal declaration of [state of] war he (or the Rada) could have issued, according to the Ukrainian ...
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Constitutional limits on the Standing Rules of the Senate
According to this comment by @RickSmith:
"Congress may not 'ignore constitutional restraints or violate fundamental rights, and there should be a reasonable relation between the mode or method ...
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How does the unusual rule for dissolving Swedish Parliament come about?
Sweden - unlike other European countries - has a Parliament that serves fixed 4-year term.
The Government can order extra elections to take place in between the 4-year term, but the extra elections do ...
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Can the US government outlaw the buying, selling and manufacture of arms?
I know the US Constitution covers the right to bear arms, but can the government theoretically ban the buying, selling and manufacture of arms?
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How can Marbury v Madison be reconciled with what the Constitution explicitly states?
A key premise in Marbury v Madison is that the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction is clearly defined by the Constitution, and therefore a legislative act that redistributes the jurisdiction must be ...
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On what basis could the US federal government codify Roe v. Wade?
There are proposals to pass a federal law allowing abortion in all states, in case Roe v. Wade is overturned. Ignoring the political feasibility of passing such a law, on what constitutional basis can ...
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Germany putting industries or facilities "under state management" if they don't cooperate; provisions for it in the constitution? Precedent?
Fox News' April 28, 2022 Germany drops opposition to Russia oil embargo: report includes the following:
The reversal from Germany – which had been one of the main opponents of the EU severing its oil ...
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When Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment, why didn't they include the time limit in the amendment itself?
The Equal Rights Amendment was passed by Congress in 1972 and submitted to the states for ratification. Congress imposed (or tried to impose?) a 7-year time limit on ratification.
There was precedent ...
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How common is for presidential term extensions to be bundled with other issues in referendums?
By presidential term extensions, I mean broadly measures like: allowing more terms than before, extending their length, and even allowing special purpose measures that effectively apply the previous ...
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What compromises were forged or brokered by Benjamin Franklin in the US constitution that would be considered "tragic" by historian Ken Burns?
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert's April 2, 2022 Ken Burns Was Watching "Homeland" When He Realized Mandy Patinkin Should Be His Ben Franklin begins with noted historian and documentarian ...
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Is the discontinuation of the petitioning system "We the People" constitutional?
On January 20, 2021, the day of the Inauguration of Joe Biden, the website of We the People petitioning system https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/about started redirecting to the main whitehouse.gov ...
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Is it legitimate/constitutional for the White House to turn off the comments on their YouTube videos?
I wonder if it is legitimate/constitutional for the White House to turn off their comments on YouTube videos, as they are doing currently. In 2019. Trump was banned from blocking the critics on his ...
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US Constitution amendment restriction on Senate - is there a way around it?
According to Article 5 of the U.S. Constitution (emphasis added):
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the ...
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How many countries have a single unified document as their constitution?
The foundation of US law and government is the US constitution including its 27 amendments. However most of the time when I look for something similar for other nations, what I find tends to be ...
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Did the US Supreme Court's recent ruling sidestep the issue of judicial review? (Whole Women's Health v. Jackson; challenge to Texas S.B. 8)
The following questions and their extensive answers cover the background of the issues well:
How close does the Texas law that bars most abortions after six weeks come to saying 'Defendants can&#...
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Conquest = usurpation?
In the context of establishing a lawfully constituted authority, does conquest1 differ from usurpation2?
How is conquest different from usurpation, which is an unlawful way of establishing an ...
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Why is the Second Amendment to the US constitution structured differently from all other amendments?
The Second Amendment reads as follows:
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
This can be ...
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How close does the Texas law that bars most abortions after six weeks come to saying 'Defendants can't assert constitutionally protected rights?'
In the CNN video Toobin: This is the most important question a justice asked
CNN Chief Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin shares his thoughts on the Supreme Court justices' questions as they hear oral ...
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Why is Spain not legislating vaccine-status check measures, after executive attempts to impose those were defeated in courts?
According to The Local (ES):
The reasoning of [Spanish] judges, both regional and national, is that having to prove Covid vaccination, testing or recovery status to enter a bar or visit a museum ...
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Are there constitutional arguments for preventing/avoiding judicial review of state law in some scenarios? Are there any historical examples of this?
From CNN's video coverage of US Attorney General Merrick Garland announcement of its lawsuit against the state of Texas:
Q: ...several GOP lawmakers who said that they will follow Texas’ lead, and I ...
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