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Today’s Agenda

Today’s Agenda. Finish Constitutional Discussion Bill of Rights Why is our Federal government so inefficient and (at times) ineffective? (Is this on Purpose?! Say it Ain’t so!) What does Federalism mean? Did the states make a deal with the Devil?. Potential Exam Question.

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Today’s Agenda

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  1. Today’s Agenda • Finish Constitutional Discussion • Bill of Rights • Why is our Federal government so inefficient and (at times) ineffective? • (Is this on Purpose?! Say it Ain’t so!) • What does Federalism mean? • Did the states make a deal with the Devil?

  2. Potential Exam Question According to lecture, all of the following are reasons why the states felt like they needed to "move in together" in 1787, EXCEPT: • They wanted to create a central government to build a strong national culture • They were getting into trade wars with one another • There was no common currency • They were not confident in their ability to defend themselves against foreign aggression

  3. Potential Exam Question The framers' maindilemma was to construct a federal government that: • Was more fair in its treatment of slave and free states • Was powerful enough to protect all of the states from foreign aggression • Was strong enough to protect people's rights, but not too strong that it would put these rights in peril • Would equalize the differences between the property owners and middle class workers

  4. Potential Exam Question According to lecture, which of the following would best define “government” as a stationary bandit for Mancur Olson? • The organization with the best interest in mind for the greatest number of people • The institutions and procedures through which people are ruled • The entity or group with the highest capacity for violence • Any organization that prevents people from producing goods peacefully

  5. Who is in Charge? • Supremacy Clause • Article VI • “The Constitution, and the Laws of the United States…shall be the supreme Law of the Land”

  6. Who is in Charge? • Supremacy Clause • Commerce Clause • Article I, Section 8 • “The Congress shall have the Power To… regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.”

  7. Who is in Charge? • Supremacy Clause • Commerce Clause • Elastic Clause • “Necessary and Proper” Clause • Article I, Section 8 • “The Congress shall have the Power To…make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers.”

  8. States Make a Comeback? • Bill of Rights added to convince the people that the federal government would not take over their lives. • Promised as the first order of business for the new Congress • Takes some of the bite out of the Anti-Federalist arguments

  9. States make a Comeback? • Reservation Clause • Tenth Amendment • “The Powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the People."

  10. Bill of Rights • 9 – No argument allowed to disparage rights un-enumerated. • 8 – No one will inflict cruel AND unusual punishment on me. • 7 – I can have a jury trial. • 6 – I can have a speedy trial, a lawyer, & find out who said all those nasty things about me.

  11. Bill of Rights • 5 – No government can take my life, liberty or property without due process. • 4 – The cops can’t search me without a darn good reason. • 3 – My home is my castle (and the government officials can’t expect free room & board). • 2 – I can own a gun just like the NRA says.

  12. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…”

  13. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…” • “…or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”

  14. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…” • “…or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” • “or abridging the freedom of speech”

  15. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…” • “…or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” • “or abridging the freedom of speech” • “or of the press”

  16. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…” • “…or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” • “or abridging the freedom of speech” • “or of the press” • “or to peacefully assemble”

  17. NUMBER 1! • The first ten words of the Bill of Rights. • “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion…” • “…or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” • “or abridging the freedom of speech” • “or of the press” • “or to peacefully assemble” • “and to petition the Government…”

  18. How to Change?

  19. Why so Hard to Change? • Institutions in a democracy • My ideas are important! • Institutionalizing my preferences • Makes it harder for people to take power and make changes to my ideas! • Institutions are the legitimized preferences of past winning coalitions

  20. How to Stop this Monster • John C. Calhoun • Nullification • Constitution versus government • Slavery

  21. Potential Exam Question The first 10 amendments (the Bill of Rights) were added to the Constitution… • To convince Anti-Federalists to support the Constitution. • During the initial Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. • After the Civil War. • To make the new federal government more powerful.

  22. Federalism… …is a political system in which power is divided and shared between the national/central government and the states (regional units) in order to limit the power of government.

  23. Confederalism… …is a political system in which power held at the subnational level and limited powers given to the national government. (United Nations, Articles of Confederation)

  24. Consociationalism… …is a political system in which power held at the level of some attribute of people (language differences, racial, ethnic differences) and there are a variety of ways that powers are given to the national government. (Netherlands, South Africa, Lebanon)

  25. Origins Just like democracy, an accidental contract between people who would not otherwise negotiate Not an idea – a negotiation South Africa?

  26. Commerce clause history… • Nothing is interstate commerce (1905-1937) • Everything is interstate commerce (1937-1994) • Most things are interstate commerce (1994-present)

  27. Clint Eastwood

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