Texas Politics, US Constitution, and Political Culture Key Concepts

How many tests and quizzes in the semester?

4 tests, including the final, and 10 quizzes (+ 3 Reader Quizzes)

How many textbooks in the semester?

2 textbooks (Practicing Texas Politics and Reader/POLS)

What happens if you leave during a quiz?

You get a zero

What happens if your phone is out during class?

-5 points of your quiz

Political Culture

is the shared views, values, and judgements held by a p population regarding its political system; Daniel Elazar first theorized in 1966 that US is divided into 3 political cultures: moralistic, individualistic, and traditionalistic

Moralistic

• Sees the govt. as a means to better society and promote the general welfare

• Political process is seen in positive light, not corruption

• "I want someone to be a good person."

• More likely to vote bc mass participation is valued and elections are truly contested

Individualistic

• Sees the govt. as a mechanism for addressing issues that matter to individual citizens and for pursuing private goals

• More tolerant of corruption as a result of personal motivations

• "What do I get out of this?"

• Voters are loyal to candidates who hold the same party affiliation

Traditionalistic

• Sees the govt. as necessary to maintain the existing social order (status quo)

• Very corrupt as the elites only belong in the political culture

• "I want to stay at the top."

• Voter participation is lower than traditionalistic culture because voting is seen as a privilege reserved for those who meet the qualifications

Placebo

a fake procedure in an experiment that looks real but has no actual value

Double-blind experiment

Would ask black americans to participate in this procedure, with the latter unknowing that the experiment had already started

Priming

people can encourage you to think a certain way

Texas v. White

The state of Texas against George W. White due to Texas wanting to preserve/protect the institution of slavery. Therefore, Texas wanted to secede from the U.S. In the end, Texas still remained a state and US is an indestructible union

US v. Windsor

The US Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, which same-sex married couples. The Court concluded same-sex couples were protected by the 5th Amendment

Thelma White and Her Legacy

• She filed a lawsuit because Texas Western College (TWC) rejected her application because of her race. The University of Texas System decided TWC could admit black students, as the state laws of segregation violated the US Constitution.

• Now, undergraduate schools are open to all black Americans.

• UTEP founded the Thelma White Network for Community and Academic Development, assisting black students with social & academic development.

Privileges and Immunity Clause

means citizens of each state shall be entitled to the privileges and immunities of citizens of several states (ie. property, right to leave/enter a state)

Full Faith and Credit Clause

any legislative enactment must be officially recognized and honored in every other state

(National) Supremacy Clause

• the US Constitution, acts of Congress, and US treaties, must prevail over states constitutions and laws enacted by state legislatures;

• basically, federal law is higher than state law.

Extradition Clause

Requires to return the accused criminal back to the state where they allegedly committed a crime.

10th Amendment

• "the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the People."

• Basically, any powers not given to the US by the Constitution, is reserved to the States respectively.

4th Articles of the US Constitution:

• Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each state to the public arts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state

• Citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states

• New states may be admitted by the Congress, but no new states shall be formed within the jurisdiction of any other state; Congress has the power to dispose and make all needful rules and regulations respecting territory/property belonging to the US

• US shall guarantee to every state a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them against invasion

6th Article of the US Constitution

• All debts contracted and engagements, before the adoption of this Constitution, are valid against the US and Confederation

• Supremacy Clause where federal laws are supreme over state laws

• Requires federal, state, executives, and judicial officers to take an oath supporting the Constitution, while forbidding any religious test as a qualification

Standing

your legal grievance (in order to take it to court)

How many governments (approximately) are there in the US?

90,000

What countries rule over the Texas territory?

Mexico

Some of it's important leaders are...

Sam Houston & Stephen F. Austin

When did the Republic of Texas form?

March 2, 1836; after they broke free from Mexico's control; then was an independent nation for almost 10 years

When did Texas become the 28th member of the US?

1845

When did the Civil War begin?

1861, when Texas seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America

When did Texas had its 7th constitution?

1876

How many amendments and words are in the Texas constitution?

507 amendments and 92,000 words

Radical Republicans

post-Civil War era sought to use government to end a White supremacist political system and achieve racial equality

Jim Crow Laws

resulted in denial of adequate education, scarcity of economic opportunities, and incidents of racial violence

What are the various positions Sam Houston held throughout his career?

• A general for the Battle of San Jacinto

• Then became President of the Republic of Texas

• Governor of Tennessee

The Constitutional Amendment Process

• Joint resolution proposing an amendment introduced in House/Senate during regular/special session called by the governor

• ⅔ of members in each chamber must adopt the resolution

• Secretary of state prepares an explanatory statement that describes the proposed amendment, and attorney general approves this statement

• Said statement is published TWICE in Texas newspapers that print official state notices

• Cop of the proposed amendment is posted in each country courthouse at least 30 days before election

• Voters must approve amendment by simple majority vote in regular/special election

• Governor, who has no veto power in the possess, issues proclamation certifying the election results

Dillons Rule

dictates that local governments have only those powers granted by the state government; those powers implied in state grants, and those powers indispensable to their functioning

Council-manager

this form prevails in almost 90 percent of Texas's home-rule cities, and variations of the two mayor-council systems operate in many general-law cities. In practice, various combinations of the forms are permissible under a home-rule charter, as long as they do not conflict with state law.

Strong-mayor (mayor-council)

a type of municipal government; with a separately elected legislative body and an executive head elected in a citywide election with veto, appointment, and removal powers (basically, mayor is the “president” and the council is the “legislature.”

Weak-mayor (Council-mayor)

a type of municipal government; gives the mayor limited administrative powers (basically, is part of the council)

Commission

a type of municipal government; each elected commissioner is a member of the city's policymaking body and heads an administrative department (basically, 1 is finance, 1 is parking, etc & and you can vote them out)

General-law cities

a municipality with charter prescribed by the legislature; population less than 5,000

Home-rule cities

a municipality with a locally drafted charter

Initiative

a citizen-drafted measure proposed by a specified number or percentage of qualified voters

Recall

a process for removing elected officials through a popular vote; in Texas, this power is available only for home-rule cities

Referendum

a process by which issues are referred to the voters to accept or reject; in Texas, occurs at the local level in home-rule cities.

Commissioners Court

5 people which is the county judge and 4 commissioners; set texas; pass budgets & tax notes for the county; county roads, not state roads

County Judge

helps declare a marriage ceremony; send citizens to an insane asylum; everybody can vote the county judge, but can only vote 1 commissioner

Sheriff

oversees law enforcement at county level; oversees county jail; police chief at city level

Constables

has law enforcement powers; in JP courts, they're the court's bailiff; issue warrants

Justice of the Peace (JP)

doesn't need to be an attorney, but needs a highschool diploma & be 18years old; also needs to be reelected every 4 years; has jurisdiction of civil matters when the amount in controversy doesn’t exceed $5,000

Treasurer

mostly sign checks; deposit money; needs to be reelected

District Attorney

every county has 1; manages office attorneys; needs to be elected & under a party

Auditor

not elected; makes sure funds are spent legally; makes sure all previous positions are following financial law

Tax Assessor

getting your voter registration & license plates; an elected position

County Clerk

deals with deeds like births, deaths; keeps records of the county levels counts

District Clerk

handles criminal & civil proceedings; felony cases

FOR public arts

able to give communities a sense of pride, employ artists, and help reduce the cost of graffiti abatement, beautifies the urban environment

AGAINST public arts

dissed for aesthetic quality ("artists should be higher standards"), better if the city gave them freedom to come up with their own ideas to beautify the environment, feels like the cities want to control street art (make them palatable), saying as if the urban landscape is "unnatural" therefore we have to embellish it unnecessarily, "it's like slapping lipstick on a pig"

Art Studio created the...

mini-mural program, with several council members aiding funds to public art. Asked to make a mural called ???

Richard Haas

became an architect through his murals; architectural fantasises. Wants to "heal the landscape" and let in beauty. Some of his works are the Chisholm Trail Mural in Fort Worth, St. Louis Project in Missouri, and the Fontainebleau Hilton Hotel in Miami Beach. Created his first building in 1974.

"Christo" David Adickes

(and Jeanne-Claude) created "The Gates" in Central Park, New York City. Each gate has a deep saffron color (citizens said it looked orange) fabric hanging on it. Meant to showcase/highlight New York's landscape and crosswalks. Inspired by Japanese trip gates.

Some people LOVED the art because...

thought it brightened the bleak winter landscape, basically encouraging late-night pedestrian traffic in Central park

Some people HATED the art because...

accusing the artists of defacing the landscape, obstruction to bicyclists (felt like it can cause accidents), some gates were often vandalized.

James Surls

created the "Around the Flower Wall" sculpture in SHSU. Known for his monumental sculptures.

Anish Kapoor

created the Cloud Gate (aka the Bean) in Chicago, Illinois.

Dan Phillips

created the Hobbit's Nest House and Cowboy Hat/Boot House in Huntsville. Also, built a Tree House with the root made out of picture frames.

Frank Lloyd Wright

created the "Fallingwater" masterpiece in 1935. Was obsessed with horizontal lines and a control freak. Taught Richard Haas.

9/11 Documentary

• Happened on September 11, 2001 in New York City

• WTC #1 first hit around 8am, WTC #2 hit around 9am. WTC #1 collapsed, then 10:30ish is when WTC #2 collapsed.

• Four planes were hijacked: two crashed into the WTC, one in the Pentagon, one in the field in Pennsylvania

• 3,047 lives were lost in the terrorist attacks

• The attack on the WTC was the most documented event in history

• At the moment of impact, each plane was carrying more than 10,000 gallons of jet fuel.

• As the towers collapsed, the fires were burning at 2,000 degrees

• Beth Petrone's husband (Captain Terry HATTON, FDNY) died in the tower. Beth soon learned she was pregnant with his child.

When was the 1st Texas Constitution adopted?

1827

When was the 2nd Texas Constitution adopted?

1836

When was the 3rd Texas Constitution adopted?

1845

When was the 4th Texas Constitution adopted?

1861

When was the 5th Texas Constitution adopted?

1866

When was the 6th Texas Constitution adopted?

1869

In a city council, how many members are there?

9 in total: 4 wards, 4 officials, and 1 mayor

What did Stephen F Austin do?

He settled the Old 300, a wave of Anglo-American facilities to settle in Texas; known as the “Father of Texas”

Years of the Texas Constitution in order

27 36(M) 45(28th) 61(Civil War) 66 69 76

The Oklahoma City Bombing

• Happened on April 19, 1915 at the Federal Building, Alfred P Murrah Building

• On the same day in 1993, the Waco Middle-Eastern incident happened. Where there were illegal guns inside. A 51 day siege

• Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols were voted guilty

• Micheal Fortier was voted guilty for not alerting the authorities