What
are the major disadvantages of our written constitution?
1. The complicated
government it sets up, with power distributed between two houses of
Congress and three branches, is prone
to gridlock. Our government is not designed for
efficiency, but rather to best protect liberty.
2. Because the Constitution is so hard to amend, we are stuck with anachronistic provisions
that most people think are a bad idea. (Some might argue,
e.g., this is true of our use of electors to choose a president, the
right to bear arms, or the right to a jury trial in federal cases
involving more than $20.)