unit 1 Flashcards
enlightenment
European intellectual movement in the 18th century that had much influence over the framers of Constitution
natural rights
people are born with certain rights given by their creator, rights that cannot be taken away by anyone; theoretical state of nature where humans were free
popular sovereignty
by nature, the power to govern is in the hands of the people
social contract
in order to protect their natural rights, people willingly give away some of their power to a government (rights for safety)
republicanism
people elect leaders to represent them, powers of government are separated
limited government
a government that is prevented from tyranny through a system of checks and balances and the distribution of power among several acting members
participatory democracy
emphasizes broad participation in the political process by most, if not all, members of a society; doesn’t work with America because we’re just too big, but is seen at local levels
pluralist democracy
groups of people associate with interest groups who then compete to influence policy; giving people voice in groups, such as NAACP, National Rifle Association
elite democracy
emphasizes more limited participation in policymaking on the assumption that government is complicated and therefore only the most educated people need to run it (electoral college)
where can we see the types of democracy in the constitution?
elite democracy: elected representatives legislate on behalf of their people
pluralist democracy: first amendment’s freedom of assembly; allows political parties and interest groups to flourish
participatory democracy: first amendment’s freedoms of speech and press; allows people to express their political opinions
Brutus 1
championed a broad, participatory model; feared the curtailment of personal liberties reflected in a larger republic like the US
Federalist 10
argued that with so many competing factions in a large republic, liberty would be upheld by their competition (pluralist democracy)
federalists vs. anti-federalists
should the states ratify (accept) the new Constitution as law or no?
majority rule vs. minority rights
in a republic government, the majority will rule, but the minority shouldn’t be oppressed
factions
groups of people who believe their interests are more important than any other interest
federalist 10
Madison was concerned about factions in government; if the majority voice prevailed then the minority would never be represented…
Madison proposed solution: try to manage effects, appealing to the size and diversity of the US; too many factions in a large country, so they fight against each other and cancel out, which is why we need a large republic
ALSO double protection against tyranny of factions
brutus 1
anti-federalists were very weary of the new Constitution because it invested the federal government with a lot more power than it had under the Articles; argued about the dangers of a large, centralized government (especially necessary & proper clause and supremacy clause)
anti-federalist supporters were participatory democracy fans
“a large, centralized government cannot adequately represent the views of the people because it would be largely separated from them”
Articles of Confederation
federal government was weak, state governments were strong (monarchy hangover); only one branch of federal government: Congress
problems with Articles of Confederation
- congress had no power to raise revenue through taxes (want money? beg!)
- no power to raise an army (no national defense against both external and internal threats)
- couldn’t even pay for said army
- all 13 states had to agree to amend the articles
shay’s rebellion
war veterans were not getting paid by Congress, Congress still wanted them to pay taxes so they rebelled; no national army to stop them, made people realize that the federal government needed a lot more power to stop threats like this
Constitutional Convention
- Philadelphia, in response to problems with the articles
- OFFICIAL GOAL was to modify articles… but they actually just overthrew them after realizing how bad they were
- four big compromises
the Great Compromise
a compromise on how the people would be represented in the new Congress
Virginia plan: representation by population (large states have more power)
NJ plan: equal state representation (small states have more power)
Compromise: bicameral congress w/ two houses: House of Representatives (reps by state population) and Senate (two reps per state)
How should the president be elected? The Electoral College Compromise
each state is given the number of electors that corresponds to the number of congressional representatives that they have in the House of Representatives
state legislatures have all the power to decide who the electors are
3/5ths compromise: how would slaves be counted in state population to determine state representation in Congress?
- northern states thought slaves shouldn’t be counted at all, southern states wanted them to be counted
- compromise: 3/5ths of the slave population would be counted
importation of slaves
Congress couldn’t touch the slave trade for 20 years after the ratification of the Constitution, then it would be abolished
Article V
two state process to amend the Constitution:
- amendment can be proposed either by Congress or by states at a special convention, two thirds vote is needed to become official proposal
- then the amendment is sent to the states for ratification, 3/4 of state legislatures or state ratifying conventions need to agree for amendment to become law
Constitution was ratified when?
June 1788
stakeholders
people who look for access points in law: people who persuade policymakers for/against certain laws (legislative access point), complain or report crime to agencies (executive access point), challenge unjust and unconstitutional laws (Judicial access point)
senate’s power of advice and consent
if the president wants to make an appointment with any other federal office, they must first be approved by the Senate
executive’s power: veto
if Congress passes a law the president doesn’t like, the president can veto the law (unless overridden by 2/3 congress)
judicial power: judicial review
if the Supreme Court finds a law to be unconstitutional, it can reject it
branches of government
legislative: creates the law
executive: enforces the law
judicial: interprets the law
federalism definition!!
the sharing of power between national power and state governments
exclusive powers
specifically delegated by the Constitution to the federal government; stated in the Constitution (e.g. only Congress can make treaties with other nations, not states); stated in article 1 section 8 of Constitution
reserved powers
powers kept by the states, 10th amendment; any powers not listed in the constitution are reserved for the states (e.g. police, hospitals, education)
concurrent powers
powers shared by both federal and state governments (e.g. taxing)
fiscal federalism
power is largely shared through money: Congress can establish national standards (e.g. for education) and then direct funding to those states who achieve the standards and withhold money from states who don’t
key terms: GRANTS and MANDATES
categorical grants
given to states as long as the states comply with specific federal standards (used to persuade states to do things like integrate schools, raise the drinking age to 21)
block grants
given to states for a relatively broad purpose, states can spend that money as they see fit (e.g. money given for the prevention of crime, state decides how the money is spent, example hire more police officers)
mandates
require states to follow federal directives, but often compliance with these directives is beyond a state’s budget, so the federal government sets the rules and then provides money to help those states comply (e.g. Congress passing the Clean Air Act mandated that all states work to reduce smog acid rain, so federal government provided funds to states to help meet those mandates)
some mandates are unfunded… states hate these obviously
tenth amendment; the balance of power
lays down the basis for reserved powers (powers kept by the states)
fourteenth amendment
applies the Bill of Rights, or the first ten amendments, to the states; empowers the federal government to make sure that citizens’ liberties are also upheld by the states
commerce clause
allows Congress to regulate commerce across states (interstate)
necessary and proper clause (AKA elastic clause)
Congress can make any other law that is necessary/proper for upholding any exclusive powers (established laws)
e.g. Hamilton argued for a national bank, even though it wasn’t stated in the Constitution that we needed a national bank, we did regulate commerce and tax people, so where to manage those funds? a national bank!
McCulloch vs. Maryland (1819)
example of balance of power tipping towards federal gov
context: court ruled that the federal government had the right to set up a national bank and that states could not tax the national bank because it was an entity of the federal government
- supreme court ruled that the necessary and proper clause implied certain powers given to the federal government even if they were not explicitly mentioned in the constitution
- supremacy clause meant that whenever federal gov and state gov conflicted, federal gov wins
United States vs. Lopez (1995)
example of balance of power tipping towards states
context: commerce used the commerce clause to ban guns on school property, court ruled that carrying guns to school was not related to interstate commerce, so the federal government could not act here; up to the states to regulate guns in schools
- congress had overstepped its bounds into state authority
