The constitution

A constitution is a set of rules that defines a nation and its government.  It grants authority to the government and sets out how it will operate.  Most constitutions are written and are a higher law than ordinary laws that are made by legislatures.  In fact, the U.S. Constitution specifically declares in Article VI that it is the "supreme Law of the Land" and that all judges and state laws shall be bound by the Constitution.  It is also more difficult to change the Constitution than it is to change ordinary laws

 James Madison warned that changing a constitution too often would result in chaos.  On the other hand, Thomas Jefferson argued that constitutions should be rewritten every 20 years or so.  The U.S. Constitution attempts to strike a balance by allowing for "amendments."  Since its ratification, there have been over 10,000 proposals to amend the Constitution, but it has only been amended 27 times and of these, the first ten Amendments (the Bill of Rights) were all added at once.



In the spring of 1638 three Connecticut towns, Windsor, Hartford and Wethersfield, chose representatives and held a general court at Hartford. At its opening session the Reverend Thomas Hooker preached a powerful sermon on the text that "the foundation of authority is laid in the free consent of the people."


On January 14 following, the constitution given here was adopted by the freemen of the three towns assembled at Hartford. Nowhere in this great document is there a reference to "our dread Sovereign" or "our gracious Lord the King," -- nor to any government or power outside of Connecticut itself. It did not even limit the vote to members of Puritan congregations.


In all history this is the first written constitution which created a government, and it is easily seen to be the prototype of our Federal Constitution, adopted exactly one hundred and fifty years later

I personally think that the egyptian government is better off writing the constitution before electing the president in order to insure that he doesn't play around with it for his own personal good. Also it is easier to control a presidents power when he has a set of rules to follow, that way he will not go out of line.