Unit 3 History

Prep for unit 3 test –– The Constitution, Federalists/DRs, Washington and Adams Administrations. NO DATES QUESTIONS.

Constitutional Convention

Representatives from each state come to replace the AOC

The Constitution

• Preamble + 7 articles (know first 3)

  • 1st article: legislative branch

    • MOST VALUE + EMPHASIS because most directly represents the people

  • 2d article: executive branch

  • 3d article: judicial branch

• More central gov. than AOC

• Intentionally vague

Article 1: Legislative branch

• Law making body w/ elected reps

• Two houses of representation to compromise (weighted or unweighted rep.?)

  • Senate + House of Reps

Senate

• First body of leg. branch

• Based on equal representation between states

• 100 senators (2 per state)

• 6 year terms

• In Constitution, state legislatures voted for them, not the ppl

  • Changed with 17th amendment, ppl vote instead

Requirements to be a senator

1. 30+ years old

2. Citizen of the state you represent

3. US citizen for 9+ years

House of Representatives

• Proportional rep. between states

• Today, 435 reps (# per state recalculated every 10 yrs)

• Citizens can only vote for the rep of their district

• Serve 2 years (idea that it needs to be more variable)

Key special requirements:

• Taxation laws must start with House of Reps (not Senate)

  • More reflective of “no taxation without rep”

How are laws made

1. Idea sent to reps, they make a bill

2. House of Reps & Senate must agree over 50%

3. Goes to president––signs or vetoes it

4. If vetoed, goes back to both houses for 2/3 vote

Article 2: Executive branch

• 3 entities: president, vice president, cabinet

  • President has 4 year terms, 2 term limit by 22d amendment. VP has 4 year terms but no limit

• Carries out and enforces the laws

To be president

• Must be 35+ years old

• Natural-born citizen of the US

• Must have lived in the US for 14+ years

Powers of the president

1. Nominates Supreme Court justices (50+ in Senate), federal judges, cabinet, ambassadors

2. Issue executive orders (MUST affect only executive branch)

3. Commander in chief of army

4. Negotiate treaties

5. Pardon people

Electoral College

• Written explicitly in Constitution

• Dems/repubs vote for reps, who vote for the expected president

• Maine and Nebraska a little different

• Electors = senators + house of reps

• Win 270 of 538

Article 3: Judicial branch

• Creates a federal court system

• Supreme Court

  • Highest court in US, final say

  • Determines things as constitutional or not

  • 9 of them (1 chief)

  • No term limits, no party affiliations

Key ideas from Constitution

• System of checks and balances to prevent corruption

  • They have to work together

• Federalism: process by which you divide powers between federal and states

Amending the Constitution

• Difficult

• Both houses propose a change, needs 2/3 vote. Then, 75% of states must vote for it

Constitution and slavery

• Unclear

• The 3/5 clause: slaves count as 3/5 of a person (compromise, trying to get more electoral votes)

• Ban on slave importation

  • Another compromise

Federalists

• Northern, more educated, richer

• Like strong federal gov.

• Over time, become the Republicans

• More organized and popular

Anti-federalists (Democratic Republicans)

• Southern, farmers/plantation owners

• Want stronger state gov, democracy, and protection of rights

• Over time, become the democrats

• Able to hold up ratification of Constitution (?)

Bill of Rights (MEMORIZE THE 10)

First 10 amendments protecting individual rights:

1. Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, petition

2. Right to keep and bear arms

3. No quartering soldiers

4. No unreasonable searches and seizures

5. Criminal protection (must be tried only once, right to remain silent)

6. Guarantees speedy trial and impartial jury

7. Right to trial over civil disputes

8. Prohibits excessive and unusual punishment

9. Unlisted right belong to ppl

10. Unlisted powers belong to states or ppl

Negative rights

• Highlights restrictions on governments (what they CAN’T do)

• Bill of Rights and Constitution = negatives

Positive rights

• Highlights what governments MUST do

Federalist key figures

• Alexander Hamilton

• George Washington

• John Adams

Believe that Constitution suggests more than what’s written

Democratic Republican key figures

• Thomas Jefferson

• James Madison

Believe Constitution says what it says, stricter

Alexander Hamilton

• Believes America should be globally competitive

• The money guy (capitalist)

Thomas Jefferson

• Believes the point of the Revolution was to create an ideal nation, not a company

George Washington

• First president, previously commander of Constitutional Army

• No party affiliation technically

• No children = no monarchy

Washington Administration

• Has both feds and DRs

• Key players:

  • Vice president: John Adams (F)

  • Treasury Secretary: Alexander Hamilton (F)

  • Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson (DR)

The First National Bank

• Expands legislative branch (Congress can make this addition)

• Proposed by Hamilton to better handle money

• Justified under “necessary and proper” clause

• Jefferson thinks money needs to be decentralized

• Fear that if fed. gov gets more economic power, they might ban slavery

The Proclamation of Neutrality

• Expands executive branch

• Questioned involvement with French Rev

• Jefferson wants to be inspirational, Hamilton wants to be money-smart

• Loose interpretation––Constitution declares war, but can president declare neutrality?

The Whiskey Rebellion

• Expands executive branch

• Angered small whiskey producers who were getting taxed

• Washington sends military to shut it down

John Adams

• 2d president

• Federalist candidate, beats Jefferson

• Only 1 term

The Alien and Sedition Acts

• Extended residency requirement for citizenship from 5 to 14 years

  • Federalists try to make DRs lose voters

• Gives president power to deport any non-citizen they think is dangerous or any males from a hostile nation

• Criminalized “false, scandalous, malicious” writing against gov.

The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions

• Written by Jefferson and Madison

• Political statements that the two states find the Alien and Sedition Acts unconstitutional

• Asserts that if states think it’s unconstitutional, they don’t have to follow it

• Becomes prevailing interpretation of Constitution until WW1

Composed of:

1. Compact Theory of the Constitution (Const. is agreement between separate states)

2. States Determine Constitutionality (unclear in actual Const)

3. Nullification (states do not have to follow unconst. law)