the legitimate use of force
to control human behavior within territorial boundaries
requires citizens to surrender some freedom to
obtain its benefits
the more citizens are willing to surrender, the
less force necessary
a government is legitimate
when citizens recognize its right to rule
The Principal
Purposes of Government
1. maintain order
earliest function of
government
preserve life and protect
private property
2. provide public goods
benefit all
but are not likely to be produced by individual voluntary acts
3. promote equality
newest function of
government
redistribute income
and otherwise help disadvantaged in society
political equality
vs. economic equality
Citizens differ on how much
they want government to maintain order, provide public goods & promote equality.
The
Values Pursued by Government
1. order
the original purpose
of government was to impose some order on the lawless - sometimes referred
to as government’s police power
John Locke — fundamental purpose of government
is protection of life, liberty & property
people have always
been willing to give up some freedom for some order
narrow interpretation:
protection of life and property (murder, rape, theft)
broad interpretation:
social order, using government power to enforce traditional modes of behavior
(abortion, alternative medicine, homosexuality, drug use) or to provide
certain public goods
2. freedom
all government diminishes
freedom to some extent
narrow interpretation:
liberty, freedom to ___
broad interpretation:
implies immunity from some type of deprivation and relates more closely
to the concept of equality, freedom from ___
3. equality
newest purpose of government
narrow interpretation:
political equality (one man, one vote)
broad interpretation:
equality of opportunity (capitalism) and, more recently, equality of outcome
(socialism)
original dilemma of government:
how much freedom to sacrifice for order
modern dilemma of government:
how much freedom to sacrifice for equality
1. scope of government activity — single dimension, broad positions without
extremes
a. liberalism supports
a larger role for government in the distribution of public goods and the
regulation of private enterprise BUT opposes regulation of individual rights
b. conservatism favors
the status quo or reduction in the size and role of government BUT favors
controls over many social issues, e.g. abortion and porn
2. values pursued by government — two dimensions, broad positions but more
useful method
a.
libertarians
favor freedom over order and equality very limited
scope of government
b. conservatives favor
freedom over equality BUT favor order over freedom
c. liberals favor freedom
over order BUT favor equality over freedom
d.
populists favor order and equality
over freedom
Conflict
within Values
1. created by
different preferences & intensity
incompatible values
limited resources
2. major sources of domestic conflict
freedom vs. order — why can’t
I let my dog run loose?
freedom vs. equality — why
can’t schools limit their athletes to men?
order vs. equality — civil
rights, women’s rights, gay rights
Connecting government, values and
ideologies
libertarians
value
liberals
value
conservatives
value
populists
value
freedom
over
equality
over
order
over
equality
& order
over
equality
& order
freedom
over
freedom
over
freedom
order
equality
Review
values pursued by government above and be certain you understand what we
mean by the values of order, freedom and equality - in both
a narrow sense and a broad sense. Look again at the definition of a political ideology
- a consistent set of values & beliefs about
the purpose and scope of government. We can take those values pursued by government
and, by ranking them based on their values to the individual, we can create four
basic political ideologies as represented above. (Please note that this is NOT a
definition of political parties. All four ideologies are represented to some extent
in both major parties.)
Please understand
that this does NOT imply that conservatives don't care about equality or that liberals
don't care about order. The rankings refer to the extent government should be involved
in shaping society's adoption of that value. So ...
Libertarians may value
equality and order as much as anyone but they do not believe government should
pursue and enforce equality and order and they are not willing to give up individual
freedom for either.
A libertarian
may believe society would be better off without recreational drugs (order)
or if there were no discrimination in the workplace (equality) and may work
privately to bring those things about. However, a libertarian would never
approve of government taking away individual freedom (by dictating what
individuals may or may not put in their bodies or by telling employers who
they may or may not hire) to force others to stop using drugs or discriminating.
Liberals may value order as much as anyone
but they do not believe government should pursue and enforce order and they
are not willing to give up individual freedom for order. On the other hand,
liberals value equality to such an extent that they do believe government should
pursue equality and are willing to give up individual freedom to increase equality
as a value of society.
A liberal
may believe society would be better off without recreational drugs (order)
but he would never approve of government taking away individual freedom
(by dictating what individuals may or may not put in their bodies) to force
others to stop using drugs. However, liberals value equality so highly that
they would approve of government taking away individual freedom (by telling
employers who they may or may not hire) to force others to stop discriminating.
Conservatives may value equality as much
as anyone but they do not believe government should pursue and enforce equality
and they are not willing to give up individual freedom for equality. On the
other hand, conservatives value order to such an extent that they do believe
government should pursue order and are willing to give up individual freedom
to increase order as a value of society.
A conservative
is the opposite of a liberal. He may believe society would be better off
without discrimination in the workplace (equality) but he would never approve
of government taking away individual freedom (by telling employers who they
may or may not hire) to force others to stop discriminating. However, conservatives
value order so highly that they would approve of government taking away
individual freedom (by dictating what individuals may or may not put in
their bodies) to force others to stop using drugs.
Populists value equality and order to such
an extent that they are willing to give up individual freedom to increase both
equality and order as values of society.
A populist
believes so strongly that there is a correct social order by which society
should operate (no drugs) and that equality is such an important part of
that social order (no workplace discrimination) that they believe government
should pass laws to force individuals to live by those values and so are
willing to give up individual freedom for both.
We seldom
see populists in a party or movement that we can identify in current times.
However, many crusaders - such as Ralph Nader - seem to fit the ideology
very well. They are crusaders that we often confuse as liberals because
they champion economic equality and the "little guy." However, if you pay
attention you will see that they also have a vision of what the correct
social order of society should be and are willing to use governmental power
to enforce that order as well as equality.
I used recreational
drugs and workplace discrimination as examples in all four ideologies above
so you could make a straight comparison. Keep in mind, though, that those are
only one example each of order and equality. Order, in the broader sense of
social order, might include issues dealing with drugs, homosexuality, premarital
sex, alcohol, cigarettes, big business, unions, air/water quality, education,
child-raising, religion and so on. Equality might include issues dealing with
race, ethnicity, religion, gender, income, social status, country of origin,
immigration status and so on.
expressed the reasons for
the colonies’ act of independence
1. major premise
- people have the right to revolt when they determine that their
government is destructive
of legitimate rights
2. minor premise
- long list of deliberate acts committed by king offered as proof
of his destruction of government’s
legitimate ends
3. conclusion
- therefore, the people have a right to revolt
Defining
Government Based on
How Levels of Government Interact
1. unitary government
national government
is supreme over any other units of
government
national government
has supreme power (sovereignty) over all
other units of government
within its borders
Great Britain
2. confederation
a loose association of independent states that agree
to cooperate on specified matters but each state has
supreme power (sovereignty) within its borders
state governments are
supreme over the national government
colonies under the Articles of Confederation, CSA
3. federation
system in which both national and state
governments have their
own separate spheres of influence which the other cannot infringe upon
in US, Constitution is supreme power (sovereignty) and gives powers to each level
of government
the Articles of Confederation
did not work.
A Constitutional
Convention was called to try to come up with a new plan.
The single most important factor
leading to a constitutional convention was
the inability of the national or state governments
to maintain order under the Articles of Confederation.
Virginia Plan
divided power among 3 branches
2-house legislature for lawmaking
1-person executive for law enforcing
judicial for law interpreting
New Jersey Plan
single-chamber legislature
states would have equal representation in the legislature
multi-person executive would be elected by the legislature
Great Compromise
2-house leg with pop being represented in one and the states
being represented equally in the other
1-person executive chosen by an electoral college
The US Constitution’s Political
Principles
1. republicanism
power resides in the people and is exercised through elected reps
2. federalism
division of sovereignty among two levels of government
3. separation of powers
lawmaking, law enforcement and law interpretation are assigned to separate and independent
branches
to ensure that one branch doesn’t
dominate another
4. checks and balances each branch has some
means of checking and controlling the others
The
Structure of the US Constitution
Article I Congress
enumerated powers
implied powers: the necessary and proper clause
Article II President
Article III Supreme Court
right of Congress to create lesser federal courts
Article IV state-state relations
full faith and credit
privileges and immunities
extradition
protect state from invasion
Article V amendment procedures
1. formal procedures
ex/ 26 amendments
2. judicial review
ex/ right to privacy
3. political practice
ex/ electoral college
Article VI constitution as supreme law of land
Article VII ratification process
Checks & Balances
The Constitution creates a system of separate institutions
that share powers. Because the three branches of government share powers, each can
(partially) check the powers of the others. This is the system of checks and balances.
The major checks possessed by each branch are listed below.
Congress
1.Can check the president in these ways:
a. By refusing to pass a bill the president wants
b. By passing a law over the president's veto
c. By using the impeachment powers to remove
the president from office
d. By refusing to approve a presidential appointment
(Senate only)
e. By refusing to ratify a treaty the president
has signed (Senate only)
2.Can check the federal courts in these ways:
a. By changing the number and jurisdiction of
the lower courts
b. By using the impeachment powers to remove
a judge from office
c. By refusing to approve a person nominated
to be a judge (Senate only)
President
1.
Can check Congress by vetoing a bill it has passed
2.
Can check the federal courts by nominating judges
Courts
1.
Can check Congress by declaring a law unconstitutional.
2.
Can check the president by declaring actions by him or his subordinates
unconstitutional or not authorized by law.
In addition to these checks provided for in the Constitution,
each branch has informal ways of checking the others. For example, the President
can withhold information from Congress (on the grounds of executive privilege) and
Congress can try to get information from the President by mounting an investigation.
The Bill of Rights: Ratified
on December 15, 1791
The
First Ten Amendments to the Constitution Grouped by Topic and Purpose
PROTECTIONS
AFFORDED CITIZENS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS
Amendment 1: Freedom of religion, speech, press, and
assembly; the right to petition the government.
PROTECTIONS
AGAINST ARBITRARY POLICE AND COURT ACTION
Amendment 4:
No unreasonable searches or seizures.
Amendment 5:Grand jury indictment required to
prosecute a person for a serious crime.
No
double jeopardy - being tried twice
for the same offense
Forcing a person to testify
against himself or herself is prohibited
No loss of life, liberty, or
property without due process
Amendment 6:
Right to speedy, public, impartial trial with defense counsel and right
to cross-examine witnesses.
Amendment 7:
Jury trials in civil suits where value exceeds $20.
Amendment 8:
No excessive bail or fines, no cruel and unusual punishments.
PROTECTIONS
OF STATES' RIGHTS AND UNNAMED RIGHTS OF PEOPLE
Amendment 9:
Unlisted rights are not necessarily denied.
Amendment 10:
Powers not delegated to the United States or denied to the states are reserved
to the states.
OTHER
AMENDMENTS
Amendment 2:
Right to bear arms.
Amendment 3:
Troops may not be quartered in homes in peacetime.
Ways of Amending the Constitution:
Under
Article V, there are two ways to propose amendments to the Constitution and two
ways to ratify them.
To propose an amendment
Two-thirds
of both houses of Congress vote to propose an amendment, or
Two-thirds
of the state legislatures ask Congress to call a national convention to
propose amendments.
To ratify an amendment
Three-fourths
of the state legislatures approve it, or
Ratifying
conventions in three-fourths of the states approve it.
Some
Key Facts
Only the first method of proposing an amendment
has been used.
The second method of ratification has been used
only once, to ratify the Twenty-first Amendment (repealing Prohibition).
Congress may limit the time within which a proposed
amendment must be ratified. The usual limitation has been seven years.
Thousands of proposals have been made, but only
thirty-three have obtained the necessary two-thirds vote in Congress.
Article I, Section 10 of the Constitution of the
United States puts limits on the powers of the states. States cannot form alliances
with foreign governments, declare war, coin money or impose duties on imports or
exports.
Powers Reserved to the States
The Tenth Amendment declares, "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." In other words, states have
all powers not granted to the national government by the Constitution.
These
powers have taken many different forms. States must take responsibility for areas
such as:
ownership of property
education of inhabitants
implementation of welfare and other benefits
programs and distribution of aid
protecting people from local threats
maintaining a justice system
setting up local governments such as counties
and municipalities
maintaining state highways and setting up the
means of administrating local roads
regulation of industry
raising funds to support their activities
In many areas, states have a large role but also
share administrative responsibility with local and national governments. Highways,
for example, are divided among the three different levels. Most states classify
roads into primary, secondary and local levels. This system determines whether the
state, county or local governments, respectively, must pay for and maintain roads.
Many states have departments of transportation, which oversee and administer intrastate
transportation. US highways and the interstate system are administered by the national
government through the US Department of Transportation.
Mandates
States must also administer
mandates set by the
national government.
Generally these mandates contain rules which the states wouldn't normally carry
out. For example, the national government may require states to reduce air pollution,
provide services for the handicapped or require that public transportation must
meet certain safety standards. The national government is prohibited by law from
setting unfunded mandates. In other words, the national government must provide
funding for programs it mandates.
Grants
The national government pays for its mandates through
grants-in-aid. The government distributes categorical grants to be used for specific
programs. In 1995, national grant money totaled $229 billion. Block grants give the states
access to large sums of money with few specific limitations. The state must only
meet the national
goals and standards.
The national government can give the states either
formula grants or
project grants
(most commonly issued).
Mandates can also pass from the state to local levels.
For example, the state can set certain education standards that the local school
districts must abide by. Or, states could set rules calling for specific administration
of local landfills.
SITE MAP
Liberals may value order as much as anyone
but they do not believe government should pursue and enforce order and they
are not willing to give up individual freedom for order. On the other hand,
liberals value equality to such an extent that they do believe government should
pursue equality and are willing to give up individual freedom to increase equality
as a value of society.
