'[It] is ...the most wonderful work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man' (Maidment, 2000, p.3). This is how William Gladstone described the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution and later The Bill of Rights was conceived and formulated with one fundamental idea in mind and that was to prevent tyranny and the misuse of power. The main fear was that majority factions would, if not controlled threaten the rights of minorities Thus all individuals have natural rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It must be noted that the framers of the Constitution (The Founding Fathers) did not

The 'right to privacy' was cited in an even more contentious way, when the pro-abortion lobby brought the case of Roe v Wade. Abortion, which up until 1973 had always been legislated for at states level and all states, placed strict guidelines on the termination of pregnancies by abortion. Because abortion can cause so much resentment and hostility the pro-choice activists bypassed the state and national legislatures and took their cause to the Supreme Court. By circumventing the democratic process, the activists hoped to get a quicker and more sympathetic hearing from judges who on the whole took a more liberal position on social issues. The judges upheld the claim that anti-abortion laws violated the 'right to privacy' and this could be extended to abortion. This meant that abortion (which is not mentioned in the Constitution) has a direct link to the 'right to privacy' (which is also not mentioned in the Constitution). Thus the complex and explosive issue of abortion was settled not by direct reference (or even indirect reference) to the Constitution, but rather through non-interpretive review, by consulting their personal values and beliefs and weaving them into the Constitutional. The states on this occasion did accept the verdict, but there was nothing in the ruling that said they had to provide facilities or funds and with no public funds for abortion the poor women in society have had very little benefit from the ruling.

Has as been mentioned one of the main checks to stop the misuse of power is the Supreme Courts capability to declare an act of Congress or a Presidential action unconstitutional, this also applies to any state law that comes before the court. The power of judicial review, gives the court an important role in the system of checks and balances. Although not explicitly granted in the Constitution, one of the framers Alexander Hamilton does point out that it is pointless having a Constitution if there is no one to interpret it. He also goes on to say that without the power to tax and spend and the means to enforce a judicial decision, this branch of government would always be kept in check by the other two branches.

Hodder- Williams, (2000) The United States in the Twentieth Century, Democracy, Hodder & Stoughton, London.

The idea of federalism was another way in which power might be dispersed; the framers thought that rather than have power solely in the hands of national government, the states ought to have a certain amount of autonomy, by electing their o

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Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)