Chapter 1: Introduction to American Government
What is Government?
A. Harold Lasswell definition: "who gets what, when, and how".
B. Made up of formal institutions (constitutional/federal statute): e.g., the presidency.
C. Made up of informal institutions (not constitutionally/law mandated): e.g., role of the media.
D. Citizenry and processes vital to government function.
E. All of these things are used to create public policy.
What is Public Policy? (Laws)
A. The exercise of government power in doing those things necessary to maintain legitimate control and authority over society.
Purposes of Government
A. to form a more perfect union: creating a strong union of states while maintaining state sovereignty.
B. establishing justice: reasonable, fair, impartial law.
C. ensuring domestic tranquility: preservation of public order.
D. providing for the common defense: protection and maintenance of national defense.
E. promoting the general welfare: providing public services and economic health of the nation.
F. securing the blessings of liberty: promoting individual freedoms.
Forms/Types of Government
A. Governments classified by number of individuals that participate.
B. Three types:
1) Autocracy - rule by 1
Examples:
a. Absolute monarchy
i. Ruler gains power through inheritance.
ii. No restrictions on ruler’s power.
b. Constitutional monarchy
i. Ruler gains power through inheritance.
ii. Formal restrictions limit power.
iii. Typically a ceremonial figurehead.
2) Oligarchy - rule by a few
Examples:
a. Aristocracy: ruled by the elite; determined by social status or wealth.
b. Theocracy: ruled by religious leaders.
3) Democracy - rule by the people
Two types:
a. Direct democracy: citizens meet and make decisions about policy issues.
b. Indirect democracy / representative democracy / republic: choose officials (reps) who make decisions about public policy.
Theories of Democratic Government
A. Traditional democratic theory:
Government depends on the consent of the governed; consent may be given directly or to representatives.
May include measures for how democratic the system is.
B. Pluralist theory:
Interest groups compete in the political arena and promote their own interests.
Conflict may result, leading to compromise.
C. Elite theory:
A small number of powerful elites form an upper class that enrolls for themselves.
D. Bureaucratic theory:
Hierarchical structure and standardized procedures give bureaucrats real power over public policy.
A bureaucrat is a person who carries out day-to-day workings of government.
E. Hyperpluralism:
A democracy with many groups pulling in different directions at the same time.
Causes gridlock and ineffectiveness.
The Constitution and its Origins
(Overview of origins and foundational documents to follow in detail.)
Origins of American Government
Magna Carta (1215): first attempt to limit government power by the British monarch.
Nobility forced it on King John.
Granted: trial by jury, due process of law, protections against arbitrary taking of life, liberty, and property.
Key concepts: limits on sovereign power, due process, and protections for subjects.
John Locke (1689): social contract; natural rights (life, liberty, property) and government’s role to protect those rights.
If government fails, people can change it.
Influenced Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence.
Mayflower Compact (1620): social contract; consent-based government with limited powers.
Petition of Right (1628): extended Magna Carta protections to commoners; limits on monarch’s power (taxation with Parliament’s consent, no martial law in peacetime, no housing the military in private homes without consent, trial by jury).
English Bill of Rights (1689): Parliament–king agreement; protections against abuses of power (free elections, fair and speedy trials, no excessive bail, protection against cruel and unusual punishment, petition the king, no standing armies in peacetime, no suspension of laws, taxation with Parliament’s consent).
Declaration of Independence: largely the work of Thomas Jefferson; built on Locke’s ideas; three parts:
Theory of government based on social contract and natural rights.
List of grievances against the king and Parliament.
Statement of unity and separation from Britain.
Northwest Ordinance and the Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation (1781–1789): a weak, unicameral legislature; no national executive or judiciary;
Congress could not tax; could only request contributions from states.
No power to regulate interstate or foreign commerce.
No national executive or judiciary to enforce laws or settle disputes between states.
Each state had one vote; representation in the House by population, in the Senate equal.
9 of 13 states needed to pass legislation; amendments required unanimity.
Northwest Ordinance (1787): important statute under the Articles; created government structure, a method for admitting new states, and listed a bill of rights.
Shays’ Rebellion
Led by Daniel Shays; Massachusetts farmers rebelled over taxes and imprisonment of debtors (promised they wouldn’t have to pay debts from the Revolution).
Massachusetts militia eventually suppressed the rebellion when they attacked an arsenal.
Cited as a major reason for calling the Constitutional Convention to revise the Articles.
Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation / Constitutional Fixes
Weaknesses of the Articles vs. Constitutional fixes:
No national power to tax; fix: national government can tax.
No national executive to enforce acts; fix: Article II creates a separate executive branch to enforce laws.
No national judiciary to handle disputes between states; fix: Article III creates a national judiciary (Supreme Court and lower federal courts).
Coining money: both states and national government had power to coin money; fix: only the national government coins money.
Representation: each state had one vote; House representation based on population; Senate equal; fix: bicameral Congress (House based on population, Senate equal representation).
Amendment process: 9/13 states to pass laws; unanimity to amend the Articles; fix: 2/3 of Congress and 3/4 of the states to amend the Constitution.
Constitutional Convention
Purpose: revise the Articles; 12 of 13 states present (Rhode Island absent).
Early decision: scrap the Articles and write a new constitution.
New government would be a Republic with a federal system sharing powers between a strong national government and its parts.
Three branches: Legislative, Executive, Judicial.
The Plans: Virginia vs. New Jersey
Virginia Plan:
Bicameral legislature; lower house elected by the people; upper house chosen by the lower house from nominees by state legislatures.
Representation based on population or monetary contributions by the state.
Single executive; chosen by the legislature; limited to one term; could veto legislative acts; removed by Congress.
Judges chosen by the legislative branch.
Legitimacy derived from citizens, based on population representation.
Ratification by citizens.
New Jersey Plan:
Unicameral legislature; representatives chosen by state legislature; each state gets one vote.
Representation equal among states.
Plural executive; chosen by the legislative branch; no veto power; removed by the states.
Judges appointed to life terms.
Legitimacy derived from the states; ratification by states.
Government can compel obedience to national laws; will become the basis of the Supremacy Clause (Article 6, Section 2).
The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)
Solved the legislative representation impasse:
Lower house (House of Representatives) based on population (appeased larger states).
Upper house (Senate) based on equal representation (two senators per state; appeased smaller states).
The Other Compromises
Three-Fifths Compromise:
Southern states wanted slaves counted for representation; Northern states opposed.
Compromise: enslaved people would be counted as three-fifths of a person for representation, and slaveholding states would pay taxes on slaves; taxes on slaves were not actually collected.
Represented as: of slaves counted for representation; taxes on slaves, but no taxes were collected.
Commerce Compromise:
New government could regulate interstate commerce and trade with other nations, but could not tax exports by the states.
Slave Trade Compromise:
North wanted to end the slave trade; South disagreed.
Compromise: slave trade would continue for 20 more years and would officially end in .
Domestic slave trade continued; runaway slaves had to be returned.
Fight for Ratification
Constitution signed on September 17, 1787.
It would take effect only after ratification by states (Article VII).
Debates led to emergence of the first political parties: Federalists vs Anti-Federalists.
Federalists favored ratification; Anti-Federalists opposed.
The Federalist Papers (85 articles) were written to generate support in New York; authors: James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay.
Comparison of Views: Federalists vs Anti-Federalists
Federalists vs Anti-Federalists:
1. Favored Constitution vs opposed Constitution.
2. Leaders: Federalists (Madison, Hamilton, Jay) vs Anti-Federalists (Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, George Mason, Richard Henry Lee).
3. Foundations: Federalists stressed weaknesses of the Articles and argued for a strong national government to solve domestic problems; Anti-Federalists favored strong state governments and feared a powerful national government.
4. Checks and balances: Federalists argued they would protect against abuses; Anti-Federalists argued strong executives could resemble a monarchy.
5. Property rights: Federalists emphasized protection of property rights; Anti-Federalists wanted broader protections.
6. Bill of Rights: Federalists believed the Constitution was a Bill of Rights with limited actions and reserved powers for the states; Anti-Federalists argued for a Bill of Rights to protect people against the national government.
Notes
Notable dates and numbers appear throughout, including centuries and constitutional milestones.
Key concepts include social contract, natural rights, federalism, representation, checks and balances, and the balance between liberty and order.