About This Page — Required Portions Only (Option B)
The Constitution is approximately 7,500 words — and you don't need to know all of it for the AP exam. This page covers the specific provisions the College Board designates as required: the Preamble, key Article I clauses (enumerated powers, commerce clause, necessary and proper clause), Article II (presidential powers), Article III (judicial branch), the Supremacy Clause, and the most tested amendments. Sections marked [OMITTED] explain what they cover.
The Constitution appears on the AP exam across all five units. Knowing specific clauses and being able to connect them to SCOTUS cases is essential. A student who can say "The Necessary and Proper Clause in Article I, Section 8 was interpreted in McCulloch v. Maryland to allow implied powers" is writing at AP level. A student who says "the Constitution gives Congress powers" is not.
Article I — The Legislative Branch (Congress)
📋 Article I is the longest article — 10 sections covering the structure, powers, and limits of Congress. Required portions: Section 1 (legislative power vested in Congress), Section 2 (House), Section 3 (Senate), and Section 8 (enumerated powers including commerce, N&P, and taxation). [Sections 4-7 cover elections, procedures, and the legislative process — not required in full.]
Section 1: All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.
Bicameralism
Congress has ALL legislative power — not some, all. And it's bicameral (two chambers). This was the Great Compromise: House represents population (large states got more seats) and members serve two-year terms; Senate represents states equally (2 per state) and senators serve six-year terms. Both chambers must pass a bill for it to become law.
Section 8: The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises... To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States... To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States.
Enumerated + Implied Powers
Section 8 lists Congress's enumerated (express) powers — including taxation and commerce. The last clause — the Necessary and Proper Clause (also called the Elastic Clause) — extends Congress's power to anything "necessary and proper" to carry out those enumerated powers. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) interpreted this broadly to allow implied powers.
Article II — The Executive Branch (President)
📋 Article II covers presidential qualifications, election via Electoral College, powers, and the oath of office. Required portions: Section 1 (executive power vested in President), Section 2 (commander-in-chief, treaty power, appointment power), Section 3 (State of the Union, take care clause). [Section 4 covers impeachment.]
Section 1: The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.
Unitary Executive
All executive power goes to one person — the President, who serves a four-year term. Compare Article I: "all legislative powers" go to Congress (a body). This unitary executive was controversial — Anti-Federalists feared a monarch. Hamilton defended it in Federalist 70: energy and decisiveness require a single executive.
Section 2: The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States... He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint... Judges of the supreme Court.
Presidential Powers
Key presidential powers: (1) commander-in-chief of military, (2) treaty-making with 2/3 Senate approval, (3) appointment of federal judges (including Supreme Court) with Senate confirmation. These create major checks — the Senate must approve treaties and judicial appointments.
Section 3: He shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.
Take Care Clause
The Take Care Clause requires the President to enforce all federal laws — even ones he personally disagrees with. This is the source of debates about prosecutorial discretion, executive orders, and presidential refusal to enforce certain laws. Courts have interpreted it to mean the President cannot simply ignore laws passed by Congress.
Article III — The Judicial Branch
📋 Article III is the shortest of the three branch articles — only 3 sections. Required: Section 1 (judicial power vested in courts) and Section 2 (jurisdiction). The Constitution does NOT explicitly grant judicial review — that was established by Marbury v. Madison (1803).
Section 1: The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour.
Life Tenure
"Good Behaviour" means life tenure — federal judges serve until they die, resign, or are impeached. This insulates them from political pressure and protects judicial independence. Hamilton defends this in Federalist 78: judges need independence to rule against popular but unconstitutional laws.
Section 2: The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made...
Federal Court Jurisdiction
Federal courts handle cases arising under the Constitution, federal law, and treaties. This is the textual basis for judicial review — if courts handle cases "arising under this Constitution," they must be able to determine what the Constitution means. Marbury v. Madison made this explicit.
Key Clauses Across the Constitution
Supremacy Clause (Article VI): This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof... shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.
Federal Law Wins
When federal and state law conflict, federal law wins. Period. State judges must apply federal law even over their own state constitutions. Brutus identified this as one of the most dangerous clauses — it means states have no ultimate defense against federal power. McCulloch v. Maryland confirmed this.
Commerce Clause (Article I, Section 8): The Congress shall have Power... To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.
Most Expanded Clause
The Commerce Clause has been interpreted to give Congress enormous power over economic activity. The New Deal programs, civil rights legislation, and most federal regulation rely on the Commerce Clause. U.S. v. Lopez (1995) was the first time in 60 years the Court found Congress exceeded its commerce power.
10th Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Reserved Powers
The 10th Amendment is the constitutional foundation of states' rights. Whatever power isn't given to the federal government stays with states or the people. Anti-Federalists demanded this as a limit on federal power. In practice, the Necessary and Proper Clause and Supremacy Clause have expanded federal power far beyond what 10th Amendment advocates hoped.
Most Tested Amendments
📋 There are 27 amendments. The AP exam focuses on the Bill of Rights (1-10), the Reconstruction Amendments (13th, 14th, 15th), and a handful of others. The 14th Amendment is tested across Units 1, 2, and 3.
14th Amendment, Section 1: All persons born or naturalized in the United States... are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
The Engine of Modern Rights
The most important amendment after the Bill of Rights. Three key clauses: (1) citizenship by birth, (2) due process applies to states — the basis for selective incorporation, (3) equal protection — the basis for Brown v. Board, voting rights, and most civil rights litigation. If you learn nothing else about amendments, know the 14th.
1st Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Five Freedoms
One sentence, five freedoms: (1) no established religion, (2) free exercise of religion, (3) free speech, (4) free press, (5) assembly and petition. None are absolute — all have been limited by the Court. All of Unit 3's First Amendment cases trace back to this single sentence.