Reconstruction: The Battle Between the Branches
Learning Objectives
- Define the Reconstruction period
- Identify rights granted in the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments
- Describe the conflicts between the legislative and executive branches during this time
- Identify the powers and checks each branch used to limit the other
- Analyze the Supreme Court case United States v. Cruikshank (1876) and its impact on future laws
Overview
What happens when the branches of government don’t see eye to eye? After the Civil War, the federal government’s vision for Reconstruction led to a political battle between the legislative and executive branches over how to rebuild the country. In this lesson, students learn how Congress and the president clashed over the issue of civil rights for Freed People and how both branches used their powers and checks to try and undermine each other.