WGU C963 American politics and US Constitution (ANSWERED) 100% CORRECT
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WGU C963
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Western Governors University
WGU C963 American politics and US Constitution (ANSWERED) 100% CORRECT
Social Contract
An agreement between people and government in which citizens consent to being governed so long as the government protects their natural rights.
Natural Rights
the idea that all humans are born with rights, wh...
wgu c963 american politics and us constitution answered 100 correct social contract an agreement between people and government in which citizens consent to being governed so long as the government
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WGU C963 American politics and US
Constitution (ANSWERED) 100% CORRECT
Social Contract
An agreement between people and government in which citizens consent to being
governed so long as the government protects their natural rights.
Natural Rights
the idea that all humans are born with rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and
property
State of Nature
A theory on how people might have lived before societies came into existence. is a
condition in which all of us live individually and solitarily, prior to the existence of
society. We are physically and mentally capable of achieving our own survival.
Montesquieu (1689-1755)
contribution in The Spirit of the Laws (1748) regards the structure of political institutions.
He argues for a separation of powers: legislative, executive, and judicial. Each will serve
as a check on the power of the other, limiting the harm each might do. separates power
to offset the power of different social interests: ordinary people, the aristocracy, and the
monarch.
Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679):
One of the first individuals to contribute to the idea of the social contract was a pre-
Enlightenment English philosopher. Hobbes argues that society is not something natural
and immutable, but rather it is something created by us. We do this to resolve problems
we collectively face, to make our lives better. State of Nature: it's "a war of all against
all." Basically, the state of nature is a pretty nasty place where lives are perpetually
insecure.
John Locke (1632-1704)
we are autonomous individuals, capable of using reason, and are driven to advance our
personal interests. Our primary interest is survival, which we want to make secure and
comfortable. To achieve this security and comfort, we acquire property. Two Treatises
of Government, disagrees, saying the state of nature is a relatively decent place. All its
inhabitants are rational people, mindful of the basic law of nature to not harm another,
and people will get along okay. But our relationship in the state of nature is
"inconvenient," implying an incentive for us to devise a better, more convenient
arrangement.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)
A French man who believed that humans are naturally good and free and can rely on
their instincts. He also advocated a democracy because he believed the government
should exist to protect common good. Like other Enlightenment thinkers, he was
passionately committed to individual freedom, but he attacked rationalism and
civilization as destroying, rather than liberating, the individual. He also called for a rigid
division of gender roles, believing women should be subordinate in social life. His ideals
greatly influenced the early romantic movement, which rebelled against the culture of
the Enlightenment in the late eighteenth century. Rousseau was both one of the most
influential voices of the Enlightenment and, in his rejection of rationalism and social
discourse, a harbinger of reaction against Enlightenment ideas.
,Constitution is influenced by the Enlightenment
(Separation of powers) embodies Montesquieu's principles by separating the legislative,
executive, and judicial power, placing each into the hands of different political actors.
Bill of Rights influenced by Enlightenment
· The First Amendment gives us a definitive declaration for the protection of natural
rights. Protections of individual conscience as well as protections for democratic
participation (John Lock ideology).
· The Second Amendment, which also embodies Lockean ideas, permits the possession
of arms for the "security of a free State."14 In this Amendment, the right to rebellion is
established.
· Due process says all citizens are subject to fair and equitable treatment.
· The Fourth - Eighth Amendments serve to both limit the power government has over
us and lay out procedures which must be followed when dealing with us.
· The Ninth Amendment makes it clear that the list of rights protected in the first eight
Amendments is not exhaustive and that we, the people, can assert additional natural
rights when we see fit (at least in theory.)
· The Tenth Amendment makes clear that powers not specifically granted to the federal
government are retained by the states and the people (these last two are Lockean
ideals)
Declaration of Independence influenced by Enlightenment
Locke maintains that society is a rational but voluntary expression. Government, which
serves to regulate the terms of the social contact on which society is created, serves to
protect our natural rights and serve as a democratic conduit for our interests. Most
important of our natural rights are liberty and property.
National Government under the Articles of Confederation
unicameral congress, or one chamber known as the Confederation Congress. no
executive or judicial branch. Functions in order to make sure that the national
government did not have too much power and that the power of the states remained
protected. had the authority to exchange ambassadors and make treaties with foreign
governments and Indian tribes, declare war, coin currency and borrow money, and
settle disputes between states. Each state legislature appointed delegates to the
Congress; these men could be recalled at any time. Regardless of its size or the
number of delegates it chose to send, each state would have only one vote. Delegates
could serve for no more than three consecutive years, lest a class of elite professional
politicians develop. The nation would have no independent chief executive or judiciary.
Nine votes were required before the central government could act, and the Articles of
Confederation could be changed only by unanimous approval of all 13 states.
Powers under the Articles of Confederation (national government):
The Power to Borrow and Coin Money
The Power to Declare War
The Power to Make Treaties and Alliances with Other Nations
,The Power to Regulate Trade with the Native Americans
The Power to Settle Disputes among Other States
The Power to Borrow and Coin Money (National Government)
The national government could make the currency of the United States, known as
Continental currency. It could also borrow money from other nations to cover the
country's debts that remained from fighting during the American Revolution. This power
to borrow and coin money was limited, as the national government had to rely on the
states for enough money to cover debts and back any loans taken from other countries.
The Power to Declare War (National Government)
The national government could declare war as it deemed appropriate with other nations.
It could also appoint military officials. However, this power was limited. The national
government could declare war, but there was no national military to draw soldiers from.
The soldiers came from the individual states.
The Power to Make Treaties and Alliances with Other Nations (National
Government)
The national government could enter into treaties or agreements with other nations as it
deemed appropriate. Under this power, the national government could also appoint
foreign ambassadors.
The Power to Regulate Trade with the Native Americans (National Government):
The national government was given power to negotiate and regulate trade with the
Native Americans. Native Americans were not considered citizens of the United States
and were treated as foreign nations by the both the national and state governments.
The Power to Settle Disputes among Other States (National Government)
the national government had the authority to settle any and all boundary disputes that
arose between the states, which were bound to happen in this newly formed country.
Problems with the Articles of Confederation (Power to Raise an Army or Navy):
Although the central government could declare war and agree to peace, it had to
depend upon the states to provide soldiers. If state governors chose not to honor the
national government's request, the country would lack an adequate defense. The lack of
a national army meant that the national government could not draft any soldiers into the
military.
Problems with the Articles of Confederation (Taxation)
Articles of Confederation gave the national government no power to impose and collect
taxes. To avoid any perception of "taxation without representation," the Articles of
Confederation allowed only state governments to levy taxes. To pay for its expenses,
the national government had to request money from the states, which were required to
provide funds in proportion to the value of the land within their borders. The states,
however, were often negligent in this duty, and the national government was
underfunded as a result. The national government could not impose taxes on citizens. It
could only request money from the states.
Problems with the Articles of Confederation (Regulating Trade):
The national government did not possess the power to regulate trade among the
different states. This lack of authority not only affected the national government, but the
states as well. The national economy suffered as foreign countries began to form trade
agreements with individual states, agreements for which the national government could
not regulate or tax.
, Problems with the articles of confederation National Government:
· Each state had only one vote in Congress regardless of its size.
· The national government could not impose taxes on citizens. It could only request
money from the states.
· The national government could not regulate foreign trade or interstate commerce.
· The national government could not raise an army. It had to request the states to send
men.
· The Articles could not be changed without a unanimous vote to do so.
· There was no national judicial system.
New Jersey Plan (small state plan)
A plan that called for a one-house national legislature; each state would receive one
vote. Each state would have one vote. Thus, smaller states would have the same power
in the national legislature as larger states.
· Unicameral legislature (one chamber)
· Representation: State based (each state equally represented)
· Role of National Government: provides defense but does not override state authority
Virginia Plan (large state plan)
The number of a state's representatives in each chamber was to be based on the
state's population. In each state, representatives in the lower chamber would be elected
by popular vote. These representatives would then select their state's representatives in
the upper chamber from among candidates proposed by the state's legislature. Once a
representative's term in the legislature had ended, the representative could not be
reelected until an unspecified amount of time had passed.
· Legislature: bicameral (two separate chambers)
· Representation: population based (higher the population = more representation)
· Role of the National Government: can legislate for states and veto state law
Compromises at the Constitutional Convention (representation)
Congress would be a bicameral legislature and would consist of two chambers: The
Senate and the House of Representatives. Each state, regardless of size, would have
two senators, making for equal representation as in the New Jersey Plan.
Representation in the House would be based on population. Senators were to be
appointed by state legislatures, a variation on the Virginia Plan. Members of the House
of Representatives would be popularly elected by the voters in each state. Elected
members of the House would be limited to two years in office before having to seek
reelection, and those appointed to the Senate by each state's political elite would serve
a term of six years. Congress had the power to tax, maintain an army and a navy, and
regulate trade and commerce. It could also coin and borrow money, grant patents and
copyrights, declare war, and establish laws regulating naturalization and bankruptcy.
Three-Fifths Compromise
a compromise between Northern and Southern states that called for counting of all the
states free population and 60% of its slave population for both federal taxation and
representation in congress. slave-holding states could count all their free population,
including free African Americans, plus 60% (three-fifths) of their enslaved population. To
mollify the North, the compromise also allowed counting 60% of a state's slave
population for federal taxation.
Checks and Balances
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