Quarter 1- American Government

Preamble of the Constitution &Civic Goals

Form a more perfect Union

Establish Justice

Ensure domestic tranquility

provide for the common defense

promote general welfare

secure blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity

Two types of federalism

Dual-federalism

Cooperative Federalism 

Dual Federalism

Government was divided with state and federal government (NOT SEPARATION OF POWERS)

Cooperative-federalism

national government encourages to pursue national goals through money

Types of Grant & Aid

Formula: aid based on mathematical formula ex. the poorer you are then the more money you receive

Block: gives state lots of money for ex. infrastructure 

New-federalism

more power to states

country we currently live in, but with more regulations (ex.OSHA)

Civic Virtue

Character of a good participant in a system of government

Each governing structure has its own ideas on what constitutes a virtue

Where can the American Civic Virtue be found?

In the founding documents, particularly in the Preamble of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights 

Civic Ideals

who we strive to be as a nation; can be changed over time

can be used as guidelines for our own behavior and those elected officials 

evolving over time 

Examples of Civic Ideals

Plessy vs Ferguson

Brown vs Board of Education

Executive Order

Orders from the President that carry the force of law, usually temporary (ex. FDR approving forced relocation of Japanese Americans)

Civil Protections against discrimination

granted by the 14th Amendment to the constitution

Due Process Rights

an accused individual must be treated fairly by the government before they are deprived of their life, liberty and for their property 

Civil Liberties

Guarantees & Freedoms that government commit not to abrige, either by Constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation without due process

Federalist Papers 

Essays written after the constitutional convention arguing for ratification 

arguing for a strong federal government 

arguing for offset the powerful state government 

Anti-Federalist Papers

Essays written after the constitutional convention against ratification

Arguing FOR strong STATE governments 

Natural Rights

all mankind is born with rights

forms of government

Dictatorship 

Monarchy 

Constitutional Monarchy 

Direct Democracy 

Theocracy 

Anarchy

Dictatorship

autocratic form of government which is characterized by a leader, group of leaders, who hold government powers with few to no limitations 

Monarchy

system based upon the undivided sovereignty or rule of a single person. Applies to states in which supreme authority is vested in the monarch, an individual rule who functions as the head of state and who achieves his or her position through heredity 

Direct Democracy

A form of democracy in which the electorte decides on policy initiatives without elected representatives as proxies 

Theocracy

form of government in which one or more deiteies are recognized as supreme ruling authorities giving divine guidance to human intermediaries 

Anarchy

lack of formal government

why a constitutional republic

political power is inherent in the people and the government can only act using such power, given to it by the people through CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED 

government by nature MUST BE LIMITED, or else it will try to destroy the very people that created it; popular sovereignty

people are not angels, protections must be created not to protect citizens from the government but to protect citizes from each other 

Republican system

requires people to take active roles in their communities, states, and nations through things like exercising the right to vote.

articles of confederation

written during revolutionary war

Problem with the Articles of Confederation

After the revolution, 13 colonies saw themselves to be 13 separate distinct colonies (different laws, religion, money)

How did the Articles of Confederation make the U.S. weak?

Independent state of mind allowed England to regroup, form alliances w countries like Spain and pick off new American countries 

James Madison

father of the constitution

Greatest weakness in Articles of Confederation

Shay’s Rebellion new countries would be unable to raise and pay for an army because they couldn’t raise enough money to pay for an army to confront angry farmers and revolutionary war veterans

Philadelphia Pennsylvania 1787

Constitutional Convention

Constitutional Convention (1787) agreed on:

1. Become one country 

2. division of powers & Responsibilities between states and the federal government (FEDERALISM)

3. creating series of government powers in the constitution 

Series of government policies in the Constitution

1. Enumerated 

2. Reserved

3. Implied 

4. Concurrent Powers 

Enumerated

powers specifically granted to Federal government

Reserved

powers NOT specifically granted to federal government

Implied

Powers neither specifically granted nor prohibited to the federal government, recognized as legitimate lased on legal precedent and similar powers

Concurrent

powers held by both the federal and state governments

Separation of Powers

Division of federal government into 3 separate but equal branches (ie. Legislative, Executive, Judicial)

How is the powers further divided

checks and balances; ways each individual branch is able to prevent the other two branches from getting too powerful

Ratification Debates

all 13 states had their own ratification debate for the NEW Constitution to take effect 9 out of 13 had to vote yes