Transcript Day 2 - Mr. Pourchot's History Class

• Take out your homework
Think of what you have
done from the moment
you woke up this
morning until right now.
How has government
affected your life so far
today?
Day 2
A Day in Your Life
• Time on the clock? Regulated by the National
Institute of Standards and Time
• Wake up to your radio? FCC
– Keeps from interfering with other signals
• Asthma not hurting you today? Breathing less
pollution? Thanks EPA!
• Asthma acting up? Food and Drug Admin.
• Water? Thanks city water
• Describe the viewpoints of the Federalists and
Anti-federalists. Why did they feel this way?
Pre-Load!
I. Democracy
A. Rule by the people.
1. Aristotle – rule of the many
B. Democracy: Two Types
1.
Direct: rule by the people themselves (N.E. town
meeting)
2.
Indirect (representative)(republic): rule by
elected representatives
a. Power can be abused by tyrannical majority or
self serving office holders.
b. Elitist theory of democracy
C. Founders' distrust of direct
democracy
1. Impracticalities
a. People deciding on public policy
2. Fleeting passions of the people --->
concern that they would be swayed by
demagogues.
a. Can lead to bad decisions (prop 8?)
b. Not synonymous with common
interest or public good
II. Republic.
A. Same as indirect democracy.
B. Solves problems of direct democracy.
C. “Secures the advantages of direct
democracy while curing its weaknesses.”
III. Democratic theory
A.
Majoritarian politics view: leaders are heavily
influenced by the will of the people.
B.
Elite politics views: minorities dominate policy
making; gov is controlled by few, powerful groups
(Elite: person who, possess a disproportionate share of
some valued resource.)
• What type of government does America have?
• Why didn’t the Framers choose a more direct
form of democracy for America?
III. Democratic Theory
1.
Marxist: influence of economic elites.(capitalists)
2.
C. Wright Mills: (Power elite view) influence of
power elite: corporate, military, political (Eisenhower’s
“military industrial complex.”); Today: Media chiefs,
Union officials, special interest groups.
3.
Max Weber: influence of bureaucracy.
(bureaucratic view)
a. Appointed officials – career government
officers
C. Pluralist view:
1. Political resources are so scattered that no single
elite has a monopoly on them.
2. There are so many institutions in which power is
exercised that no single elite could possibly control
all of them.
3. Pluralism therefore argues that many groups
compete with each other for control over policy.
Policy is therefore the outcome of political haggling,
innumerable compromises, and ever-shifting
alliances among groups.
D. Hyperpluralist View:
1. "Pluralism gone sour."
2. There are so many groups, and they are
so strong, that government has become
gridlocked and is unable to act.
IV. Fundamental Democratic Values
A. Popular sovereignty.
B. Respect for the individual. State serves
individual, not vice versa.
C. Liberty.
D. Equality. Of opportunity more than result.
Role of FDR’s 2nd Bill of Rights: economic
security.
V.
Fundamental Democratic Processes
A. Free and fair elections, with competing
political parties.
B. Majority rule w/minority rights. Fear of
“tyranny of the majority” led to protection
of property rights.
C. Freedom of expression.
D. Right to assemble and protest.
VI. Fundamental Democratic Structures
(briefly -- covered in more detail later)
A.
B.
C.
D.
Federalism.
Separation of powers.
Checks and balances.
Constitutionalism.
• In what ways is American government pluralist?
ORIGINS OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC
I. Sources of the Constitution
A. British Customs and Traditions, e.g., Magna Carta
and English Bill of Rights.
B. European Philosophers, e.g., Locke, Hobbes,
Montesquieu, Rousseau
C. Colonial experiences, e.g., power of elected
assembly.
D. State constitutions written after the Declaration of
Independence, e.g., Preamble closely resembles the
introduction to the Mass. Constitution.
II.
A.
Constitutional Convention, 1787
Background.
1. Decl. of Indep. ---> Rev. War ---> Articles of Confed. and its
weak central govt.:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
No power to tax.
No chief executive.
No national judiciary.
No power to regulate interstate or foreign commerce.
No national currency.
2. Annapolis Convention, 1786: called to improve Articles.
(Improve trade regulations between states.)
3. Shays' Rebellion, 1786 ---> necessity of a stronger
national government.
B. Delegates
1.
2.
Characteristics: "well-read, well-bred, well-fed, and well-wed.“
Participants:
a. Madison: "Father of Const." because of leadership and
detailed notes of proceedings.
b. Washington: presiding officer
c. Franklin: "elder statesman."
d. Morris: largely responsible for final wording of Const.
e. Hamilton: most forceful advocate for strong central
government.
3. Charles Beard's Economic Interpretation of the United States (1913).
a. Constitution was written by propertied class --->
naturally reflected those interests (although no
conspiracy per se).
b. Rebuttals:
1) Most people owned property.
2) Even the poor, in hopes of someday owning
property, wanted to protect property.
3) Establishing a democratic government involved risks and
dangers
--> need to build in safeguards and protections.
• Tell me something bad about the Articles of
Confederation?
• What did Shay’s Rebellion reveal about the
Articles? How did that hasten the arrival of a
new government?
C. Areas of agreement:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Scrap the Articles of Confederation.
Establish a republican govt.
Establish a constitutional govt.
Established a balanced govt. where no single
interest dominated.
Suffrage for property owners only.
Stronger central govt. than under the Articles.
Protection of property rights: the main purpose
of govt.
Keep the proceedings secret.
D.
Areas of disagreement --->
compromises:
1. Representation among the states.
a. Large states favored the Virginia Plan:
based upon population.
b. Small states favored the New Jersey Plan:
equal representation.
c. Connecticut (Great) Compromise: a
bicameral legislature with a popularlyelected House (based upon
population) and a Senate (equal rep.)
elected by state legislatures.
D.
Areas of disagreement --->
compromises:
2. Representation and taxation of slaves.
a. Northern states wanted slaves to count for
taxation, but not representation.
b. Southern states wanted the opposite.
c. 3/5 Compromise: 3/5 of the slaves would
count for both purposes (3/5 was the ratio
that would yield equal representation
among northern and southern states).
D.
Areas of Disagreement --->
Compromises:
Election of the President.
a. Life term v. annual election ---> compromise
of a 4-year term.
b. Method of election:
1) Some wanted election by Congress.
2) Some wanted election by state
legislatures.
3) Some wanted direct election.
4) Compromise: Electoral College
system.
• What kind of a state (today) would have favored
the Virginia Plan?
• What kind of a state (today) would have favored
the New Jersey?
• How did the Connecticut Compromise reconcile
this?
• Who didn’t want slaves to count as people when
looking at representation?
• Who wanted slaves to count as people when
looking at representation?
• How was this question solved?
E. Ratification Politics
1. Federalists:
a. Supporters: property owners, creditors,
merchants.
b. Views
1) Elites most fit to govern.
2) Feared "excesses" of democracy.
3) Favored strong central government.
c. Leaders: Hamilton, Madison, Washington, Jay.
2. Antifederalists:
a. Supporters: small farmers, frontiersmen, debtors,
shopkeepers.
b. Views.
1)
Feared concentration of power in hands of elites.
2)
Believed that govt. should be closer to the people.
3)
Feared strong central government. Favored
stronger state govts.
4)
Feared the lack of Bill of Rights -- their strongest
argument.
c. Leaders: Henry, Mason, Gerry.
3.
Federalist Advantages:
a. Were better represented in state legislatures.
b. Controlled the press
c. Began ratification procedures quickly before
Antifederalists could get organized.
d. Agreed to a Bill of Rights after ratification of the
Const.
4.
The Federalist Papers: Madison, Hamilton,
and Jay. To rally support for ratification of the
Constitution.
5.
Ratification, 1788: by state ratifying conventions
of popularly-elected delegates.
Done!
• Summary: Describe the viewpoints of both the
Federalist and Anti-Federalists. Why did they
feel this way?
Quiz
• The Virginia Plan would have created a
A.
B.
C.
D.
Legislature dominated by the small states
Legislature dominated by the big states
Legislature controlled by the slave states
Legislature that balanced control between the
large and small states
E. Constitutional monarchy
• The Bill of Rights was added to the
Constitution to
A. clarify the Supreme Court’s power of judicial
review.
B. Ensure equal voting rights.
C. Protect individual rights.
D. Define all powers reserved for the federal and
state governments.
E. Prevent the supremacy of one faction of
government over another.
• Anti-Federalists argued against adoption of the
Constitution for all the following reasons EXCEPT
A. it failed to centralize power
B. it responded to the needs of the minority, not the
majority
C. it placed too many restrictions on the states
D. it neglected individual rights
E. it favored property owners
• Which of the following was the most
important effect of replacing the Articles of
Confederation with the Constitution of 1787?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
The protection of free speech.
The guarantee of states’ rights.
The establishment of direct democracy.
The creation of a strong national government.
The establishment of judicial review.
• Which of the following statements best describes the
Articles of Confederation?
•
•
•
•
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Domination of the government by the states
A national congress with one house and no executive
No national court system
No ability of the central government to enforce the collection of
taxes
I only
I and II only
I, II, and III only
I and IV only
I, II, III, and IV
• Which of the following theories claims that
too many competing groups cripple
government’s ability to govern?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Hyperpluralist theory
Pluralist theory
Elite theory
Democratic theory
Class-based theory
• Which of the following principles describes a
philosophy of the Federalist Party?
A. Federalists believed in a loose construction of
the Constitution.
B. Federalists believed in a strict interpretation of
the Constitution.
C. Federalists believed in a conservative
interpretation of the Constitution.
D. Federalists believed that Congress should be the
main cog of government.
E. Federalists believed that the interests of the
common man should be reflected in
government.
• The federal system
A.
B.
C.
D.
decreases judicial power.
decentralizes our politics.
centralizes our politics.
decreases opportunities for political
participation.
E. decreases the number of government
officeholders.
• All of these are advantages of federalism EXCEPT:
A. it reduces the amount of experimentation on public
policy
B. it allows customization of policies for local needs.
C. it increases access to government.
D. it allows more opportunities for political
participation.
E. it allows for a greater diversity of opinion to be
reflected in public policies.
• The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution
A. in 1865 after the union victory in the Civil War.
B. during the Constitutional Convention, at the
insistence of Thomas Jefferson.
C. piece by piece during the first hundred years of its
operation.
D. before the ratification process.
E. after the ratification process was complete, and
partly to fulfill a promise to those who supported
ratification.
• The Framers adopted a federal system for all of
the following reasons EXCEPT:
A. The population was too dispersed for a unitary
system to work.
B. Transportation and communication systems were
too primitive for a unitary government to work.
C. Americans' loyalty to state governments was
stronger than it was to the United States.
D. The confederation had clearly failed in managing the
country's problems.
E. Americans had weak allegiance to their states.
• The government designed at the
Constitutional Convention allowed the voters
to directly elect
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
the president and all members of Congress.
only the Senate.
only the president.
only the House of Representatives.
both the House and Senate.
• The Connecticut Compromise at the
Constitutional Convention
A. established an indirectly-elected president.
B. resolved the impasse over the issue of
representation in Congress.
C. settled the dispute over whether slavery should
be allowed in the final constitution.
D. added the Bill of Rights to the Constitution.
E. involved the federal judiciary
• A consequence of separation of powers and
checks and balances has been
A. the inability of groups to get their grievances
heard.
B. fragmented policymaking processes.
C. an "imperial presidency."
D. the tyranny of the majority.
E. streamlined, but hasty, government decision
making.
Extra Time?
• A look at our fake FRQs