welcome to federal government!
DESCRIPTION
Welcome to Federal Government!. Syllabus (Chapters and Tests) Expectations Textbook Class Participation Stay current with the news! dreamhistory.org [email protected] 956-286-9693. Prentice Hall PoliticalScience Interactive. Magleby et al. Government by the People Chapter 1 - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Welcome to Federal Government!
Syllabus (Chapters and Tests)ExpectationsTextbookClass ParticipationStay current with the [email protected]
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Prentice HallPoliticalScienceInteractive
Magleby et al.Government by the People
Chapter 1
Constitutional DemocracyMagda Martinez
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Constitutional Democracy
The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 changed our perceptions of domestic and
international security: HOW???
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Democracy as a System of Interrelated Political Processes
Free and fair elections
Majority rule
Freedom of Expression
The right to assemble and protest
Citizens standing in line to vote
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Democratic IdealsA meaningful definition of democracy
must include the following ideals:
Individual Dignity
Equal protection under the law
Participation in decision making
Majority Rule: one person, one vote
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Equality
A true democracy requires equal protection of the law for every person
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Freedom and Democracy around the World
In 1950, there were 22 democracies.In 2000, 120 countries are considered democracies.
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Who Really Governs in a Democracy?
Pluralistic View
The belief that democracy can be achieved in a
large, complex society by competition, bargaining, and compromise among organized groups, and
that individuals can participate in decision
making through membership in these
groups and by choosing among parties and
candidates in elections
Elitist View
Believes that complex decisions need to be made free of public pressure.
The masses should be “spectators” in
the process
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Who Really Governs in a Democracy?
“Government is always government by the few, whether in the name of the few, the one, or the
many” -Harold Lasswell and Daniel Lerner
Public Opinion about Who Runs the Country
Would you say the government is pretty much run by a few big interest looking out for themselves or that it is run for the benefit of all the people?
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Constitutional Democracy
“The pictures of airplanes flying into buildings, fires burning, huge structures
collapsing, have filled us with disbelief, terrible sadness, and
a quiet, unyielding anger. These mass murders were intended to frighten our
nation into chaos and retreat. But they failed; our country is strong.... These deliberate and
deadly attacks were more than acts of terror. They were
acts of war.”-President
George W. Bush
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Constitutional Democracy
Should our response to
terrorism and the threat of
terrorism be unilateral or
should it involve at least several
countries?
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
American Government and Politicians in Context
Constitutional democracy requires constant attention to protecting the rights and opinions of others
Constitutional democracy is necessarily government by representative politicians
Thomas Jefferson, one of our best-known champions of constitutional democracy
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
American Government and Politicians in Context
Why does such a gap persist between our image of the
ideal politician and our views about actual politicians?
Bush’s Approval Ratings
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Defining Democracy
Democracy
Government by the People
Demos
(The People)
Kratos
(authority)
The Athenians are here, Sire, with an offer to back us with ships, money,
arms, and men--and, of course, their usual lectures about democracy
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Defining DemocracyDemocracy
Government by the people, either directly or indirectly, with free and
frequent elections
Direct Democracy
Government in which citizens vote on laws and
select officials more directly
Representative Democracy
Government that derives its powers indirectly from
the people, who elect those who will govern
Constitutional Democracy
Government that enforces recognized limits on those who
govern and allows the voice of the people to be heard through free,
fair, and relatively frequent elections
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Democracy as a System of Interacting Values
Equality of Opportunity
Popular Consent
Personal Liberty
Respect for the Individual
These basic values of democracy do not always co-exist happily
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Democracy as a System of Interrelated Political ProcessesFree and fair elections
Majority rule
Freedom of expression
The right to assemble and protest
Citizens standing in line to vote
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Democracy as a System of Interdependent Political Structures
The five distinctive elements of the U.S. constitutional system
FederalismSeparation of Powers
BicameralismChecks and Balances
Bill of Rights
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
People & Politics: Joan Blades and Wes Boyd and MOVEON
Founded MOVEON as an e-mail campaign opposing the impeachment of President Clinton
Their work demonstrated the importance of the internet in politics
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Conditions Conducive to Constitutional Democracy
Educational Conditions
Democracy puts a premium on education
Economic Conditions
Extremes of poverty and wealth
undermine the possibilities for a
healthy constitutional democracy
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Conditions Conducive to Constitutional Democracy
Social Conditions
Overlapping associations and groupings so that
allegiance to one group is not overpowering
Ideological conditions
Acceptance of the ideals of democracy
and a willingness from the majority to proceed
democratically
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Colonial Beginnings
Mayflower compact– Legalized the Pilgrim’s
position as a body politic
Colonial Assemblies– Every colony in the New
World had an assembly
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Rise of Revolutionary Fervor
The Declaration of Independence
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these
are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes
destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect
their Safety and Happiness.
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Toward Unity and Order
Goal: to bring the thirteen states together while allowing each state to remain independent
Adopted on March, 1, 1781
The Articles of Confederation
Under the Articles, each state issued its own
currency
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Shay’s Rebellion
Shay’s Rebellion– Economic
depression of mid-1780s
Daniel Shays– Rallied farmers to
demand change from government
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Constitutional Convention of 1787
Washington’s prestige helped hold
the Constitutional Convention of 1787
together and later to win support for the new Constitution
“First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen”
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Consensus
The common philosophy
accepted by most of the delegates
was that of balanced
government
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise
The Virginia Plan
Principle author: James Madison
National government would be supreme over the states
Favored by populous states
The New Jersey Plan
Principle author: William Patterson of New Jersey
“Confederation model”
Favored by smaller states
2 competing plans
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise
The Conflict
State-based approach versus an individual-
based approach
The Compromise
House of Representatives: Proportional; Senate: Equal number of representatives
from each state
The Conflict
The fact that Northerners hated slavery worried Southerners who feared that their greater representation in Congress
would be used to end slavery
The Compromise
The Constitution was to protect the Atlantic Slave Trade for at least twenty
years
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise
The Conflict
If representation is proportional in the House of Representatives, how
should slaves be counted?
The Compromise
Three-Fifths of the slaves in each state would be
counted
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
Federalists versus Anti-Federalists
The Federalist Papers– James Madison, Alexander
Hamilton and John Jay
The “Brutus” Essays
Federalists versus Anti-Federalists
Copyright 2006 Prentice Hall
The Politics of Ratification
Patrick Henry’s famous cry, “Give Me Liberty or
Give Me Death!”
Ratification of the Constitution