What are the opening words of the Preamble to the United States Constitution?
Answer
We the People
The opening words of the Preamble to the United States Constitution are “We the People.”
The Preamble introduces the Constitution and summarizes its broad purposes. It continues by naming goals including forming a more perfect Union, establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing liberty.
The wording marked an important change from earlier national documents. The Articles of Confederation described a union of states, while “We the People” presented the Constitution as an act of the people of the United States rather than merely an agreement among state governments.
Gouverneur Morris of Pennsylvania is generally credited with leading the drafting of the final Preamble during the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The Preamble itself does not grant specific governmental powers, but it provides a concise statement of the Constitution’s purposes and has influenced how the document is understood.