Chapter 2 Flashcards
what were the origins of the U.S. gov.
- theoretical
- Historic
- practical
theoretical
US was built upon governmental concepts that had been discussed and developed for centuries
Historic
the roots of modern government progressed based on historical decisions and actions
practical
the US government was designed to address the issues of the dat
the US was built after what?
the British Traditions
Britain was the__
country of the magna carta
rule of law
all people, including the monarchy. had to abide by the laws
Representative System
had established a parliament to represent the people
US was a product of what?
The enlightenment
the enlightenment
philosophical movement from 1650-1800
- attempted to apply logic and reason to all aspects of life
- tried to fix social and political institutions that could not be rationally defended
- placed great value on freedom and equality
examples of enlightenment thinkers
- John Locke
- Voltaire
- Montesquieu
John Locke
- argued that all people had natural rights (life, liberty, and property)
- gov.’s purpose was to protect these rights, otherwise that gov. was unjust
Voltaire
- argued that people have basic freedoms
- religion and free speech being 2 of the most important
Montesquieu
- defined Gov. power as legislative, executive, judicial powers
- argued these powers should be divided to prevent tyranny
The beginning of independence
started with the 13 colonies
colonies considered uniting
- Albany confrence-> Albany plan of union
taxation without representation
the 13 colonies were
- each founded independently by different people at different times
- all loyal to England, but had no other connection
- most colonies were founded for 1 or 2 reasons
reasons most colonies were founded
- religion (northern colonies)
- Profit (southern colonies)
Albany conference
meeting of norther colonial delegates in preparation for French and Indian war
Albany plan of union
ben franklins idea for all 13 colonies to have a yearly meeting (congress) and permanent colonial government
- This plan was rejected
Taxation without representation
following French and indian war, England raised taxes to pay debts
- Main policy was the Stamp Act of 1765
- beginning of taxation without representation
- was repealed after the stamp congress of 1765, but tensions continued to rise
- ultimately led to Boston massacre(1770) and Boston tea party(1773)
1st continental congress
In the fall of 1774 in Philadelphia
- response to the intolerable acts (new taxes)
- 12 colonies sent delegates (Georgia didn’t)
- sent a declaration of rights to King George III
- He respectfully declines
- started boycott trade with Britain
2nd continental congress
-In May of 1775 in Philadelphia
=after revolutionary war began (April 19th, 1775)
-All colonies sent delegates
-John Hancock was elected president of congress and George Washington appointed commander-in-chief
- Formally issued the Declaration of Independence July 4th, 1776
Sequence of Events
Started with 13 colonies, considered uniting, Albany conference, taxation without representation, Stamp act of 1765, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea party, 1st continental congress (sent declaration of rights to king), 2nd continental congress(formally issued declaration of independence)
structure of the declaration of independence
- introduction
- preamble
- indictment
- denunciation
- conclusion
- signatures
first article, executive power is concerned with what?
Conflict, refugee’s, environment,
global health
Chief of Party
When you are the leader of the political party, and the nominee, Obama passing the torch to hillary clinton
Preamble
- We think this is obvious, but all people have natural rights
- Gov. is created to
- Citizens have a right to abolish a “bad” gov. and to create a new gov. that will secure their safety and happiness
- Its easier to suffer, instead of making a stand and “breaking up”
Declaration and Slavery
- wrote about life liberty and pursuit of happiness, while owning slaves??
After the Declaration
- Colonies were officially sovereign
- Spoiler alert: ultimately won the war
- Following the war, needed to create a new Gov from scratch (1st in modern West. Civ)
The articles of confederation
- 1st official government of the US
- seen as a ‘league of friendship’ among the states
1 Branch
the legislative
Unicameral
-(one house) congress with delegates from each of the colonies
= Each state had 1 vote regardless of size. population or wealth
=Powers
+to make war or peace
+ Send and receive ambassadors
+ Make treaties
+Borrow money
+ raise an army by asking for the States for troops
+settle disputes among States
powers of unicameral
\+to make war or peace \+ Send and receive ambassadors \+ Make treaties \+Borrow money \+ raise an army by asking for the States for troops \+settle disputes among States
What was called to fix the articles?/ what states were there?
-A grand convention, in May 1787
-wasn’t intended, but it became the constitutional convention
-12 states sent delegates to Philadelphia (Rhode Island didn’t)
= delegates became known as the framers of the constitution
=Notable members: James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, Ben Franklin
+ Thomas Jefferson was not included, He was in France
What was the first major decision of the framers?
to create a completely new government (was impacted by Shay’s rebellion)
Shays’ Rebellion
- Armed uprising by poor farmers in western Massachusetts in early 1787
=led by Daniel Shays (Revolutionary war VET) - occurred due to debts and poor conditions
- was ultimately crushed, but what problem with the articles did Shays’ rebellion illustrate?
what problem with the articles did Shays’ rebellion illustrate?
Convinced the founding fathers that the articles must be replaced, we needed a military to settle uprisings
what were the 2 views of shays rebellion?
Jefferson: It is natural to refresh our government from time to time because of patriots and tyrants, does not think this is a negative.
Washington: We need stability or we will not have a government, eventually if rebellion continues, it will crumble
what were the 2 views of shays rebellion?
Jefferson: It is natural to refresh our government from time to time because of patriots and tyrants, does not think this is a negative.
Washington: We need stability or we will not have a government, eventually if rebellion continues, it will crumble
what was the first thing the Framers agreed upon when creating the constitution
our new government would need 3 branches
- the structure of these branches led to major debates and divisions
- 1st major dilemma was the legislative branch (started here because government starts with legislation, nothing can happen without laws)
2 major plans composed during the creation of the constitution
Virginia Plan and New Jersey plan
Virginia Plan
- Developed by James Madison
- Bicameral: 2 chambers- senate and House of Reps (both based on population)
- Large states supported this- had more power
- flaw: skewed power for large states
New Jersey plan
- Developed by William Patterson
- Unicameral: 1 house with equal representation for all (1 state= 1 vote)
- Small states supported this- it preserved their power
- flaw: skewed power for small states
The great compromise
-solution to the different plans
=suggested by Roger Sherman of Connecticut
-Compromise of the 2 plans
= kept bicameral set up of virginia plan
+set up 1 house based on population (HoR)
+ Another with equal reps (Senate)
Problem with the great compromise
Whether slaves/ women count as a population or not
- solution is the 3/5th’s compromise
3/5th’s compromise
began with question of whether slaves should count in population
-north against, south for
-Aware of the contradiction of slavery and freedom, but none willing to debate the morality of the issue
Agreed that ‘other persons’ should count as 3/5th’s of a person (‘slave’ didn’t appear in constitution)
- deleted from constitution after the 13th amendment (1865)
Commerce and slave trade compromise
-congress could not tax goods exported from ay state
-congress was forbidden to act on the slave trade for at least 20 years
= this would become an issue
when was the constitution released?
september 17th, 1787
The fight for ratification
- only 40 of the 55 delegates at the convention actually signed the constitution
- arguments over the new constitution soon rose between 2 factions:
- federalists
- antifederalists
article 7 of constitution
the ratification of the conventions of 9 states shall be sufficient for the establishment of this consituion between the states so ratifying the same
federalist
someone in favor of a strong federal (national, central) government
- generally wealthier urban and “elite”
- James madison, alexander hamilton, John Jay, washington, Ben franklin
anti federalist
Someone who opposed the federal (national, central) government
- generally poorer and rural, the “common man”
- George Mason, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee
Debate over the constitution
-an “out-of-doors” debate raged in newspapers and pamphlets throughout america’s 13 states
what did the anti federalists do to newspapers?
flooded them with attacks on the constitution, which were signed sept 17, 1787
federalist papers
were extended in response to the relentless, and effective, antifederalist criticism
- written by james madison, alex hamilton, and john jay
- 85 total essays
Anti federalist paper#1
- Compares the presidency to monarchs
- says that These people are deceiving us, and think that the federalists just want all of the power, and to be suspicious of this document
Anti federalist paper#9
- Mocking the aristocrats
-
Anti federalist paper #46
- they’re calling out the powers of congress, saying it is too ambiguous and do not trust them,
- while we trust them now, how can we know we will trust them in 5 years?
Anti federalist paper #84
- Focuses on rights, and making sure everyone is equal and that no one can take away their rights
- flaw: the constitution lacks a bill of rights (rights we have that the government can not take)
Federalist paper #1
- The author is warning the people that a weak government is worse than a strong government ***
Federalist paper #10
- find a way to get statesman into power
- arguing that a republic is better than a democracy, because a larger republic is harder for a faction to control
Federalist paper #51
- If people were perfect we would not need government.
- we have checks and balances, so that no one branch has the opportunity to abuse their power
federalist paper #84
- we don’t need a bill of rights
- it is dangerous because these are the only rights that you get, and the government controls everything that is unsaid
after what states ratification was the constitution official
New Hampshire
Which states votes were most important/ why?
Virginia/ new York, because they were the largest population and wealthiest. “California of its time”
A bundle of compromises
- franklin defended the famers
- major criticism of the constitution
How and why was the constitution created???*******
think: earlier political documents revolutionary era articles of confederation compromises
