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Longman PoliticalScience Interactive. Magleby & Light Government by the People Chapter 1 Constitutional Democracy. Defining Democracy. Democracy. Demos (The People). Kratos (authority). Government by the People.
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LongmanPoliticalScienceInteractive Magleby & Light Government by the People Chapter 1 Constitutional Democracy
Defining Democracy Democracy Demos (The People) Kratos (authority) Government by the People 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.
Defining Democracy Democracy 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
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 coexist happily.
Democracy as a System of Interrelated Political Processes • Free and fair elections • Majority rule • Freedom of expression • The right to assemble and protest A student from Chicago casts an early vote in the 2008 Illinois presidential primary.
Democracy as a System of Interdependent Political Structures The four distinctive elements of democracy Federalism Separation of Powers Checks and Balances Constitutionalism
American Government and Politicians in Context • Government by the people requires faith in our common human enterprise • Constitutional democracy requires constant attention to protecting the rights and opinions of others • Constitutional democracy means government by representative politicians Thomas Jefferson, one of our best-known champions of constitutional democracy
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
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
Constitutional Democracy A student from Chicago casts an early vote in the 2008 Illinois presidential primary. • The peaceful transfer of political power through elections
Constitutional Democracy “I say to president-elect Bush that what remains of partisan rancor must now be put aside, and may God bless his stewardship of this country. Neither he nor I anticipated this long and difficult road. Certainly neither of us wanted it to happen. Yet it came, and now it has ended, resolved, as it must be resolved, through the honored institutions of our democracy.” -Al Gore In 2000, Democrat Al Gore won the popular vote, but George W. Bush was declared winner by the Electoral College. Still, Gore graciously conceded defeat.
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
Influences on the ConstitutionVBritish customs and traditionsVEuropean philosophersV Colonial experiences (i.e. elected assemblies)V State constitutions
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.
Toward Unity and Order The Articles of Confederation • Goal: To bring the thirteen states together while allowing each state to remain independent • Adopted on March 1, 1781 Under the Articles, each state issued its own currency
Shays’s Rebellion • Shays’s Rebellion • Economic depression of mid-1780s • Daniel Shays • Rallied farmers to demand change from government
The Constitutional Convention of 1787:The Delegates • 55 Delegates • Educated • Wealthy • Experienced in state/local government • White • Male To encourage open debate, the proceedings were kept secret.
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Consensus The common philosophy accepted by most of the delegates was that of balanced government
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise 2 competing plans • The Virginia Plan • National government would be supreme over the states • Favored by populous states • Representation based on population • The New Jersey Plan • “Confederation model” • Favored by smaller states • Representation based on equality
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise The Conflict State-based approach versus an individual-based approach Conflict between large and small states The Compromise House of Representatives= Proportional Senate= Equal number of representatives from each state to be elected by state legislatures (bicameral legislature) The Great Compromise
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Conflict and Compromise The Conflict Southerners feared that the North’s greater representation in Congress would be used to end slavery The Compromise Slaves counted as three-fifths of a free person in determining representation in the House of Representatives AND taxation; protection of the Atlantic slave trade for at least 20 years
Federalists versus Anti-Federalists • The Federalist Papers • James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay • – Property owners, creditors, merchants • Anti-Federalists • – Henry, Mason, Gerry • – Small farmers, • frontiersmen, debtors, • shopkeepers
The Politics of Ratification Ratification of the Constitution Patrick Henry’s famous cry, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death!”