Foundational Documents Flashcards
(9 cards)
Declaration of Independance
Written as a list of reasons as to why we are unfit to live under England’s rule anymore. Declared independence from England.
Articles of Confederation
First form of government in the new country. Only branch was congress which had little to no power, unable to even tax its people which led to an extremely underfunded military which led to Shay’s rebellion, a big factor in the rewriting of our government.
Constitution
New form of government after the AoC. Article 1 = legislature, Article 2 = executive, Article 3 = judicial. Gave a lot more power to the government but also introduced a three-branch system. Has the bill of rights (first ten amendments.).
Fed 10
Written by Madison, warns of the dangers of factions aka a single faction gaining too much power. Advises for a strong and big republic to steer away from a tyranny. Control, not stop factions.
Brutus No. 1
Argues against ratification of the constitution. Says that the country is far too big for a single government to properly represent everyone. Centralized power could lead to tyranny.
Fed 51
Written by Madison, talks about the importance of a three-branch system. Three branches would be working against each other so that no branch could grow too powerful. Separation of powers/ checks and balances.
Fed 70
Written by Hamilton, the government needs a strong, single executive. Energy is very important in the executive to have a protected country and good government, ergo, single executive.
Fed 78
Written by Hamilton, talks about the judicial branch. Talks about the importance of judicial review and having an insulated judicial branch so that decisions won’t be made based on what the people want. Life tenure is a part of that. They can act as a safeguard.
Letter from Birmingham Jail
Defends the use of nonviolent protests. Talks about white moderates and how they’re just as bad if not worse than the racists because “wait” just pushes people back and no change will be made. Fighting injustice is incredibly important. Fighting unjust laws isn’t immoral, but actually needed. There’s a moral obligation to fight unjust laws.
