7 Principles of Government

Popular Sovereignty

  • The authority of the people

  • The main purpose of Popular Sovereignty is to ensure that all governmental power and authority flow from the people rather than a monarch or a ruling elite

The Nation is a Republic

  • A republic government in which people rule through elected representatives

  • Republic government = Representative government

  • The main purpose of a Republican Government is to serve the public good by letting citizens exercise their power through elected representatives

Limited Government

  • Where the powers of the government are strictly defined

  • A limited government only has powers given to it by the people

  • The main purpose of a limited government is to protect individual rights and personal freedoms by placing strict legal bounds on the power of political authorities

Federalism

  • The Articles of Confederation protected the independence gained from Great Britain

  • In the federal government where many state governments and the single federal government share power

  • The constitution creates the federal system

  • Constitution lists enumerated powers (Powers that are specifically given to Congress)

  • Enumerated powers include the power to coin money, regulate interstate and foreign trade, maintain the armed forces, and create the federal courts

  • Reserved powers belong to the states

  • Reserved powers include power to establish schools, pass marriage and divorce laws, and to regulate trade within a state

  • When federal government and the state share certain powers, it’s called concurrent powers

  • Concurrent powers include the right to raise taxes, borrow money, provide for public welfare, and carry out criminal justice (Each state and the federal government can exercise these powers at the same time)

  • The supremacy clause states if a state law contradicts the constitution or federal law, the Constitution or federal law, the Constitution or federal law prevails. It is stated in Article VI, Clause of 2

  • The main purpose of federalism is to divide power between a central national government and individual regional governments, like states, to prevent tyranny and manage diverse needs

Separation of Powers

  • Used to make sure no person or group in government has too much power

  • Constitution separates the legislative, executive, and judicial powers of government and places them into 3 different branches of government

  • The main purpose of the separation of powers is to prevent the concentration of government power in a single person or group, thereby protecting individual liberty and stopping tyranny

Checks and Balances

  • Used to check or limit the power of other branches

  • Congress has the power to pass a law

  • The main purpose of checks and balances is to prevent any single branch of government from gaining absolute power or becoming tyrannical

Individual Rights

  • The Constitution that was written in 1787 didn’t contain a Bill of Rights

  • In 1777, Thomas Jefferson wrote a resolution on religious freedom

  • The Bill of Rights included freedom of speech and the press, freedom to assemble in groups and protest against the government, the right to bear arms, the right to a speedy and public trial by jury, the right to be free from “cruel and unusual” punishments

  • The main purpose of individual rights is to protect people from government abuse and give them the freedom to live safe, fair, and independent lives