Informal Constitutional Amendments – How Congress Can Amend the Constitution
When most people think of amending the United States Constitution, they probably imagine a formal process involving Congress passing a proposed amendment with two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate, followed by ratification by three-fourths of the states. However, there is another way that the Constitution can be amended, through informal means. Congress can apply an informal amendment to the Constitution by passing a law or interpreting the Constitution in a new way.
How Informal Amendments Work
An informal amendment to the Constitution happens when a constitutional principle is changed by Congress without actually changing the wording of the Constitution. Over time, opinions and interpretations of the Constitution change, and Congress is forced to adapt its laws to these new interpretations. One example of an informal amendment is the Supreme Court ruling of Miranda v. Arizona in 1966 that extended the Fifth Amendment protection to include the “right to remain silent” warning that police must give to detained suspects.
Another example is the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which banned racial discrimination in all public accommodations, regardless of whether the facility was covered by the Commerce Clause. The Act extended the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce beyond the bounds of the original meaning of the Constitution. These are both examples of informal amendments to the Constitution.
Why Informal Amendments are Necessary
Every society undergoes changes over time. New challenges arise, social norms transform, and advances in technology require new laws to be created. The Constitution, while it has been amended multiple times, is not flexible enough to keep up with all of these changes. As a result, Congress must find a way to adapt the Constitution to modern circumstances without completely rewriting it. Informal amendments to the Constitution, while they do not change the actual words of the Constitution, allow for changes to be made to how those words are interpreted.
Conclusion
The Constitution is the backbone of the United States’ legal system. While it has remained largely unchanged since its inception, there have been over 11,000 proposed amendments to the Constitution, 33 of which have been ratified. Informal amendments may not be recognized as such by the general public, but they play a critical role in keeping the Constitution relevant and up-to-date with the times. Congress must continue to find ways to adapt the Constitution to address the challenges of the modern world, while also maintaining the principles upon which it was founded.
