Chapter 10 Section 1 pg. 176 - 182 Flashcards
Describe the type of republic US is
> US is constitutional republic (republic governed by a written constitution)
may also be described as a federal republic
federalism has to do with division of power among governments within a nation
federal system is one that divides political power between national government and state governments
countries with federal system: US, Canada, Germany, and Australia
Describe the unitary system
> central (national) government possesses all of the power and rules through local governments
most common division in world today
examples: Great Britain, France, and Israel
describe the confederacy system
> local units possess all political and delegate select powers to national government
historical examples: US 1st organized government under Articles of Confederation and Confederate States of America during Civil War
Why did America’s Founding Fathers choose to establish a federal republic?
> they already had a strong dislike for monarchy because of their experience with King George III
they believed in the biblical teaching of fallen man and sinful nature
they realized that whether powers of small group of men, or in mass of people, sinful human nature makes concentration of power in any one place dangerous
they were convinced that political power should be divided among competing groups
they did not want political power to rest in the hands of any one person or group of people so they divided power up among different levels of government (national, state, local) and separated power within each level (legislature, executive, judicial)
About how many organizations have governmental power in US?
> little more than 85,000 governments including states, counties, towns, townships, cities, special districts, and national government in Washington, D.C.
How many governments does the US Constitution mention?
> only 2: national government (also called central or federal government) and state governments
What does the federal principle provide our constitutional republic of America?
> it is a cornerstone of our constitutional republic
provides balance of power and restraint against tyranny
preserves our rights and liberties as citizens of US
What are the 2 ways the Founders incorporated the federal principle in our Constitution?
(1) by dividing power between national government and state government
(2) by describing obligations that those governments must accord each other
Give examples of powers denied to both national and state government
> cannot pass bills of attainder and ex post facto laws
>cannot grant titles of nobility
Give examples of powers denied to state government
> cannot coin money
cannot impair obligations of contracts
cannot enter into treaties with foreign countries
cannot craft interstate agreements without congressional approval
Give examples of powers denied to national government
> cannot require any religious test of an officeholder
cannot lay duties on items exported from any state
cannot establish religion
cannot issue warrants
cannot commit cruel and unusual punishment
Give examples of powers exercised by both national and state government
> powers exercised by both national and state government are called concurrent powers
power to tax
power to borrow money
Give examples of powers granted to national government
> Constitution delegates some powers to national government. These powers are called delegated powers.
power to regulate interstate commerce
power to declare war
Define expressed powers
> expressed powers - delegated powers expressly stated in the Constitution
Define implied powers
> implied powers - delegated powers that are implied in the Constitution but not expressly stated
not as definite because they do not rest solidly on Constitution; instead, depend upon interpretation of federal judges
