☆ Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces public policies.
The 4 things a country needs in order to exist is...
1. Population
- You must have people living in your nation.
- There is no minimum or maximum for how many people you can have.
- It must be on land.
- The country must have clear and recognized borders.
3. Sovereignty
- This nation has to be independent: free from outside rule.
- It must have a central power to govern and conduct foreign policies.
4. Government
- This country must have a stable and politically organized form of government.
⤔Origins of States⬹
Force Theory = One person or group forces others under their rule.
Evolutionary Theory = States initially started out as family and then naturally evolved.
Divine Right Theory = Idea that a person's power to rule comes from God.
Social Contract Theory = States are formed by voluntary acts from free people.
"...form a more perfect Union..."
The Articles of Confederation (1781) created a weak central government for the United States; The Constitution (1787) aimed to fix that and to unite the states under the idea that "unity is our greatest strength".
"...establish Justice..."
- "Justice is the government's most sacred duty." - Thomas Jefferson
The law in it's content and administration must be reasonable, fair, and impartial.
"...ensure Domestic Tranquility..."
The prime function of the government is to maintain order which in turn, creates peace.
"...provide for the Common Defence..."
The government's main responsibility is protecting us from domestic and foreign attacks.
- Eg) army, navy, coast guard, air force, Homeland Security (keeps watch of threats entering our country)
"...promote the General Welfare"
The services provided by the government should benefit most, if not all, the citizens in the country.
- education, roads, lowering taxes, safety and health, social security
"...secure the blessings of Liberty..."
Freedom is relative and not absolute in the United States. Citizens can't be "too free" as to infringe the freedoms of others.
Both Federal and State Constitutions define the rights and liberties of those living in our country.
Forms of Government
Governments can be classified by 3 standards...
- Who participates
- Geographic distribution of government power
- Relationship between lawmakers and its citizens
Democracy - supreme political authority rests with the people
- Direct democracy - will of the people is translated into law directly by the people themselves
- Indirect democracy - Small group of people are chosen to represent the rest of a population to act as their representatives to express popular will
Dictatorship - rulers can't be held responsible by the will of the people
- Autocracy - one person holds all the political power
- Oligarchy - power to rule is held by a small group of self-appointed elites
Unitary Government - has all the power held by 1 central agency
Confederate Government - made by an alliance of independent states
Federal Government - powers of the government are divided between a central and several local governments.
- An authority superior to both the central and local governments makes this division of power on a geographic basis.
Presidential Government - features an elected president who serves as the head of state (the ceremonial face represents the nation to the world) and as the country's chief executive.
Parliamentary Government - head of the state is king, queen, or president; they're figurehead leaders and they're necessarily the ones leading the country.
- The head of parliament is called the prime minister or the premier
- Executive Branch = The prime minister and their cabinet
- Legislative Branch = Members of parliament
5 Foundations of American Democracy
- Individual Worth - welfare of the many > the few eg) paying taxes, registering for draft
- Equality - in opportunity and before the law
- Majority rule; minority right - Democracy requires majority rule restrained by minority rights
- Compromise - blending and adjusting competing views and interests
- Individual Freedom - Democracy can only thrive with this; Authority of government must be adequate to the needs of society and can't restrict the individual
Free enterprise - system where private/corporate owns of capital goods; investments are made by private decision, not by the state
- Free market, supply and demand
Mixed economy - private enterprise + some government regulation and promotion
Elite Theory
- belief that political power rests in the hands of a small, elite group of people
The rich control the economy so those under them can't advance. They take up government positions to distribute resources to themselves. Force is used to keep the average person content in following the system.
Pluralist theory
- belief that political power rests with the people
People get involved with the government because its accessible because it has many access points across its 3 branches.
Groups where people share common interests, if organized, can hold power and influence over certain issues in our society and can compete with each other to sway politicians.
Tradeoffs
- Tradeoffs influence government action
- They occur because there must be a balance of power between different groups
- Ex) elite vs. poor, central vs. state governments, opposing interests groups vs each other
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