Unit 1A: Heritage of the Constitution Flashcards
Democracy
Supreme authority rests with the people
Dictatorship
Single person or group holds all the power
Oligarchy
Self appointed elite
dictatorship
Representative Democracy
Republic
Citizens elect their others to represent them in government
Direct Democracy
Citizens participate in the government directly
Presidential Democracy
People elect an executive and the members of a legislative branch
Parliamentary Democracy
People elect the legislative branch and the legislative branch elects and executive
Sovereignty
Supreme and absolute powers
Divine Right Theory:
- God gave those of royal birth the right to rule.
people bound to obey their ruler as if they were God. - Democracy developed to challenge this idea during the Age of Reason
Natural Rights
John Locke
- Life, Liberty and Property
- All men are born with this rights, they are god given and should never be taken away
Purpose of Government
John Locke
- To protect man’s natural rights
Social Contract Theory
John Locke
- Consent of the governed comes from the people
- People give up absolute freedom in exchange for protection of their natural rights (life, liberty and property). If the government fails to protect the people’s natural rights they have a right to revolt.
Montesquieu
- Separation of Power and Checks and balances
- Spirit of Laws
Rousseau
- Government exists to serve the will of the people
- Direct Democracy
Thomas Hobbes
- Absolute monarchy is the best form of government
- Give up freedoms to the sovereign who will then create stability in society – cannot revolt
Enlightenment’s impact on democracy/American Revolution
- Inspired democratic ideas about the rights of man
Philosophies of the Enlightenment - motivated colonists to unite and stand up for their rights
Concepts reflected in this document?
Magna Carta
- Rule of Law
- Limited Government
What is Included?
Declaration of Independance
- Basic rights,
- wrongs done by King,
- natural rts,
- government exists only with people’s permission,
- people may change or abolish government,
- colonists intentions
Political ideas expressed/Concepts and ideas coming from John Locke
Declaration of Independance
- Natural rights of man,
- equality,
- consent comes from the people,
- right to revolt
Majority of the document contains:
Declaration of Independance
Wrongs done by the king – ways the king violated the rights of the colonists
Structure of Government
Article of Confederation
- First attempt at self-government in the United States
- Unicameral
- Each state getting one vote
- No executive or judicial branch
- No president, only a presiding officer
Why set up this way?
Articles of Confederation
- Did not want a central authority like the British system
- Fearful of a central government with too much power so purposely limited its powers so it could not abuse it
Weaknesses
Articles of Confederation
- Not enough powers given to Congress
- No power to tax
- No power to regulate trade
- No power to make states obey the Articles
- No court system
- Amendment only with consent of all states
- 9 out of 13 states to pass a law
Popular Sovereignty:
Basic Concepts of the Constitution
Political power resides with the people. “We the people”
Limited Government:
Basic Concepts of the Constitution
Government must operate within the bounds set by the people
Federalism:
Basic Concepts of the Constitution
Division of power between a National government and several local (state) governments
