Reference no: EM131042572

HERES TWO DIDFERENT PARAGRAGHS THATS NEES TO HAVE A RESPONSE WITH REFRENCES. Just like youve done before.

#1

Texas' unique history has a great deal of impact on today's state constitution. The first major event that affected the constitution is quite obvious: texas' break from mexico. The book describes this break as a "constitutional crisis" (802). The texasdeclaration of independence contained several ideas that are still important to texans today, such as the duty of the government to "Protect the lives, liberty and property of the people." The constitution of 1836 closely resembled the constitution of the U.S. It included a bicameral legislature and an elected chief with considerable powers.

The National Reconstruction Act also ended up having a huge influence on the current Texas constitution. Under the NRA, congress was granted power to appoint state governors. They appointed Edmund Davis the governor of Texas. Because of the fact that the constitution had centralized power in the executive branch, Davis had a great amount of power. He used his power to create a "corrupt, extravagant administration that eventually turned to the state police and the militia to attempt to maintain it's regime." This lead to many Texan's distrust of government. Once Davis left office, a new constitution was drafted- and it was heavily influenced by the distrust caused by Davis. The constitution of 1876 called for a "strong popular control of government" and the ability to "seriously limit the power of state government' (809).

Another thing that is unique about texas' constitution, is that it differs from the U.S constitution in several ways. One obvious difference is the length and revisements. While the U.S. consitution has only been amended 27 times, has 7 articles and is flexible, the Texas constitution has been amended 474 times, has 16 articles and is described as "lengthy, confusing and highly restrictive" (811) (Video lecture). There are also some differences in clauses. The U.S constitution contains the supremacy clause, which basically states that laws of the United States are superior to the state laws. In cases of differences the US law will be acknowledged over state laws. The US constitution also contains the necessary and proper clause, which allows congress "the power necessary to accomplish it's constitutional tasks" so, basically it grants congress power that is not explicitly stated in Article 1. The texas constitution does not grant this type of flexibility.

#2

Texas' constitution received numerous revamps that have influenced the one we have today. The break with Mexico had a large part in shaping our state constitution. After becoming independent of Mexico, framers drafted a constitution that resembled the United States. They included a bicameral legislature, chief executive, and four-tiered judicial system. Another large influence on the Texas Constitution was the annexation of the state to the U.S. Under its newly revised constitution, Texas provided for a governor, lieutenant governor and legislature adjustments. The Constitution of 1866 was another factor that molded the current constitution into what it is today. The governor's salary and term limit were increased, the state supreme court was expanded to five judges, and district court judges received 8-year term limits (Ginsberg, 2013, p 807).

The Texas Constitution and U.S. Constitution differ in the sense that the U.S. Constitution has the supremacy clause, declaring it the "supreme Law of the Land" (Ginsberg, 2013 p 799). This clause requires all judges to adhere to the U.S. Constitution, not their state constitution. Another difference lies in the U.S. Constitution's necessary and proper clause. This allows Congress the "power necessary to accomplish its constitutional tasks" (Ginsberg, 2013, p 800). Texas' constitution does not grant such flexibility.

Works Cited:

Ginsberg, Lowi, Weir, We the People, 9th ed., Texas ed., New York: W. W. Norton, 2013.