Shanny Study Guide

Unitary Gov

**gives more power to the central government, rather than the local governments.**

Federal Gov

**gives equal power to the central government and the local governments.**

**Confederate government**

**gives more power to the local government than the central government.**

Dictatorship

**A government in which one or a small group of people have complete and total power and control over a country and its citizens.** 

Democracy

A government in which the people have the power

Direct Democracy

**When people of a country (directly) vote for changes within said country.**

Indirect Democracy

When people of a country elect representatives to participate in the government for them.

Structure and power of the Articles of Condeferation

**Weak central government, Strong State governments. No judicial or executive branches, only a legislative branch**

Powers of the Articles of Confederation

Make, implement, and enforce laws.

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Declare war and make peace.

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Regulate foreign affairs(treaties)

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Manage the Post office

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Administer relations with Native Americans

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Coin money,

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Tax states(not really, it was voluntary for states, power was left up to states)

Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

Couldn’t really tax states, needed to ask states for money

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Each state only had 1 vote

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9/13 for laws

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13/13 for amendments

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no way to enforce laws passed by congress

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no court system.

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How many votes were needed to pass a law in the AoC

9/13 votes

How many votes were needed to amend the AoC

Unanimous, all 13 vote.

Land ordinance of 1785

It was System to distribute land

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Townships were divided into 36, 1 square mile plots

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$1 an acre, $640 for a plot

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Common people didn’t have money so these plots and acres would be bought up by the elite and resold for profit.

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section 16 for schools, section 29 for religion

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

It was the government system for new territory.

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Congress apointed governor, secretary and 3 judges.

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5000 men were needed for an assembly,

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60,000 men could request for statehood

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new states can’t have slavery.

Shay’s rebellion.

Shay saw debtors rotting in prison after the revolutionary war. Taxes on Western Mass were too high that many lost homes and couldn’t afford living.

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After applying for independence and writing petitions that were ignored, Shay and a group of rebels came and set fire to the urban areas of Massachusetts.

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This made americans realize the articles of confederation were too weak and the rebellion showed that the government could not protect peoples right to property.

Purpose of the Constitutional Convention.  What did the framers want to fix?

**The articles of confederation were too weak and un-unified.**

5 changes for African Americans after the Revolutionary War

The revolution inspired many enslaved people to demand freedom.

In northern states, some petitioned legislature and sued their owners.

The revolution led tp emancipation in the North.

Some in the south voluntarily freed their slaves.

By 1820, 20,000 southern slaves had been freed.

5 facts about how women were impacted by the revolution.

They gained few political and legal rights as a result of the war.

Women gained much more respect in society.

Women were given a platform to speak out on issues that affected their ability to raise virtuous children.

The revolution inspired many women to pursue their own revolutionary ideas.

Widows could vote in NJ.

The legislative branch

makes laws (the House of Reps, and the Senate)

Article 1, Section 8

Expressed Powers. Powers given to congress stated in the constitution

Implied Powers Def. / the necessary and proper clause

Congress’s ability to make laws that are necessary and proper to carry out its powers.

Reserved Powers Def.

Every power not stated as being for congress is a reserved power for the states government.

Concurrent Powers def.

Powers that the central and state government share.

List of Expressed and Implied Powers (CONGRESS)

Print Money

Makes rules about trade between states and nations

Declare War

Make treaties and deal with foreign countries

Establish a post office

Provide an army and navy

Make laws that are necessary and proper to carry out its powers

Spend money for the general welfare

Make copyright laws to protect author’s writings

Decide what units of measure we will use

Reserved Powers list

Issue driver’s and marriage licenses

Conduct elections

Establish Governments

Make rules about business inside a state

Use any power the constitution doesn’t give the federal government or deny to the states

Charter banks and corperations

Run public schoo;s

Provide police and emergency services

Concurrent Powers list

protect public health and safety

Collect taxes

Build roads

Borrow money

Establish courts

Make and enforce laws

The executive branch

executes laws (pres. VP, and cabinet)

The Judiscial branch

interprets the laws. (Supreme Court, Federal Courts)

Unicameral:

One House

Locke

Believed in two separate branches of government, legislative and executive.

Montesquiu

Believed in three distinct and separate branches of government. Unlike Locke, he believed in a seperate Judiciary branch as well

The New Jersey Plan (for the Legislative branch)

Gave more power to state governments

Unicameral legislature

Number of representatives equal from each state.

The Virginia Plan (for the Legislative branch)

Gave more power to national government

Bicameral legislature

Number in both houses based on Population

The Great Compromise(for the Legislative branch)

This compromise combined parts of both the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan

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Bicameral legislature

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Number of representatives based on state populations in lowerhouse (house of represenatives)

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Number of representatives is equal from state to state in the upperhouse (the senate)

3/5ths compromise

A compromise stating that only 3 for every 5 slaves would be counted for purposes of legislative representation(by population) and for taxation purposes.

How does a bill become a law?

A bill is first sent to committee in the house of representatives.

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Then if it is voted on favorably, it goes to the senate. (if not it dies)

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If it is voted upon favorably in the senate, the bill then goes to the president

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If the president signs it, it becomes a law, if he vetos it, it does not pass

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If veto’d, the bill can be passed anyway if it gets a 2/3rds vote in both the house and senate

Six rolls of the president

Head of state,

Commander in chief,

Chief Executive

Agenda Setter,

Keeper of the Economy,

Party Chief

The Electoral College

The citizens vote for a group of electors that then votes for the candidate for president

How many electors does each state get?

A number equal to their representation in Congress (the house) (proportional to population)

What are checks and balances?

a series of powers each of the three government branches has to limit the others from becoming too powerful.

Legislative checks on the executive

The house can impeach the president with approval of the senate.

The house can reject supreme court justice nominations as well.

Additionally they can investigate executive orders and overturn a presidential veto with 2/3rds of a vote.

They are also in control of funding for executive branch’s programs

Legislative checks on the judiciary    

Congress can remove supreme court judge nominees and impeach them.

Congress has the ability to pass laws that overrule the supreme court.

Congress can also amend the constitution and propose new amendments.

Executive checks on the legislative

The president has the power to veto laws that are coming out of congress.

The president can also execute laws in different ways than how congress intended.

Executive checks on the judiciary    

The president is the one who appoints the judges that work in the supreme court.

 Judicial checks on the legislative

Supreme court judges are able to interpret and declare laws as unconstitutional

Judicial checks on the 

executive

The supreme court rules impeachment trials of the President and executive officials.

Article 1 Legislative: powers

Makes Laws

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They also have the power to tax, regulate commerce, declare war, raise and support an army

Article 2 Executive: powers

Executes Law

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The president also serves as the commander and chief. He can make treaties and appoint other ambassadors

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(additionally, see rolls of president)

Article 3 Judicial: powers

The Judicial branch judges and interprets laws and the constitution 

(see judicial review)

Judicial Review

The supreme court can rule a law passed by the legislative or executive branch as unconstitutional.

Federalists: views

Believes in a new Constitution,

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The New Constitution: a powerful central government, two houses in Congress, three branches with checks and balances, less direct and more representative democracy

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Wanted more elites to run the country, believed in spacing the common people from running in election

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The Constitution creates a central government with limited powers. There is no threat to individual rights. And each state constitution has its own bill of rights.

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States need to be organized under a larger, more powerful central government

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The executive branch is important, and a president is necessary to enforce laws and conduct foreign policy.

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They say the judicial branch isn’t too strong, but it is important.

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The Federalists say that a strong central government will have no threat to individual rights.

Antifederalists: views

doesn’t believe in the new Constitution,

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Believed in The Articles of Confederation: strong state governments, weak central government, frequent elections and more direct democracy

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wanted to include more common people in the democratic process to balance it out. More elections more often

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A Bill of Rights is necessary to protect the rights of citizens. The proposed Constitution does not do enough.

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The states should maintain their power and not lose that power to a central government. New Constitution will destroy the state governments.

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A president is basically an elected king

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The Constitution creates a Supreme Court that is

too strong — the justices don’t have to answer to anyone

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Believed the new constitution was a threat to individual rights by not including a bill of rights