When I started studying the Constitution, I was struck both by how much I had not been taught in school, and how much of what I was taught was wrong. Based on the questions I’ve been asked and the assertions that have been presented to me, a lack of knowledge about the Constitution is almost universal in America. As I watch news coverage, politicians, pundits, and everyday people make claims about the different parts of government can do, can’t do, or is required to do, it has become obvious that a basic understanding of how the United States government is organized is not only needed, but missing. So I’m starting a three-part series explaining the roles of the three branches of government. We’ll start where the Constitution starts, the legislative branch.