Unit 1 AP Government

What are the 3 types of democracy? Describe them.

1. Participatory democracy: Direct participation of many, if not most, people in a society in government and public life

2. Pluralist democracy: People with widely varying interests team up with others to organize into non-governmental groups to exert influence on policy making

3. Elite democracy: Elected representatives make decisions for those who elected them, some people (wealthy and well-educated) have more power (Ex. Electoral college)

Where was direct democracy invented?

Athens, Ancient Greece

What is representative democracy? Where was it invented?

Few people could vote, and most of the senate came from the wealthy elite. Invented in Ancient Rome.

Describe the enlightenment

General belief: People have natural rights and the government is a social contract

Who are the enlightenment thinkers and what did they believe?

• Thomas Hobbes: strong gov. is best, people don’t need rights (popularizes social contract, but he is a hater)

• John Locke: people retain certain natural rights: life, liberty, and property (lover)

• Voltaire: People should have individual rights and freedoms (freedom of religion/speech)

• Montesquieu: Separation of power

• Rousseau: Popular sovereignty, gov. should not go against the will of the people

What was the Magna Carta?

Document that forced the king to accept that no one was above the law, and kings can’t arbitrarily tax nobles

What is the English Petition of Right?

Stated 4 things the king could not do

• No quartering of troops

• Cannot be arrested without reason

• Kings can’t declare martial law (control of civilians through the military) during peacetime

• Can’t raise taxes without parliament consent

What is the English Bill of Rights?

Gives parliament some clear powers over the king

What is the Mayflower Compact?

Gave pilgrims self-government reflecting God given right to self-rule.

• Set a precedent of being able to make some of your own decisions

What is the first colonial legislature?

The Virginia House of Burgesses. Had elected representatives (white landowners) and typically governors were appointed by the king

Describe the ideals of democracy.

• Limited government: protect natural rights

• Consent of the governed/popular sovereignty (voting)

• Separation of powers

• Checks and balances

• Federalism: Power is shared between the national government and state government

• Republicanism: People elect representatives for a limited period of time who make and execute laws in the public’s interest

What is the idea of popular sovereignty?

Government derives their power from the consent of the governed. If government becomes destructive to natural rights, people have a right/obligation to destroy it

What is the Virginia State Constitution?

• Asserts independence over the king

• Established bicameral VA General Assembly with a governor as “chief magistrate”

  • Senate

  • House of Delegates

• Voting: only property owners and wealthy men

  • Representation was assigned by county, not based on population

What is the Articles of Confederation?

• First government of the United States

• One house legislature (2-7 delegates per state. Each state has one vote)

• No executive branch or national court

• 9/13 states had to agree to make laws and all 13 to amend the AOC

• No ability to regulate commerce or coin money

• Lack of centralized military power

Describe the economic troubles the country initially faced and the major event that arose from it.

Small farmers could not pay their debt, but state legislatures sometimes pass laws helping them (not popular with the wealthy)

• Shays’s Rebellion: Farmers rebelled against courts foreclosing on farms (most were veterans)

• Massachusetts paid higher taxes than before the revolution

• Congress cannot stop the rebellion, so the wealthy elites did

Describe the Constitutional Convention.

• Purpose: address weaknesses of the AOC

• Delegates knew that they would be writing the new Constitution due to impossibility of unanimous approval

• BIG ISSUE: factions: groups (religious or otherwise) who they are worried might take over for economic reasons

• IDEAS HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY LOCKE

Describe the roles of the attendees of the Constitutional Convention.

• Gouverneur Morris: loud speaker at the Constitutional Convention. Argued the principle objective of government is to preserve individual right to hold property and wealth

• Washington: president of the convention

• Hamilton: important advocate for strong central government (Federalist Papers)

• James Madison: “Father of the Constitution”, wrote most of the Bill of Rights

  • One delegate from each state made up the “Grand Committee”

Describe the problem of representation in the Constitutional Convention and its solution.

• Problem: larger states want representation based on populations since they have much more people, while smaller states want equal representation in government

• New Jersey Plan: Each state is equally represented

• Virginia Plan: Each state is represented by population

• The Great Compromise: Two houses (Senate and the House of Representatives

Describe the problem of the Slavery in the Constitutional Convention and its solution.

• Problem: south wants to prolong slavery since it is making them a lot of money while the north wants to abolish it

• 3/5 Compromise: a slave counts as a 3/5 of a person (also helped with the voting issue

• Slave trade cannot be touched for 20 more years

• Runaway slaves must be returned (makes north compliant with slavery)

Describe the problem of a direct democracy vs. republic in the Constitutional Convention and its solution.

• Problem: should there be universal suffrage? Delegates fear mob rule

• Voting issue is left to the states

• HoR will be directly elected while the senate will be appointed

Describe the problem of electoral issues in the Constitutional Convention and its solution.

• Problem: states had tariffs against each other, paper money was worthless when moved across states, and congress was having trouble raising money

• Made it so congress could raise revenue (tax and borrow) and appropriate funds

• Commerce Compromise: Congress can regulate trade between states and impose tariffs on imports but not exports

• Outlawed state tariffs and state monetary system (cannot coin money) and required states to respect civil judgments and contracts made in other states

Describe the economic problems in the Constitutional Convention and their solutions.

• Problem: states had tariffs against each other, paper money was worthless when moved across states, and congress was having trouble raising money

• Made it so congress could raise revenue (tax and borrow) and appropriate funds

• Commerce Compromise: Congress can regulate trade between states and impose tariffs on imports but not exports

• Outlawed state tariffs and state monetary system (cannot coin money) and required states to respect civil judgments and contracts made in other states

What were the Founding Father’s plans to stop tyranny?

• Place as much of the government as possible beyond the direct control of the majority

  • Judges: lifelong terms

  • Only HoR is directly elected

• Separate the powers of different institutions

• Construct a system of checks and balances

Describe the system of checks and balances.

• Executive: veto bill from becoming law, carry out laws, appoint justices

• Legislative:

  • Congress: Control budget, approve presidential nominations, impeach president

  • House: remove from office, (requires 2/3 of the senate)

  • Judicial: (not yet) judicial review

What are the 5 individual rights states were expected to protect?

1. Habeas Corpus (right to a hearing)

2. Prohibits states from passing bills of attainder

3. Prohibits Congress or states from passing ex post facto laws

4. Cannot impose religious qualifications for holding office in national government

5. Upholds right to trial by jury in criminal cases

What are the first 7 articles of the Constitution?

• Article I: legislative (congress)

• Article II: executive

• Article III: judicial

• Article IV: Unimportant

• Article V: How to amend (2/3 of senate and HoR and ¾ of states. They made it INTENTIONALLY DIFFICULT)

• Article VI: supreme law of the land is the Constitution (supremacy clause)

• Article VIII: Ratification

What were the main ideas of the federalists?

• Strong national government with executive branch

• Indirect election of officials (more elite model)

• Thought checks and balances protected the rights of the states and individuals

What were the ideas of the anti-federalists

• Strong state government 

• Direct election of officials (more participatory democracy)

• Government by common man, check the elites

• Wanted Bill of Rights to protect people

Federalist 10 (Madison)

• Argues there will always be factions in society

  • In a small government, it is more likely for factions to take over

• Large government leads to competing interest which check each other

  • Elected representatives find it easier to look out for the public good

Brutus I (Yates)

• Government should represent the will of the people which is hard if it is large and distant (essentially, direct democracy is best)

• Necessary and Proper Clause and Supremacy Clause gives government unchecked powers

What is a bill and how is it passed?

A proposed law. Can originate in the House or the Senate, and passes with a majority vote. (President can sign or veto bill, but congress can override with 2/3 of both houses)

How can citizens contact the three branches?

1. Legislative: People can contact representatives and form interest groups to lobby congress

2. Executive: Interact with many agencies

3. Judicial: Can use federal courts to challenge government action

What is a confederation system of rule?

Form of government where the states influence the central government, and the people of the state (central government and people neve interact)

What is a federal system of rule?

Form of government where the national government influences the states which influence the people of the state

What is a unitary system of rule?

Form of government where the national government directly influences the people

How do the federal governments powers nullify the 10th and 14th amendments?

The 10th amendment states that powers give to the federal government are few and defined, and the powers left to states are indefinite. The 14th amendment states that states cannot deprive anyone of life, liberty, and property without due process under the law, nor deny any personal equal protection under the law. Because of the Necessary and Proper Clause, Commerce Clause, and general Welfare Clause, the 10th and 14th amendments are nullified. The national government is now more powerful than the states.

Describe the interstate powers.

Sates can sign compacts (deals) with each other in which SCOTUS has original jurisdiction on the event of a dispute

What is the Full Faith and Justice Clause?

Each state must recognize the laws, public records, and court decisions of every other state

What is extradition?

A fugitive from one state must be returned to the state where they committed the crime

What is the Privileges and Immunities Clause?

Citizens from one state must be treated the same as citizens of other states (some exceptions like college pricing, etc.)

What are some powers exclusive to federal and state governments?

Federal

• Uniform weights and measures

• National currency

• Military and foreign affairs

• Defining immigration

• Regulating interstate commerce

• Tariffs

State

• Managing elections

• Marriage laws

• Prisons

• Schools

• Police powers (create and enforce laws on health, safety, and morals)

What is a concurrent power? Give examples.

Powers that federal and state governments share

• Levying and collecting taxes

• Creating courts (criminal justice laws)

• Borrowing money

• Claiming private property for public use

• Education powers

Describe McCulloch v Maryland.

• Congress has broad implied powers (in this case to establish a federal bank)

  • Argued it was necessary and proper

• States cannot interfere in congressional Laws (in this case, by taxing the bank)

  • It was ruled his was a violation of the Supremacy Clause (bank won’t work if taxed which violates congress’s will)

*FAVORED FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Describe US v Lopez

• Ruled congress cannot rely on Commerce Clause to prohibit guns around a public school

  • No Guns in School Zones Act is a state act

  • Congress cannot tell you not to bring a gun to school, but states can

*FAVORED STATE GOVERNMENT

What are the two types of federalism?

1. Dual Federalism (layered cake)

• Federal and state governments share power, and there is a fixed division of power. Powers of the national government should be interpreted narrowly

• Selected exclusiveness: Congress may regulate commerce only when it requires a national, uniform rule

2. Cooperative Federalism (marble cake)

• Federal and state governments share power (although federal is typically dominant)

  • Government has moved toward cooperative federalism post-industrial revolution (we have to have public necessities somehow)

• Federal and state governments share costs (Ex. Federal government gives states money for a program if states pay a part of the bill)

• Shared administration: Federal government sets policy but it is administered at state level

What is a categorical grant?

• Main source of federal aid. Set requirements on how the money is used

• First type, project (competitive) grants: Awarded based on applications

• Second type, formula grants: Distributed according to a formula

What is a block grant?

Money given to states without string attached on how to use it (congress does not like these)

Describe mandates and the act surrounding them.

• Mandate: Requires states to comply with a federal directive

• Unfunded Mandate Reform Act: Congress cannot pass a mandate and not give states a stipend to pay for them (Ex. Medicaid)

Describe the Clean Air Act.

Federal law that regulates air pollution by controlling emissions from sources nationwide.

What are the pros and cons of federalism?

Pros

• Diversity of policy

• Drives interest in public affairs

• States serve as laboratories to test policies

Cons

• Policies can be confusing

• Basic inequalities (ex. education spending)

• State and local government can obstruct national policy (ex. civil rights)

• What’s good for one state may not be good for a country