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American Government

Foundations of American Government. Government and the StateChapter 1Section 1 (pgs 4-10). Why has government been instituted at all? Because the passions of men will not conform to the dictates of reason and justice, without constraint."Alexander Hamilton (1787). Section Objectives. Defi

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American Government

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    2. Foundations of American Government Government and the State Chapter 1 Section 1 (pgs 4-10)

    3. Section Objectives Define government and the basic powers every government holds Describe the four defining characteristics of the state Identify four theories that attempt to explain the origin of the state Understand the purpose of the government in the United States and other countries.

    4. Vocabulary Popular Sovereignty – the government is responsible to the people and the government is based on the consent of the people

    5. Vocabulary Separation of Powers – our government has three branches, (executive, legislative, judicial) each with its own duties and responsibilities. This system is in place to make sure that no branch has too much power

    6. Vocabulary Federalism – Powers are divided between the federal government and state governments. This protects our National Government while protecting state’s rights.

    7. Why Study Government? Because our government affects YOU.

    8. Why Do We Have Government? Because our government settles conflicts We cannot decide among ourselves how to divide our resources Our government has the authority to make their decisions legal.

    9. Why Do We Have Government? Because our government provides things for us that we could not do independently

    10. Why Do We Have Government? Because our government protects our entire nation. The government raises and fund the military, defense systems, and immigration

    11. Why Do We Have Government? Because our government makes decisions and policy that directs our country.

    12. What is Government? Government is the institution that makes and enforces public policy and has the authority to make their decisions happen.

    13. What is Government? Public policy is something the government decides to do. This could be defense, education, social security, crime and punishment.

    14. What is Government? Every government has 3 kinds of power Legislative – make laws Executive – enforce laws Judicial – interpret laws

    15. What is Government? The way those three tasks are processed are written into a Constitution. A Constitution is a plan for the government

    16. Who Controls Government? In a dictatorship, all of these powers are held by one person or a small group.

    17. Who Controls Government? In a democracy, these powers are in the hands of the citizens of that country.

    18. Who Controls Government? All governments involve politics. Politics is the process that decides who gets what, when and how.

    19. The State The state is a body of people, living in a defined territory, organized politically and the power to make and enforce laws without the consent of any higher authority Often, a state is a nation or a country (not Florida or Ohio)

    20. The Population To be a state, it must have people They do not have to be united either ethnically, politically or culturally.

    21. The Territory To be a state, it must have land It does not have to be connected or large.

    22. Sovereignty To be a state, it must have absolute power to decide on its own foreign and domestic politics. Therefore, Florida is NOT a state in this sense as it does not do this.

    23. Government To be a state, it must be politically organized, making and enforcing laws. Thomas Hobbes and John Locke agreed that all people must have a government to protect ourselves.

    24. Thomas Hobbes 1588-1679 Without government there would be “continual fear and danger of violent death and life would be solitary, poor nasty, brutish and short.” Humans are basically selfish creatures

    25. John Locke 1632-1704 Locke believed that man had natural rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of property People choose to have a government, a social contract, to protect our natural rights.

    26. Political Origins Force Theory One person or group claimed control over an area and forced its inhabitants to submit to that group’s rule

    27. Political Origins Evolutionary Theory The state evolved out of the early family or clan

    28. Political Origins Divine Right Theory God decided through birth who was to lead and who was to follow They believed that because God made the decision, it was not up to people to make changes.

    29. Political Origins During the 1600’s, several philosophers challenged the divine right theory Although they all agreed that man must have a government, they disagreed with the idea that the right to rule comes from God

    30. Political Origins Social Contract Theory People have the power to voluntarily choose to have a government to serve their will The people are free to give or withhold that power if they choose

    31. Political Origins The Declaration of Independence justified the American Revolution through social contract theory, that King George III violated this contract.

    32. Purpose of Government The purpose of our government is written in the Preamble to the Constitution We the People of the United States, in order to

    33. Purpose of Government “Form a more perfect Union” Link the states and the American people together With this union there would be strength

    34. Purpose of Government “Establish Justice’ The law must be reasonable, fair and impartial.

    35. Purpose of Government “Ensure Domestic Tranquility” To keep the peace at home James Madison wrote in the Federalist Papers #51, “if men were angels, no government would be necessary.”

    36. Purpose of Government “Provide for the Common Defense” Protect us from other nations This includes the security of the US

    37. Purpose of Government “Promote the General Welfare” Do whatever is necessary to make life safe and healthy for all Americans This includes air, food and water

    38. Purpose of Government “and Secure the Blessings of Liberty” The government defines how free people can be without intruding upon the freedoms of others. People must stand up and protect the rights of all for all to be free

    39. Purpose of Government “to ourselves and our posterity” The government plans to ensure these freedoms and rights for the people of 1790 and for future generations.

    40. Purpose of Government “do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America” Memorize this!!!

    41. Section Objectives Reviewed Define government and the basic powers every government holds (An institution by which a society makes and enforces public policy; all governments exercise 3 basic powers - legislative, executive and judicial) Describe the four defining characteristics of the state (Population, Territory, Sovereignty, Government)

    42. Section Objectives Reviewed Identify four theories that attempt to explain the origin of the state (The Force Theory, The Evolutionary Theory, The Devine Right Theory, The Social Contract Theory) Understand the purpose of the government in the United States and other countries. (The purpose of our government is defined in the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution . . .)

    43. Foundations of American Government Forms of Government Chapter 1 Section 2

    44. Section Objectives Classify governments according to three sets of characteristics. Define systems of government based on who can participate. Identify different that power can be distributed, geographically, within a state. Describe a government by how power is distributed between the executive branch and legislative branch.

    45. Foundations of American Government I. Who Can Participate A. Democracy B. Dictatorship II. Geographic Distribution of Power A. Unitary Government B. Federal Government C. Confederate Government III. Relationship Between Legislative and Executive Branch A. Presidential Government B. Parliamentary Government

    46. Vocabulary Autocracy – rule by one Dictators and monarchs Oligarchy – rule by selected elite

    47. Vocabulary Unitary govt. - power in the hands of a central agency Federal govt – power divided between federal and state governments

    48. Vocabulary Division of powers – power is in the hands of different branches Confederation – loosely organized group of states

    49. Vocabulary Presidential government – the executive branch is separate from the legislative branch Parliamentary government – the prime minister and cabinet are both the executive and legislative body

    50. Classifying Governments Who can participate? What is the distribution of power within the state? What is the relationship between the legislative and executive branches?

    51. Who Can Participate? In a democracy, the power is in the hands of the people Direct democracy does not exist in large communities. Everyone votes for everything. It is not practical in cities and countries.

    52. Who Can Participate? In a representative democracy, or republic, people vote for representatives to carry out their wishes on a day to day basis They are accountable on election day

    53. Who Can Participate? In a dictatorship, only the ruler makes decisions. Whether an autocracy or oligarchy, dictatorships are authoritarian. Dictators control every aspect of peoples’ lives

    54. Who Can Participate? Examples of dictatorships would be Nazi Germany under Hitler Even children (Aryan) were forced to become members of the Nazi Youth Movement Dictatorships stay in power through the use of military

    55. Distribution of Power – Unitary All governmental power is centralized into a single agency Local governments have only the power than the central government allows it to have

    56. Distribution of Power – Federal Government power is shared between a central government and local agencies The division of powers are separated by geographically and are each regulated by their own laws, officials and agencies

    57. Distribution of Power - Confederation The central government only has the powers that the states assign to it. The US under the Articles of Confederation gave the federal government few powers

    58. Distribution of Power - Confederation The EU, European Union, has established free trade among its member states They use Euros and no passports are needed to cross boundaries.

    59. Relationship Between Branches Under a presidential government, the legislative and executive branches have different duties and can over-ride the authority of each other They are independent in function

    60. Relationship Between Branches Under a parliamentary government, the prime minister and the legislative branch work together In fact, the legislative body selects the executive branch This is the typical type of govt.

    61. PROPAGANDA n. , information meant to persuade people to think or act a certain way. Not all propaganda is bad although the word has a bad connotation. Hitler skillfully used propaganda in a harmful way Saying the Pledge is promoting propaganda/patriotism in a good way

    62. PROPAGANDA Celebrity testimonials – companies and organizations recruit ‘stars’ to promote their ideas The idea is that they are smarter than you so you should do as they say. Is Michael Jordan, Angelina Jolie, or Britney Spears really smarter than you when it come to buying shoes, lipstick or soda?

    63. PROPAGANDA Multiple Identities/Folksy – “I’m just like you, watch me swim and fish” Does Star Jones really buy her shoes at Payless? Does George Bush really clean his own horse stalls?

    64. PROPAGANDA Bandwagon – “Everyone is doing it” Wants you to feel left out if you do not join the majority “Don’t be the last one on your block not to have red shoelaces!”

    65. PROPAGANDA Name Calling – “He has not been honest about his background.” Rather than explain the positive aspects of “A”, focus on the negative (or untruths) about “B”

    66. PROPAGANDA Scare Tactics – “A vote for Mr. Smith, is a vote for high taxes and increased terrorism.” Although there is no basis for the claims, repetition will cause people to believe false accusations.

    67. PROPAGANDA

    68. PROPAGANDA

    69. Foundations of American Government Basic Concepts of Democracy Chapter 1 Section 3

    70. Vocabulary Compromise – a position where both sides give up something to be acceptable to the majority Free enterprise system – capitalism, economic system where individuals control the factors of production

    71. Vocabulary Law of Supply – As the price for a good goes up, the producer will make more. As the price goes down, they will make less Law of Demand – As the price for a good goes up, the consumer will buy less. As the price goes down, they will buy more

    72. Vocabulary Traditional Economy – people do things the way they have always done them. An example would be poor, 3rd world countries. Command Economy – the government controls the factors of production and controls the economy. An example would be Communist China or Castro’s Cuba

    73. Vocabulary Mixed economy – an economic system with a mixture of capitalism and government regulation. The US has a mixed economy, privately owned companies are regulated by OSHA, Food & Drug Admin, Labor Laws, etc Utilities are regulated as they are a monopoly

    74. Foundations For democracy to work, it must recognize 1. the fundamental worth and dignity of every person 2. Respect for the equality of all 3. majority rule and minority rights 4. necessity of compromise 5. widest possible degree of freedoms for all

    75. Foundations Our democratic government works in tandem with capitalism. Both rely on the individual to make it successful. Both democracy and capitalism were founded on the ideas of the 17th century philosophers – John Locke and Adam Smith

    76. Foundations The internet has opened up new markets and a method to get updated news events. Until voter fraud is eliminated, it is doubtful that people will vote via the internet anytime soon.

    77. QUESTION??? Should Congress be allowed to limit access to the Internet in Public Libraries?

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