Constitutional Foundations and Federalism (Last-Minute Review)

Purpose: understand how the framers built the Constitution and the role of checks and balances across branches.
Core ideas: social contract, limited government, separation of powers, checks and balances.
Influencers: John Locke (limited monarchy, government by consent), Montesquieu (separation of powers).
Declaration of Independence (not a governing document): asserts universal rights (life, liberty, pursuit of happiness) and sets the ideological foundation, not the structure of government.

NPR and other public media are partly publicly funded; government funding decisions illustrate checks on spending and the executive/legislature dynamics.
Congress controls appropriations; debate over use of funds and influence over media accountability.

Early colonies push westward for land and economic opportunity; conflict with Indigenous populations and European powers.
British responses intensify: Proclamation of 1763; Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Tea Act; Intolerable Acts.
First Continental Congress (1774) as diplomacy and grievances forum; call for repeal of intolerable acts; move toward unity.

Declares independence from Britain; outlines core rights and the idea that government derives legitimacy from the people (consent of the governed).
Key phrase: all men are created equal with unalienable rights (life, liberty, pursuit of happiness).
Not a governing document; it articulates principles that will shape the future government.

Weak central government: no power to tax, no national standing army, no national currency, no effective way to regulate commerce.
Congress could declare war and conduct diplomacy but lacked enforcement powers; states retained most sovereignty.
Amendments required unanimous agreement, making changes practically impossible.
Result: a fragmented nation with limited ability to respond to internal and external challenges.

Economic distress and debt left many farmers and soldiers vulnerable under the Articles.
Rebellion highlighted the need for a stronger national government to maintain order and provide security.

Not all invited delegates attended; Rhode Island did not participate.
Core compromises addressed representation and power distribution to create a workable framework.

Virginia Plan vs New Jersey Plan:
- Virginia Plan: representation by population favored larger states.
- New Jersey Plan: equal representation favored smaller states.
Connecticut Compromise created a bicameral Congress: Senate with equal representation (2 per state) and House with representation by population.
Result: a deliberative legislature that could accommodate both large and small states and enable compromise.

Bicameral Congress: Senate (equal representation) and House (proportional representation).
Core functions: make laws and control the budget; serve as a check on the executive while allowing deliberate decision-making.

Framers aimed to prevent tyranny by distributing power and requiring cooperation between branches.
Over time, the balance has evolved, with debates about how much power to vest in the executive while maintaining accountability.

Core question: how to protect individual rights while enabling effective national governance.
The Constitution and later amendments establish limits on government power to safeguard civil liberties.

The shift from state-centered governance to a unified American identity was essential for a functioning nation.
Without a common national identity, coordination and collective action would be difficult.

Federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances, bicameral legislature, Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise), enumerated vs implied powers, popular sovereignty, central executive.