Thankful for all of the encouragement from my wife, family and friends. 4.0 not bad for the first semester back after 20 years.

It was a good struggle. I enjoyed every minute of it! I am looking forward to the next semester and continuing my education. If you’re thinking about going to school, do it.

-Armando

09-02_AmGove Notes

Recap:

Articles of Confederation’s lack of power

Created problems

End of the 1780’s Economic problems

Lot of dent from Revolution

People are owed money by the government

Bankruptcy Issues

One opinion | Without a strong central government people on the streets are trying to put pressure on the government to do certain things.

People aren’t governing directly

Mob rule seems to be prevailing

Governments are being pressured to enact stay-acts or stay-laws

Like a bankruptcy protection.

People saw it as trying to get out of legitimate debt

Saw it as a threat to the right of property

PPT:

Problems of the 1780’s

1. Democracy out of control
2. State threats to property
3. Shay’s Rebellion
   1500 to 2000 people were following Shay. In the state of Mass people were losing property (agricultural society). Shay and his mob take over a courthouse where foreclosure proceedings are taking place.
   Leaders of the Colonial society were not happy with the situation, state governments seem to be making it worse, and Washington said “We are fast verging on anarchy and confusion.” John Adams and others decide they need to fix things

Constitutional Convention

1. Originally called to “revise” the Articles, but decided to replace it.
   “The government is broken, we need to fix it.” Virginians felt like the Articles were not good and needed to be replaced. They brought a new plan for government.
   Educated, wealthy land owners, white, young men (average age), group of privilege
2. Result is sometimes referred to as a “bundle of compromises”. It is a bunch of compromises amongst politicians. Most believed that the government needed certain things, tax power, central government, etc.

Convention Compromises

1. Representation of the statesHow will states be represented in a new form of government? Previously there was only one delegate per state.

   ~Virginia Plan –representation should be based on population. The larger the population of the state the more representatives that you get per state. Population equals more power.
   Anti thought – all states are equal, so size shouldn’t affect representation.

   ~New Jersey Plan based on equality of the states

   Both sides have valid points, worked through the summer, reach a compromise

   ~Great Compromise (Connecticut) Compromise created a bicameral legislature
   Bicameral – two houses of legislature
   The house of representatives – representation by population
   Senate – Equality – Senators (2)

   There are two things you should not watch being made, legislation and sausage. ~ Otto VonBismark

2. Slavery – Number of slave related compromises in the constitution
   ~ Should slaves count in determining representation? Northern and Southern conflict
   Slaves should be counted for some other reason, if you count slaves as population the states will be taxed higher.

   ~ Three/Fifths Compromise – Count slaves as 3/5 of a person for determining representation.
   Traditionally attributed to the idea that this would create a balance between the North and South

   Argument that slavery was a constitutional right.

3. Presidency
   Articles of Confederation had no executive branch, some feared the powers given were afraid it would lead to a dictator
   ~How to elect?
   Some thought the president should be chosen by the congress.
   Some felt this would create a weak pres dependant on the congress

   Some wanted a direct election by the people.
   Weak presidency due to unwise election

   Compromise: The Electoral College
   Body made up every four years.
   We choose people to go to the electoral college, not really vote for the president

Basic Principles of the Constitution

Talk about big ideas and overall structure of the constitution

1. Republican form of government with checks on majority rule
2. Elected Representatives
3. Separation of powers
   Read some of the writings of James Madison, good but not sufficient to protect people from government tyranny. Politicians are ambitious people, the ambition of the pres needs t be counteracted by the other branches so they set up:
4. Checks and Balances
   Give each branch a little power of the other branches, enough to block and counteract
   Ambitious people keep each other in line.

08_31 AmGov Notes

There were some elements that were democratic. Trying to make a distinction between 18th century republicanism and democracy.

Basic Concepts

1. Democracy A system of rule by the people (or the many)

Two types: Direct democracy – public business is decided by all citizens meeting in small assemblies Best suited for small groups of people The ancient Greeks were direct democracy, New England town meeting

Representative (Indirect) Democracy – People work through elected representatives Like Remodeling – do the work yourself (direct) or contract it out (indirect). Direct democracy unworkable for a nation-state In the U.S. we have a representative democracy

Representative Democracy

1. Fundamental Principles
A. Popular Sovereignty, i.e., the people ultimately rule 1. The people elect (and can be) leaders (Inconceivable to the founding fathers)

2. Representatives are delegates, i.e., do what people want (as opposed to a “trustee” who does what he thinks is best, delegates do what the people want)

3. Free and fair elections

4. People participate (for the people to rule, they need to show up), Voter turnout has decreased. In the 19th century there would have been over 75%, now the biggest election brings out 50%, smaller elections in the single digits!

5. People have access to information (to make choices and responses) that attempts to be fair and gives both sides of the issue. Many times the information is not “fair and balanced.” Jefferson and Hamilton both hired newspapers to speak for them to the public. Many media outlets have strong bias.

6. Majority Rule.
A. Elections are determined through majority vote, policies are voted within elected bodies by majority rule
B. Political Equality – each person has equal weight in political/public affairs
1. Equal voting rights – Great irony is that so many people were restricted from voting but now the voting turnout has gone down
2. Equal protection of the laws C. Political liberty – people protected from government interference in regard to basic liberties, e.g. speech, press, religion, assembly, freedom from arbitrary/unjust detention/imprisonment, etc.
Equality and liberty can come into conflict with each other.
Modern Liberalism emphasizes equality, Modern Conservatism emphasizes liberty.
The Declaration of Independence was really political propaganda. None of it was legal. It took five years to finalize the laws that began the U.S.

The Articles of Confederation
1. A League of friendship (weak and wishy-washy) A loose alliance among the thirteen states, more voluntary and not centralized government
2. Each state retained its sovereignty, freedom and independence, kind of like a marriage where the parties decide that they can do whatever they want
3. Consisted basically of a Congress
4. Each state had one vote (key point)
5. 9 out of 13 states to pass a law (super majority)
6. Unanimous vote to amend any laws (100% majority)
7. No executive branch (Executive branch is best suited to respond to national emergencies) should provide leadership and focus because he/she sees the big picture
8. No judicial branch – Without a national court system all laws would be interpreted by each state individually which could lead to 13 interpretations.
9. No power to levy taxes. – It was supposed to collect taxes but had no ability to come to the states and compel them to pay.
10. No power to regulate commerce – could not tax imports from other countries or other taxes or limitations on trade, left up to individual states If you like state power, this is a good government, but the national government was restricted by these concepts, this would have lead to a government similar to Great Britain.

Problems of the 1780’s on Wednesday.

8-29_AmGov Notes

18^th Century Republicanism

The framers of the constitution were influenced by 18^th century Republicanism

Basic Principles
Things we would still agree with:

1. Prevent tyranny by one, few or many
2. Authority of government based upon consent of the governed
   Representatives are elected
3. Limit power of government
   Elections
   Written Constitutions
   Spells out, structures and empowers the government, what they can or can’t do
   dividing the power of government. All power in one hands will lead to tyranny.
4. Government protects rights and liberties, especially property rights.
   Property rights are most important because it can allow people to sustain themselves and add to the community

Things we would not agree with:

1. Limit the power of the majority
   “People” directly elect a limited number of representatives
   The members of the house were the only government officials elected by the people directly.
2. Government run by the “better” people in society
   Wealthy white men with property were the only voters
   Had to have a certain quality for voting and a higher one for government
   Aristotle was a proponent of this notion
3. Elected reps. should be trustees, i.e. Independent and not slaves to public opinion. He should vote given the way he thinks is best. Opposite of the delegate role, vote according to what the voters want
4. People should not govern directly (Make laws) laws should be made by the “better” people

PreTest on Friday
Basic Concepts of all Government

1. Politics
   Who gets what, when and how – Harold Lasswell
   People who live together and have needs that must be supplied. How do we share resources within a community? Who votes, when do they get to vote?
   * Sharing Resources
   * Solving Problems
   * Managing Conflict
2. Government
   The realm in which we will discuss politics
   *Not the nation-state (country) merely one part of the nation state that can change over time. The government is not the country, it can change over time.
   We’ve had two governments: Articles of Confederation, Constitutional

   *Political instrument of the nation-state: group of individuals and institutions that make public policy for the nation-state
   Institutions – President, White House, government positions and entities
   Individuals make up the institutions
   Some times it includes media and special interest groups who influence (unofficially) and make public policy.

   Public Policy – what government does or doesn’t do to address needs/wants/problems of people within the nation-state (or people outside such as those in other states)
   Sometimes the best policy is for government to NOT do something.
   “The government that governs best that governs least.”

3. Political Ideology
   Within a nation state a government is like an individual that works within certain principles and/or values. If we as an individual need money we can: get a job, borrow or steal it.
   *Basic principles that explain ideal political, social, cultural and economic relationships within a society.
   Greenburg and Page

   *18^th Century Republicanism
   Political ideology of the framers of the Constitution
   We have taken the men who wrote the Constitution and have deified them. Most of the ideas they had were not their own.

   *Influences on their philosophy
   ~Greek and Roman philosophy and government, e.g., rule of law and equality under the law
   ~English history of limits on royal power – Magna Carta, the king did not rule unilaterally. Civil war in the 1640’s culminated in the death of the king. The Bloodless revolution in the 1860’s replaced the king with another.
   ~Enlightenment emphasis upon “inalienable” rights, particularly right to property. Enlightenment was about what is natural in the world. Isaac Newton was one of the poster boys of the enlightenment.
   John Locke affected British social and political thought process. He and others came up with the idea that government was not natural. That people were born free and had certain rights that could not be separated from a person. Locke wrote: Life, liberty and the natural right to property. Jefferson changed it to “pursuit of happiness.”
   ~Montesquieu’s argument for mixed and balanced government. Different factions (groups) with opposing views to balance the perspective of governmental bodies.

4. Fundamental Principles ESSAY QUESTION ALERT
   All of the threads of ideas that came together from their study and argument.
   ~Prevent tyranny by one, few, or many – We want to have a government with a tyranny by one or a few (dictator or aristocracy, plutocracy, oligarchy).
   ~Authority of government based upon the consent of the governed – Authority is “the people are in charge have the right to exercise that power”.
   ~The representatives are elected.