Unit 1 review

• Foundations of American Democracy

  Ideas at the heart of US government from 1776-second Continental Congress
• Framers decided to create limited government

  1. Based on natural rights

  2. Popular sovereignty

  3. Republicanism

  4. Social contract
• Limited government

  Restrictions on federal government to protect individual rights

  • Deliberate departure from British monarchy
• Natural rights

  Rights people are born with and can never give up
• Government's purpose

  To uphold natural rights
• Locke's "life, liberty, & property"


  Natural rights
• Social contract


  US society agrees to give up some freedoms to be protected by government

  • theorized by Thomas Hobbs
• Popular sovereignty

  • Power comes with "consent of the governed"
  • People could revolt against government if it disregards their will
  • Main argument against British republicanism
• Constitutional Convention


  Meeting of delegates to revise/replace Articles of Confederation
• Declaration of Independence

  Why colonies desired independence

  • popular sovereignty & social contract
• Constitution


  Blueprint for government functions

  • 3 branches of government
  • Relation between state & fed governments
  • Principle of limited government
  • Principle of republicanism
• Principles of American government

  • Separation of powers
  • Checks and balances
  • Popular sovereignty
  • Republicanism
  • Limited government
• Types of democracy


  • Democratic republic
  • Participatory democracy
  • Direct democracy
  • Pluralist democracy
  • Elite democracy
• Challenges of the Articles of Confederation

  • Permitted states to retain nearly all power
  • Federal government had no power to impose taxes, create tariffs, or raise an army
  • US currency became worthless
• The Constitution


  Article V and amendment process
• Principles of the Constitution


  • Separation of powers
  • Checks and balances
  • Federalism
  • Amendment process
• Federalism

  More than one layer of government has jurisdiction over same territory
• Exclusive powers


  • Federal: coining money, interstate commerce, declaring war
  • State: elections, public safety, welfare
• Concurrent powers


  • Taxation, lawmaking/enforcement, chartering banks, eminent domain, establishing courts, borrowing money
• Federal grants and mandates

  • Categorical grants - used for specific purposes with nondiscrimination provisions
  • Unfunded mandates - tie federal funding to certain conditions
  • Block grants - for broad purposes
• Article V - process of amending the Constitution
• McCulloch v. Maryland


  Established federal law authority over state law
• US v. Lopez


  Preserved federalism and upheld state powers over local issues
• Interpretations of federalism


  • Commerce clause
  • Necessary and proper clause
  • 10th Amendment
  • 14th Amendment
• Who were the Framers?

  The 55 delegates who helped draft the Constitution of the US
• What was the Government's focus?


  Balancing liberty & order
• Republicanism


  elected leaders represent interests of people
• Constitutional Convention


  a meeting of delegates to revise/replace Articles of Confederation
• John Adams


  Massachusetts statesman & leader in American independence that

  helped draft declaration
• Ben Franklin

  • Pennsylvania states man
  • helped draft declaration
• Alexander Hamilton

  • New York Statesman
  • promoted stronger fed gov
  • coauthored federal papers
• Thomas jefferson


  principal author of declaration
• James Madison

  • Virginia Statesman
  • coauthored Federalist pagers
  • wrote Bill of Rights
• democratic republic

  power to govern comes from people - elected officials represent interests
• participatory democracy


  citizens power to make policy decisions ( can influence Not make )

  EX: Town Hall meetings
• Direct democracy


  citizens directly responsible for making policy decisions
• Initiatives


  allows citizens to bypass their state legislature by placing proposed

  • laws on the ballot (ex of participatory)
• Popular referendum


  voters can approve or repeal an act of state legislature

  • ex of participatory or voter influence on policy making
• pluralist democracy


  no single group dominates politics - organized groups compete with

  each other

  ex : Interest groups-groups of people who attempt to influence

  Policymakers to support a certain interest (NOW or NRA)
• Elite democracy


  small number of elites influence political decision-making

  ex : structure of electoral college - serves as check for potential tyranny