Constitution of the United States of America/Annotated/Introduction

As the keystone of the United States, the Constitution informs federal and state law; delineates the distinct roles of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches of the U.S. Government; and demarcates the powers of the United States from those of the states. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black memorably remarked that the United States is entirely a creature of the Constitution. Its power and authority have no other source.^[1] Although it shapes nearly every aspect of domestic law, the Constitution, including its twenty-seven Amendments, comprises only roughly 7,500 words.^[A] As such, it provides more of a general outline than a detailed blueprint of government. While Chief Justice John Marshall established in Marbury v. Madison that the Constitution implicitly accords to the Judicial Branch authority to interpret the law and deem legislative acts contrary to the Constitution void^[2]—the power of judicial review—the Legislative and Executive Branches’ duties necessarily require them to interpret the Constitution as well. Moreover, in matters specifically entrusted to those branches, or beyond the Judicial Branch’s competency to review, Legislative and Executive Branch interpretations are dispositive.^[3] Consequently, as Justice Felix Frankfurter observed: [T]o the legislature no less than courts is committed the guardianship of deeply cherished constitutional rights.^[4]

Congress passed legislation in 1797 to provide a copy of the Constitution to every Member of Congress.^[5] During the nineteenth century, these copies of the Constitution were enhanced with indexes and case citations.^[6] As constitutional law grew more complex, the Senate adopted a resolution in 1921 to provide for copies of the Constitution to be printed with explanations of how the Supreme Court has interpreted its provisions—the Constitution of the United States of America, Analysis and Interpretation (Constitution Annotated).^[7] In 1938, the Library of Congress’s Congressional Research Service (CRS) (in the form of its predecessor, the Legislative Reference Service) began to prepare and update the Constitution Annotated. In 1970, Congress regularized publication of the Constitution Annotated, providing for the Librarian of Congress to prepare a new version of the volume every ten years and to issue supplements every two years.^[8] In 2019, the Library of Congress launched https://constitution.congress.gov, making the Constitution Annotated available online to Members of Congress, congressional staff, and the public in a digital, easily-searchable format.

Mirroring the online Constitution Annotated, the 2022 edition of the Constitution Annotated features shorter, more specific essays to allow readers to locate relevant information more quickly. Detailed information on the placement of each essay within the Constitution’s framework is included in the headers. Each essay includes its online serial number so that readers can locate the corresponding essay in the online Constitution Annotated, which is regularly updated to reflect new Supreme Court developments.

The following CRS attorneys contributed content to the 2022 edition of the Constitution Annotated: Bryan L. Adkins, April J. Anderson, Christine J. Back, Milan N. Ball, Jimmy Balser, Peter G. Berris, Kate R. Bowers, Valerie C. Brannon, Craig W. Canetti, David H. Carpenter, Jared P. Cole, Michael D. Contino, Jeanne M. Dennis, Charles Doyle, Jennifer K. Elsea, Michael A. Foster, Jonathan M. Gaffney, Michael John Garcia, Todd Garvey, David Gunter, Kevin J. Hickey, Eric N. Holmes, Sanchitha Jayaram, Juria L. Jones, Victoria L. Killion, Joanna R. Lampe, Lauren K. LeBourgeois, Caitlain Devereaux Lewis, Chris D. Linebaugh, Edward C. Liu, Stephen P. Mulligan, Brandon J. Murrill, Whitney K. Novak, Alexander H. Pepper, Kelsey Y. Santamaria, Mainon A. Schwartz, Wen W. Shen, Jon O. Shimabukuro, Hillel R. Smith, Jennifer A. Staman, Sean M. Stiff, Jay B. Sykes, Adam Vann, Delilah T. Vasquez, Erin H. Ward, and L. Paige Whitaker. Georgia I. Gkoulgkountina, Meghan C. Totten, Ji Young Zoey Ryu, and Summer J. Norwood provided invaluable editorial, technical, and paralegal assistance. Special thanks to Deborah Strausser, Chris Leggett, Kenneth DeThomasis, and Sarah Wheeling of the Government Publishing Office, which provided extensive publication support.

References in the original work

1. Reid v. Covert, 354 U.S. 1, 5–6 (1957) (plurality opinion).
2. Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137, 176–80 (1803).
3. Baker v. Carr, 369 U.S. 186, 217 (1962).
4. Minersville School Dist. v. Gobitis, 310 U.S. 586 (1940).
5. Act of Mar. 3, 1795, ch. 50, 1 Stat. 443 (1795); S.J. Res., 4th Cong., 1 Stat. 519 (Mar. 3, 1797).
6. See Constitution of the United States of America: Rules of the House of Representatives, Joint Rules of the Two Houses and Rules of the Senate with Jefferson’s Manual (House of Representatives, 1837); Constitution of the United States of America with the Amendments thereto; to Which Are Added Jefferson’s Manual of Parliamentary Practice, the Standing Rules and Orders for Conducting Business in the House of Representatives of the United States, the Joint Rules in Force at the Close of the 43rd Congress and a Digest (House of Representatives, 1880); Senate Manual Containing the Standing Rules and Orders of the United States Senate, The Constitution of the United States, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, The Ordinance of 1787, Jefferson’s Manual, Etc. (Senate Committee on Rules, 1896).
7. S. Res. 151, 67th Cong., 62 Cong. Rec. 95 (1921).
8. Act of Dec. 24, 1970, Pub. L. No. 91-589, 84 Stat. 1585, 2 U.S.C. § 168.

Notes

• ^[A]↑  Sources routinely cite the American Constitution as the world's shortest,^{[new 1][new 2]} while others cite the Constitution of Monaco.^{[new 3]}

New citations and references

1. "The Constitution of the United States: Fast Facts". Primary and Secondary Sources (in en-US). National Constitution Center. n.d. Retrieved 2024-09-06. 
2. "Fun Facts and Resources". Constitution Day (in en-US). University of Houston. n.d. Retrieved 2024-09-06. 
3. Nix, Elizabeth (2023-05-10). "Which country has the world’s shortest written constitution?". U.S. Government and Politics (in en-US). History Channel. Retrieved 2024-09-06.