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8th Grade American History STAAR Review Objective 4: Political Influences NEISD Representative Government A representative government is a government where the people choose/elect individuals to make and enforce laws on their behalf. Growth of Representative Government in the American Colonies The Magna Carta, 1215 and the English Bill of Rights, 1689, limited the power of the British King and granted some rights to the English people Many colonists came in search of religious freedom The Enlightenment encouraged the use of reason to improve society and government Colonists were use to British government, where an elected legislature made laws Because of the distance between Britain and the colonies, a system of self-government was established Colonial Government Most colonies established their own elected legislative assemblies Most colonies had a Royal Governor who shared power with the colonial assemblies Virginia House of Burgesses, 1619: First elected legislature in the colonies Mayflower Compact, 1620: Agreement signed by the Pilgrims that created a government based on majority rule John Locke’s Natural Rights Philosophy “The state of nature has a law of nature to govern it which obliges every one… No one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions…” ~John Locke Natural rights are rights that people are born with that cannot be taken away (unalienable rights) What did John Locke consider to be natural rights? The Declaration of Independence Written by Thomas Jefferson in 1774 Announced the colonies’ independence from Great Britain and established the United States as a nation Equality The Declaration of Independence states, “all men are created equal” This means that all Americans have the same rights and should be treated equally by the government Unalienable Rights Unalienable rights are the basic rights of all human beings and cannot be taken away The Declaration of Independence states that “all men” have unalienable rights and that “among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” Consent of the Governed Consent of the Governed means that the government should be based on the wishes of the people The Declaration of Independence argues that British rule of the colonies was not the wish of the colonists and therefore the colonists had the right to form a new government Articles of Confederation First plan of government The colonist’s feared a strong national government because of the abuses of the British King and Parliament The Articles of Confederation created a weak national government with strong state governments Weaknesses of Articles of Confederation No power to tax or raise money No power to regulate trade No power to raise an army Difficult to amend The Constitutional Convention, 1787 Also known as The Philadelphia Convention Purpose was to revise the Articles of Confederation Instead, the delegates created a new plan of government, The U.S. Constitution The new plan created a stronger national government divided into three separate branches Legislative Branch MAKE LAWS Executive Branch ENFORCE LAWS Judicial Branch INTERPRET LAWS Compare Articles and Constitution Articles of Confederation U.S. Constitution One house Congress Two house Congress No Executive Branch Executive Branch headed by President No Judicial Branch Judicial Branch headed by Supreme Court Each state issues its own money Only Congress can issue money Only states can pass taxes Congress and states can pass taxes The Principles of the U.S. Constitution 1. Popular Sovereignty A government receives its authority to rule from the people 2. Limited Government Powers of the government are limited to those given to it by the people 3. Republicanism A form of government where the people rule through elected representatives 4. Federalism Division of power between state governments and the national or federal government Example of Federalism 5. Separation of Powers The division of the national government into three branches – legislative, executive, and judicial Each branch has different powers and responsibilities 6. Individual Rights Rights that the government must protect They are protected through the Bill of Rights and other Constitutional Amendments 7. Checks and Balances Ability to check, or control, the power of the other branches Purpose is to keep any one branch from becoming too powerful Example of Checks and Balances Congress passes laws The President can veto a law Supreme Court can rule that a law is unconstitutional The Ratification Debate The Constitution was sent to the states for ratification… Federalists Supported the Constitution They thought a STRONG national government would protect the people and improve the economy Leaders: Alexander Hamilton and James Madison Wrote The Federalist Papers to explain the benefits of the new Constitution Anti-Federalists Opposed the Constitution They wanted state governments to have more power because they feared a strong central government would lead to abuse of power Leaders: Patrick Henry and George Mason The Bill of Rights An agreement was made to add a Bill of Rights to the Constitution that would protect the rights of the people The Amendment… First Speech, press, religion, assembly, and to petition Second Bear arms Third Fourth Fifth No quartering of soldiers Unreasonable searches Rights of the accused, right not to testify against oneself The Amendment… Sixth Speedy jury trial Seventh Eight Ninth Tenth Jury trial in civil cases Cruel and unusual punishment Rights reserved for the people Rights reserved for the states How the Bill of Rights Addressed Grievances from the Declaration of Independence Declaration of Independence Bill of Rights Illegal quartering of troops (Quartering Act) Depriving colonists of the right to a jury trial 3rd Amendment 6th and 7th Amendments Amending the Constitution Why do you think three fourths of the states must vote yes before an amendment can be added to the Constitution? Supreme Court Case: Marbury v. Madison (1803) Established Judicial Review: that the Supreme Court had the right to review all laws made by Congress Effect: Made the Supreme Court more powerful Supreme Court Case: Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) Supreme Court ruled that African Americans were not citizens of the U.S. and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional Effect: Increased the power of the national government Political Controversy: Slavery In 1860, Abraham Lincoln ran for president as a Republican He did not want slavery to exist in any new territory Southerners feared that he would abolish slavery After he won the election, southern states seceded from the Union and created the Confederacy Result… THE CIVIL WAR Reconstruction Amendments 13th Amendment: Abolished slavery 14th Amendment: Protected the civil rights of all Americans, including former slaves 15th Amendment: Right to vote for African-American men