Required Documents
What size and type of government does Brutus 1 argue for?
A confederation of small republics.
Decisions are made not only by representatives, but also by outside groups
Pluralist Democracy
A state or a nation is only valid if it is the will of the people
Popular sovereignty
How many of the 13 states were needed to ratify the constitution?
9 out of 13.
The is the main idea that is discussed in Federalist 51?
Checks and balances.
Can put a governor's name on a ballet, and ask if people are in favor of recalling the governor (or state judges)
Recall
Two of the three ways that slavery was addressed in the constitution
⅗ compromise,
congress could not ban the importation of slaves for 20 years
if a slave left their state and goes to a free state, that slave must be returned to their 'owner'.
What is Habeas Corpus, and what article is it found in?
No indefinite detention (must have a trial)
Article 1
What was one of the main reason that the Declaration of Independence was published instead of solely sent directly to the King?
To rally troops to fight
To gain foreign allies
List one pro and one con of direct democracy.
Pros
Everybody in involved and included (like a true democracy)
Cons
Not practically (there are so many people in our country)
An uneducated voter base
Identify four of the principles of the constitution.
Popular sovereignty
Rule of law
Separation of powers
Checks and balances
Federalism
Independent judiciary
Individual rights
What is Full faith and credit, and what article is it found in?
All legal documents from one state have to be respected in other states
Full faith and credit must be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state
This means that every state has to accept what other states have done.
Article 4
Describe three weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
No national judiciary (no judicial branch) - couldn’t settle disputes effectively, so the state tried to solve it themselves. States would have to go to war
No executive branch - couldn’t enforce laws and bills. In the 13 states, they needed 9 out of 13 states to pass anything.
Regulating commerce - states could buy and trade with foreign nations on their own without the national government. The national government could not regulate taxes.
Laying taxes - they could only ask the states for money not force them. There was no money to generate revenue for a national crisis
Foreign treaties - they couldn’t force states into foreign treaties due to the fact they didn’t have an executive branch to enforce and states could enter treaties by themselves.
Soldiers and drafting - the national government could only request soldiers from the states
Changing amendments - they needed all 13 states to change the amendments
Passing new laws and bills - 9/13 states needed to agree to pass new laws and bills so passing them was difficult.
Define the four ideals of democracy.
Natural rights: All individuals are equal because they are all born with inalienable rights that are God-given and can’t be taken away
Social contract: The people give up some of their rights to the government in exchange for the protection of the rest of their natural rights
Popular sovereignty: a state or a nation is only valid if it is the will of the people
Republicanism: power is held, either directly or through representatives, by the people
The constitutional convention was successful due to the “_______” and ability to compromise the delegates exhibited
“secrecy rule”
Identify two informal ways of amending the constitution.
Political parties
Primaries/ national convention
Supreme Court
Through ruling and decisions, major laws are made for the nation
Abortion/ gay marriage
Congress:
Federal Courts
Customs
2 terms (prior to the 22 amendment accept for FDR)
Based on the ideas in Federalist 10, what is pure democracy and why is it unable to control factions?
A pure democracy is when citizens vote directly instead of being represented. It is unable to control factions because:
Majority factions will always win
( and it is easier for a demagogue to fool the majority)
Define power, authority, and legitimacy, and list two sources of legitimacy.
Powers: to get someone to do something you want to do
Formal Authority: is part of your job description
Legitimacy: what makes a law of a system of government valid (power+authority)
Sources of legitimacy:
Constitution
Election (they have to be free and fair)
Revolution (it came from the people in a popular revolution)
Religion
Ideology
Charismatic legitimacy
Simply define each of the seven articles of the constituion.
1: Establishes congress
2: Establishes the executive branch
3: Establishes the supreme court
4: Establishes the relationship between states
5: Establishes the amendment process
6: Establishes the supremacy clause
7: Establishes how the constitution could be ratified
What are the four potential steps of amending the constitution?
When two-thirds of the Senate and two-thirds of the HOR vote to change the Constitution, an amendment goes to the state legislatures for a vote.
Alternatively,⅔ of state legislatures call on congress form a constitutional convention there they vote on the proposal.
For approval, 38 of the state legislatures, 75% must approve the change for it to happen.(most common way)
Alternatively, there could be a state or national convention where ¾ vote to approved.