Foundational Documents

Fed 10 involves factions

  • Factions are to be avoided at all costs

  • Majority overrules minority, and then min. is never represented

  • Republican style gov. where representation is key solves this issue

  • With so many factions, no one could rule/hold majority


Brutus 1 involves centralized government

  • Hard to govern large land mass

  • N&P and supremacy clause creates strong central gov. making state govs virtually unnecessary

  • Strongly against ratification of constitution

  • Taxation is most important to states


Articles of Confederation involve early system of government

  • Bound first 13 states (“1st Constitution”)

  • States held most power, central gov. was weak

  • 1 branch (only Congress), no taxation, large debt, all states must ratify, no national currency, no power to raise army (Shay’s Rebellion)


Declaration of Independence involves rights

  • Right to life, liberty, and happiness

  • Strongly based on Enlightenment ideas

  • No taxation without representation


Constitution involves basis of U.S. government

  • Convention gathered to strengthen gov. and eliminate weaknesses

  • Great Compromise established bicameral legislature

  • Virginia Plan-votes based on population

  • New Jersey Plan-votes are equal

  • 3/5 compromise-3/5 of enslaved pop. would be accounted for representation & taxation

  • Amendment ratification-2/3 proposal by congress, 3/4 approval by states


Articles lay out structure of government

  • 1-Legislative branch

  • 2-Executive branch

  • 3-Judicial branch

  • 4-Relationship of fed gov. and the states

  • 5-Amending Constitution

  • 6-Supremacy clause, fed law is supreme

  • 7-Establishment of states



Bill of Rights involves rights

  • Lists out rights that belong to the citizens, as well as the states


Fed 51 involves separation of powers

  • Power divided into 3 branches

  • Checks & balances- each branch has ability to limit actions of the others


  • Independency of powers equally

  • Federalism splits gov. power even more


Fed 70 involves need for single executive

  • Sharing overall power is dangerous

  • Single executive can act quickly and decisively

  • More executives means less efficiency and less accountability


Fed 78 involves judicial branch

  • Judges are appointed by president and serve for life to keep work independent and uninfluenced

  • Temporary terms cause people with less experience to be in office


Letter from Birmingham Jail involves civil rights

  • MLK writes a letter in response to being told to “wait” for rights as an African American

  • Equal protection clause states that everyone is guaranteed equal treatment under the law