Unit 1 Ch 2 - The Constitution Flashcards
John Locke
Enlightenment thinker who inspired much of the framers’ governemnt design. Locke was in favor of a limited government. In his book, Treatise of Civil Government, he argued that men have natural rights, including the right to life, liberty, and property, and government should exist primarily to protect those rights. But should a government ever infringe upon those rights, the people may be obliged to overthrow or abolish it.
Charles Montesquieu
A French philosopher who believed that liberty was only secure in small societies, governed either by a direct democracy or with large state legislatures with small distrects and frequent turnovers.
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
The settlers of Connecticut in 1639 followed the tradition of the Mayflower compact in making mutual promises to associate with one another under a decent and orderly government established according to God. The document differs from the Mayflower compact, however, by making no mention whatsoever of the British monarch. The Orders list a fundament right: the right to create the government under which one shall live.
Pennsylvania Charter of Privilege
The Pennsylvania Charter of Privilege recognized the authority of the King and Parliament over the colony, while creating a local governing body that would propose and excecute laws. It provided groundbreaking provisions concerning religious liberty, and established Pennsylvania as the most liberal of the colonies. However, it had major problems. It enacted a unicameral legislature which essentially was given all the power. It ultimately morphed into an oligarthy as power was concentrated in the hands of the elite. It also denied certain freedoms, such as trial by jury.
What did John Adams consider to be the ‘real revolution?’
John Adams believed that the real American Revolution began immidiately after their declared independence from Britian. The radical change in principles, opinions, affections, and sentiments of the people would determine what would become of the new nation. Adam’s vision was to make political authority and personal liberties secure. He believed that 1) a royal government should not exist 2) a real government had the consent of the people and a structure written down in a Constitution.
The significance of the French and Indian War and the Albany Plan
From 1754 - 1763 Britain waged war with France over the possession of land in North America. The colonies fought for Britain and Britian emerged victorious, but was burdened with immense debt strictly afterward, which was attempted to alleviate by heavy taxation on the colonies. Spiting the idea of vitual representation, the colonies rallied around the revolutionary cry, “no taxation without representation” which would spurn the war for independence. The colonial army’s expirience fighting guerilla warfare would end up aiding them in the fight against their mother country. The albany plan, proposed by Benjamin Franklin, was the first attempt at colonial alliance.
Declaration of Independence
Written by Thomas Jefferson, this document was sent to the British Parliament on July 4, 1776. It mainly posed as a list of rights and grievances against the ruling monarch, and was veiwed as highly rash and radical.
The 1st and 2nd Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress convened between September 5 and October 26 in 1774 in Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia. This meeting sought to address colonial concerns over the taxation they were facing. The prospect of severing from Britian entirely did not arise until the Second Continental Congress, which convened in Independence Hall in May of 1775, after shots had been fired on the Lexington Green. This session saw a Continental Congress formed, of which George Washington was appointed Commander-in-Chief. It also issued the declaration of independence and enacted conscription for the Revolutionary War.
Annapolis Convention
Occured September 11-14, 1786. The official name was the Meeting of Commissioners to Remedey Defects of the Federal government. Only five states attended. It was hosted in response to the ongoing Shay’s Rebellion. The consesus reached was that the federal government needed serious changes. It lead to the Consitutional Convention, which convened from May to September of 1787 and was attended by 55 delegates from 12 states.
Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation
The most prominent issues were the inability of the central government to collect taxes and raise money, and the concenration of power given to the individual states, which saw each beginning to rule as its own country and not one of a union. The Articles formed a “League of Friendship.” The belief following the Revolutionary war had been the less government, the better. The federal government could neither control commerce, nor settle disputes between states with a judicial body, nor raise a standing army.
The ‘critical period’ of the United Sates
The war and post-war situation, 1776-1787, which would ultimately see America’s emergence as a nation. The U.S. geographical situation at the time had it suffering great losses, with the U.K. still owning land and holding forts on the continent, Loyalists in Canada, and Spanish claims on the Mississippi River Valley.
The Virginia versus the New Jersey Plan
The Virginia Plan was proposed by Edmond Randolph of Virginia.
- Legislative Branch: A strong two house system. The lower house would be elected by the people, and the upper house would be elected by members of the lower house.
- Executive Branch: a strong president to be elected by the legislature
- Judicial Branch: a national court to be elected by the legislative branch
The problem with this plan was that it gave far too much power to the legislative branch and the representation in the legislature was based on state population, establishing “Big State Rule.”
The New Jersey Plan was proposed by William Patterson of New Jersey.
- Legislative Branch: A unicameral legislature with equal representation by state. Each state would be allowed one vote and have the power to tax and regulate trade.
- Excecutive Branch: A weak national excecutive group to be elected by the legislature.
- Judicial Branch: a weak judiciary to be appointed by the excecutive.
The Great Compromise
7 states favored the Virginia Plan, and 3 the New Jersey Plan. The greatest contestment was over the structure of the legislature. The Great Compromise, introduced by Roger Sherman, would allow for a two house system. The House of Representatives would have memership based on state population, originaly 65. The Senate would have equal representation, originally 26. Any matter of dealing with taxes and spending would begin in the House of Representatives.
Seperation of Powers and the role of checks and balances
By implementing a system of checks and balances, the Constitution sought to avoid monarchal or autocractic forms of government.
Legislative Checks
Over the Excecutive Branch:
- Override presidential veto
- Impeach and remove president
- Reject judges appointed by the president
- Refuse to ratify treaties
- Conduct investigations of the president’s actions
- refuse the president’s funding requests
Over the Judicial Branch:
- Change the number of Supreme Court Justices
- Propose Constitutional amendments
- Reject Supreme court nominees
- Impeach and remove federal judges
Excecutive Checks
Over the Judicial branch:
- Nominate Supreme Court Justices
- Nominates Federal judges
- Power of pardon
- Refusal to enforce court decisions
Over the Legislative branch:
- Power of veto
- Call Congress special session
- Carry out laws passed by Congress
- Vice President casts tie breaking vote in the Senate
Judicial Checks
Over the Excecutive branch:
- Declare excecutive actions unconstitutional
- Power to issue warrants
- Chief justice presides over presidential impeachment trial
Over the Legislative Branch:
- Declare laws unconstitutional
- Cheif Justice presides over senate during impeachment trial.
Althought the seperation of powers was intended to equalize the branches, technically speaking the legislative is the strongest, followed by the excecutive and lastly the judicial.
The 7 Principles of the Constitution
1) Popular soverignty
2) Republicanism
3) Limited Government
4) Seperation of Power - forces the government to work together and compromise
5) Judicial review
6) Federalist system
7) Seperation of church and state
