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AP Government Chapter 2 – The Constitution
The constitution supercedes ordinary law even when the law represents the wishes of a majority of
citizens.
The Constitution is this nation’s basic law: It crates political institutions, allocates power within the
government, and provides guarantees to citizens.
It is an unwritten accumulation of traditions and precedents that have established acceptable styles of
behavior and policy outcomes.
The Origins of the Constitution
1) Armed rebellion against Great Britain. The King and Parliament generally confined themselves
to governing America’s foreign policy and trade. Almost everything else was left to the
discretion of individual colonial governments.
2) The French and Indian War was costly and the British Parliament believed the colonist should
help with expenses so they taxed colonial products which may have been okay if the colonist
voted in Parliamentary elections
3) Colonist objected to taxes and talked of becoming independent of Great Britain
English Heritage – Power of Ideas
Intellectual leaders in the colonies were learned and widely read men familiar with the works of English,
French and Scottish political philosophers. They corresponded with each other the ideas they read and
applied them to the new government in the framework of the constitution.
John Locke – Second Treatise of Civil Government – natural rights of man: Rights inherited in human
beings, not dependent on governments – things beyond the realm of government must be built on the
consent of the governed.
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The sole purpose of government is to protect natural rights contrasted with the traditional
notion that kings had been divinely granted absolute rights over their subjects.
Governments must provide standing laws so that people know in advance whether their acts
will be acceptable.
The supreme power cannot take from any may any part of his property without his consent.
In an extreme case – people have the right to revolt against a government that no longer has
their consent.
Jeffersonian Handiwork
Self evident that men are endowed by the creator with certain rights – life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness because the purpose of the government is to secure these rights if it fails to do so, the people
can form a new government
Winning Independence
Conservative Reform – restore rights to colonist. The government that failed (Continental Congress)
created a voluntary association of states. Committee appointed to draw up a permanent plan of union –
Articles of Confederation:
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Government dominated by the states.
Created a league of friendship and perpetual union.
National legislation with one house that states sent 2 – 7 delegates to serve.
Each state had one vote.
There was no president, no court. Congressional powers were limited.
Authority rested with the states. Congress lacked the power to regulate commerce
Had the power to organize the western wilderness (Northwest Ordinance 1787)
National government weak
Could take little independent action
All government power rested in the states. The national government could not compel the states to do
anything.
Changes in states
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Many states adopted Bills of Rights to protect freedoms, abolish religious qualifications for
holding office and liberalize requirements for voting
Expanded political participation, brought a new middle class to power
Power shifts from a handful of wealthy people to a broader based group
Power was concentrated in the legislature
The legislature was seen as closer to the people(voters) then governors and judges
Economic Turmoil – economic inequality. Small Farmers were unable to pay debt.
Shay’s Rebellion – a small band of farmers rebel at losing their land to creditors and conducts a series of
armed attacks on courthouses to prevent judges from foreclosing on farms. Leaders fear that people
have taken the law into their own hands and threaten the property rights of others. Neither congress
nor the states can stop Shay. This leads to policies favoring debtors over creditors. This did not please
the elite who had once controlled nearly all the state legislature.
A meeting is called in Annapolis but only 5 states are present. This group calls for a full scale meeting to
discuss commercial conflicts among the states.
Making A Constitution – the Philadelphia Convention
12 states sent representatives. Their task was to revise the Articles of Confederation which they
believed an impossible task because it required the unanimous consent of all the states so they wrote a
new document – the Constitution.
Gentlemen in Philadelphia – 55 men, wealthy planters, successful lawyers, merchants, men of
independent wealth, college graduate with practical political experience. Most were coastal residents
and urbanites.
Philosophy in Action
They debated on the nature of a Republican Government and agreed on human nature, causes of
political conflict, objects of government and nature of a republican government.
1651 - Leviathan – Thomas Hobbs – man’s natural state is war. A strong absolute ruler is necessary to
restrain man’s bestial tendencies without a strong government - life would be solitary, poor, nasty,
brutish and short.
The delegates believed that people were self centered and that government should contain the natural
self interest of the people.
Political Conflict
James Madison said that the cause of factions is the unequal distribution of property. The distribution
of wealth is the source of political conflict. The effects of factions (interest groups) had to be checked.
Objects of Government
Preservation of property, secures the nation from invasion, establish domestic tranquility, promote the
general welfare and preserve the right of individuals to acquire and hold wealth.
Nature of Government
Balanced government – Baron Montesquieu advocated separate branches of government with distinct
powers and the ability to check the others so that no faction could seize the whole of government at
once.
The Agenda in Philadelphia
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Equality issues – all men are created equal. Will states be equally represented? What to do
about slavery? How to we ensure political equality?
New Jersey Plan – each state equally represented
Virginia Plan – representation based on population
Connecticut Compromise – create 2 houses: Senate has 2 members from each state, House of
Representatives has members based on population in state
The Senate – ratifies treaties, confirms presidential nominations, and hears trials of impeachment.
If no presidential candidate gets a majority vote from the electoral college, the House of
Representatives makes the final decision.
Slavery was legal in every state except Massachusetts. Limit to future importation and outlaw
importation after 1808. But slavery was not forbidden.
Representation and Taxation based on the number of free people and 3/5ths of all other people.
Political Equality – universal manhood suffrage v. property qualifications
People eligible to vote in state elections can vote in national elections.
Economic Issues
States cannot impose tariffs on products from other states, state may not print their own money,
congress must have a way to raise revenue, and the government must bring economic unity
Congress: the chief economic policy maker; obtains revenue through taxing and borrowing. Congress
must encourage economic enterprise and investment, build the nation’s infrastructure by constructing
post offices and roads, establish standard weights and measures, protect property rights, punish
counterfeiters, and pirates, ensure patents and copyrights, legislate rules for bankruptcy and regulate
interstate commerce. In other words, create the conditions within which markets can flourish.
States were to respect civil judgments and contracts made in other states, return runaway slaves to
their owners (outlawed by the 13th amendment)
The national government promised states a republican form of government. The new government was
obligated to repay all public debts incurred under the Continental Congress and the Articles of
Confederation.
Individual rights Issues
Limit government
Power dispersed between branches and state and national levels
States protect individual rights
Article I Section 9 – Constitution prohibits suspension of writ of habeas corpus, passing bills of attainder
(which punish people w/out trail), passing expost facto law. Article VI – imposition of religious
qualifications for holding office. Article III – defines treason, guarantees trial by jury
The Madisonian Model – reconcile economic inequality with political freedom
Thwarting Tyranny of the Majority – James Madison was the principal architect of the government’s
final structure. He and his colleagues feared both majority and minority factions both could take control
of the government and use it to their own advantage.
The majority could out vote the minority
Limit Majority Control – House of Representatives is the majority
State legislators were to elect senators (no more, 17th Amendment), special electors select the
president, Judges nominate by the President and serve for life
Separating powers
Each of the three branches of government executive, legislative and judicial is independent of the others
but their power is share they need each other to pass, and enforce legislation.
Creating checks/balances – each branch requires the consent of the other for many of its actions. The
President checks congress by holding veto power, congress holds the purse strings and must approve
Presidential appointments and the US Supreme Court (Marbury v. Madison 1803) asserted its power to
check the other branches through judicial review: the right to hold actions of the other 2 branches
unconstitutional.
Establishing a federal System – power divided between a national government and the individual states
The Constitutional Republic – The USA is too large for direct democracy. A republic is based on consent
of the governed in which representatives of the public exercise power. The system of checks and
balances and separation of powers favors the status quo. People who desire change must usually have a
sizable majority, not a simple 51%. Those opposed to change need only win at one point in the policy
making process. Change usually comes slowly, if at all.
The End of the Beginning – 109th day, Benjamin Franklin makes a speech. 10 stats voted to approve the
constitution and the convention members signed the document.
Ratifying the Constitution - 9/13 states had to approve. Federalist and Anti federalist: Federalist
support constitution, Anti federalist oppose it.
James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay write a series of articles under the name Publius.
These articles became known as the Federalist papers. 85 essays were published and appeared one
month after the Convention in 1787. These papers defended the Constitution.
The anti federalist believed that the new government was an enemy of freedom and was a class based
document. They said that the new constitution would put control of the government in the hands of the
elite – a few wealthy educated men. It would erode fundamental liberties. They asked – where is the
liberty of the press?
The federalist promised to add amendments specifically protecting individual liberties. In 1789 James
Madison introduced 12 Amendments. Ten were ratified that have come to be known as the Bill of
Rights. Opponents feared the constitution would weaken the power of the states. Creditors opposed
the issuance of paper money.
Ratification – specified that the constitution be ratified by Special Conventions rather than state
legislatures. North Carolina and Rhode Island held out until the Bill of Rights was added. Delaware was
the first to approve and New Hampshire was the ninth. George Washington became the president in
1789 in New York City, the first capital of the United States.
Constitutional Change – formal amendments change the letter of the constitution. There is also an
unwritten body of tradition, practice and procedure that when altered may change the spirit of the
constitution.
Formal Amending Process
Article V – 2 stages of proposal with 2 avenues of ratification. It can be proposed by 2/3rds vote in each
house of congress or by a national convention called by congress at the request of 2/3rds state
legislatures. It may be ratified either by the legislatures of 3/4ths of the states or by Special State
Conventions called in 3/4th of the states. All but one of the Amendments has been proposed by
congress and ratified by state legislatures, exception 21st Amendment. The most important effect of
constitutional amendments has been to expand liberty and equality in the United States.
Some amendments have been proposed but not ratified e.g. the Equal Rights Amendment. Introduced
in 1923, went to the states for ratification in 1972. It needed 3/4th of the states to ratify; it lacked
support in southern legislatures.
Informal process of constitutional change: judicial interpretations, political practice and as a result of
changes in technology and changes in the demands on policy makers.
Judicial Interpretation – 1803 Marbury v. Madison – the US Supreme Court decided it would be the one
to resolve differences of opinion. It decides whether the actions of the legislative and executive
branches of state and national governments are in accord with the Constitution. The Constitution
usually means what the Supreme Court says it means. The US Supreme Court has reversed its decisions.
Changing Political Practice – the electoral college is viewed as a rubber stamp to a states popular vote
instead of exercising wisdom independent of the majority of people.
Technology – questions governmental policies, supports candidates, shapes citizens opinions.
Increasing demands on policy makers from an insignificant country that kept to itself to a superpower
with an extraordinary range of international obligations.
The importance of flexibility – the constitution can adapt to the needs of the times without sacrificing
personal freedom
Understanding the Constitution – in terms of democracy:
The Constitution and Democracy – the writers of the Constitution believed the people who owned the
country should govern it. There were numerous restrictions on direct voter participation; slowly this
country has become more democratic. The expansion of voting rights has moved the American political
system away from the elitist model of democracy toward the pluralist model.
States decided voter eligibility. Of the 17 constitutional amendments passed since the Bill of Rights, 5
have focused on expanding the electorate 15th (1870), 19th (1920), 23rd (1961), 24th (1964) and the 26th
(1071)
The Constitution and the Scope of the Government – the Constitution created political institutions and
the rules for politics and policy making. These rules limit government action. The limitations are
designed to protect liberty.