First Changes Made - Amendments of the 1800s - Reading Comprehension
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First Changes Made - Amendments of the 1800s Reading Comprehension
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First Changes Made - Amendments of the 1800s
By Phyllis Naegeli 		  
1     It's a good thing the framers of our constitution made a way to change it. Before it was approved by the states, changes were needed. In 1791, the Bill of Rights became the first ten amendments to our constitution. As America grew, other areas needed to change too. Since that time, seventeen amendments have been added. The first changes happened in the 1800s.
 
2     Amendment 11 was passed to change a Supreme Court decision on state rights. When a citizen of South Carolina sued the state of Georgia, the Supreme Court took the case. It decided against Georgia. Many people were upset. They said that states could not be sued. Congress stepped in and proposed Amendment 11. It changed part of Article III, Section 2 of the constitution. The federal courts can no longer hear cases where a citizen of one state sues another state. The federal courts are also barred from hearing cases brought against a state by a foreign nation. A state must agree to a suit. That suit must be heard in the state's court system.
 
3     Amendment 12 changed the way the Electoral College was used to choose our president and vice-president. Article 2, Section 1 of the constitution states electors are to meet in their states and cast a ballot for president. The winner would be president, and the runner-up would be vice-president. At first, the process went smoothly. George Washington unanimously won the first two elections. The next two elections also were without problems. However, the election of 1800 wasn't as simple. By this time, political parties had been formed in America. Loyalties were divided between the two parties. When Aaron Burr and Thomas Jefferson received an equal number of electoral votes, the House of Representatives had to decide who would be president. It took thirty-six votes before they finally chose Thomas Jefferson.

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