1) c.1850- US political system Flashcards
What made up Congress?
(The whole Legislative)
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES-
- 400 members
- no. of members based on state population, supposed to rep what pop was thinking
- elected every 2 years- long term consq: really short-term focus on getting elected not thinking of people
SENATE-
- 100 members
- 2x members from each state
- 6 year terms (staggered: 1/3 every 2 years)
What were the 3 branches of gov?
Legislative- make laws
Executive- enforce laws
Judicial- interpret laws
What made up the Executive?
President
VP, Cabinet
- a system where pres. doesn’t have all the power- don’t want a repeat of King George.
What made up Judicial?
Supreme Court
US Court of Appeal
US District Courts
What is bipartisanship?
consensus/ close cooperation between 2 major parties eg. after 9/11.
What is a divided government?
a situation in which one political party controls the presidency + another controls one or both houses of Congress.
Why were Americans proud of their political system?
- many mid 19th cent. many As considered themselves the world’s most fortunate + civilised people, as had the most democratic system of gov in the world, and one of the most prospering, enterprising nations.
- republic, federal, democratic system the pride of As, envied by British + European radicals.
How was the system democratic?
- a system of Cs and Bs to prevent any branch having too much power to be able to tyrannize the people/ groups to ride over the rights of others.
- suffrage was far more dem. than Britain.
- frequent state level elections
How was the system not democratic?
- many Native As had lost their land to Eng settlers
- many other ethnic groups underrepresented, esp. African As whose ancestors had been transported to A as slaves.
- ^ very fact that slavery continues in South seems undem. + defiant of the constitution’s statement that ‘All men are created equal’.
- limits to suffrage- women and most black people couldn’t vote
- 2 party system of whigs v democrats
How was federal government more powerful than state govs?
- new states had to apply for statehood to Congress via a constitution once they reached a pop exceeding 60,000 in order to lose territorial status
- laws/ treaties created by Congress superior to ay state law- deemed supreme court of the land
- state govs forbidden from waging war, engaging in diplomacy, coining money or laying duties on imports
- fed gov got to maintain constitution/ laws/ treaties created under it
How were state govs more powerful than fed gov?
- often a divided gov in fed- difficult to do much as rarely one party had control over the executive, Congress, and Supreme court at the same time
- president more of a figurehead than a policy maker, Congress rarely passed any major leg.
- state govs could: decide whether to abolish slavery/ decide who could vote in HoR elections/ exercise jurisdiction in many imp areas of civil + criminal law
What were early political divisions?
- Ps not mentioned in const- founding fathers didn’t want parties- all decided GW would be president- feard rise of parties- felt partisanship would tear apart the young nation, but they emerged early on
- FEDERALISTS (Hamilton):
want a strong federal, central gov - DEMOCRATIC REPUBLICANS (Jefforson):
want state power
3rd parties don’t win, often ideas get incorporated into main 2
How was the president powerful?
- commander-in-cheif of the navy + army
- signature required to pass acts of Congress into law
- could veto acts of Congress*
- conclude treaties, make imp appointments eg. judges + diplomats**
How was the president not so powerful?
- *veto could be overridden by a 2/3 vote of both houses
- **needed Senate approval/ in assoc w/ Senate
- needs Senate approval to appoint Supreme Court members (into final court of appeal)
- system built in a way where pres wouldn’t have too much power- King George
- more of a figurehead than a policy maker
What were Whig views?
SPOKE TO HOPE OF As
- opponents of AJ
- modernisation/ future
- Federal rights
- wanted federal + state gov to promote economic growth esp transportation + banks
- reforms to prison, public schools, temperance
- entrepreneurs- industry/ urban growth/ free labor
- GRADUAL territirial expansion over slow time (opposed Mexican War - war in general) + progress through int. growth.
- commercial expansion favoured in the North
What were Democrat views?
SPOKE TO FEARS OF As
- supporters of AJ
- looked backward to the past/ tradition
- opposed banks + corporation as state-legislated, economic privilige
- opposed state-legislated reforms and preferred individual freedom of choice
- agrarians- farms and rural independence + right to own slaves
- rapid territorial expansion by purchase of WAR
- territorial expansion favoured in the South
Explain the 2 party system?
- President JACKSON the CATALYST in the development of the 2 Ps
-central issues divide the electorate- early decades of republic, the EXTENT OF FED. POWER dominated - 2 parties not operating nationally, like universal today- assortments of state parties that only came together every 4 years to nominate pres candidates + devise national platforms
What were Democrat ideologies?
agrarianism
slavery
state rights
What were Whig ideologies?
urbanisation
indutrialisation
federal rights
How did the Whig party come about?
1834, political opponents of AJ organised to context him, but unable to organise a pres candidate in 1836
- so more of a temporary coalition of desperate politicians
leader- Henry Clay
whigs- name of the English ANTIMONARCHIST party- STIGMITISED AJ as ‘King Andrew’
How did the Democrat Party come about?
FIRST MODERN POL P
- in wake of 1824 election- AJ won popular vote but not a maj of electoral votes- HoR chose JQA to be pres
- AJ’s supporters org Democratic P to oppose the Adams Administration
- first GRASSROOTS party- building support from the ground up
-AJ elected as pres in 1828 election- replaces JQA!
