1. Chapter 3 – Principles and Goals of US Government
12th Grade POD
Ms. Nestico

2. Five Principles of American Government
Limited Government
Popular Sovereignty
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Federalism

3. Limited Government
Government does not have authority in all matters – people have rights
Based on John Locke and Tommy J.’s notion that people have certain “natural rights”
Found today in our constitution in the

4. Popular Sovereignty Popular = majority of people
Sovereignty = the right to rule oneself
Examples found in Amendments to the US Constitution that extended popular sovereignty (5):
15th (1870) – African American vote
17th (1913) – Senators now elected by popular vote (previously appointed)
19th (1920) – Women may vote
24th (1964) – Poll tax outlawed
26th (1971) – 18 yr. olds may vote

5. Separation of Powers
Divides power between three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial
Power split to prevent any one person or group from acquiring too much power
How much power is too much power? What can happen in terms of types of government?

6. Checks and Balances
Each branch of government is granted powers that automatically “check” the powers of the others
Example: while the Legislative branch has the power to make a law, the Executive branch may veto it, and the Judicial branch has the power of “judicial review”

7. Federalism
Power is divided between a national government and its subdivisions (states)
Certain powers granted ONLY to the states while others are granted ONLY to the federal government.
Supremacy Clause– Article VI, Clause 2 – the law according to the federal Constitution remains supreme
Judicial Review used frequently regarding this principle
Framers anticipated there may be conflicts between states and the federal government and so the Supremacy Clause was established to deal with this
In most cases, federal law reigns supreme.

8. Federalism and Judicial Review
Judicial Review – Supreme Court can overturn a law, but can’t make a new law or enforce one
Marbury vs. Madison (1803) – rendered as the first case that established judicial review
Marbury wanted the job he was promised as a judge and sued James Madison (secretary of State) to get it.
Supreme Court agreed Marbury was entitled to the job
BUT – Supreme Court could not issue an order to enforce it
Case is significant because it is the 1st Supreme Court case to deem a Congressional Act unconstitutional

9. Parts of the US Constitution
Preamble
Articles (7)
Amendments (27)
Bill of Rights through 10
Remaining 17 Amendments added through time

10. Preamble – Six Goals of American Government
Form a more perfect union
Establish justice
Insure domestic tranquility
Provide for the common defense
Promote the general welfare
Secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity

11. 1. Form a More Perfect Union
Federalism is born under this goal. This marks the shift from a confederate system to a federal system
States had previously been operating under a confederacy and it was not working
Examples
How are we still meeting this goal today?
Common currency
No passport to travel from state to state
Power tax and enforce some laws at a federal level

12. 2. Establish Justice To make things fair and equal for all
over time, the translation continues to change
As with popular sovereignty, it is reflected in the amendments
Established a federal court system
How are we still meeting this goal today?
Is fair always equal or vice-versa?

13. 3. Insure Domestic Tranquility
Domestic = “home”
Tranquility = “peace”
Therefore, this goal seeks to assure we have peace here at home within our own country
Established criminal laws, police forces, etc.
How are we still meeting this goal today?

14. 4. Provide for the Common Defense
As opposed to domestic tranquility, this goal is set to protect America from foreign invasion – outside of the US.
Establishes a military, Homeland Security, etc.
How are we still meeting this goal today?

15. 5. Promote the General Welfare
Founders felt that no person should suffer from
Disease
Hunger
Poverty
Following the Great Depression, many welfare programs were started to combat these societal issues
How are we still meeting this goal today?

16. 6. Secure the Blessings of Liberty for ourselves and our Posterity
Posterity = children or generations to come
The founders set this goal to assure when writing the constitution that it could not easily be changed so that freedom would be secure for all for a very long time
How are we still meeting this goal today?

17. Articles I. The Legislature (Congress)
II. The Executive Branch (President)
III. The Judicial Branch (Supreme Court)
IV. Full Faith & Credit Clause
V. How to amend the Constitution
VI. National Supremacy Clause
VII. Ratification of the Constitution
Federal and State – full faith and credit means that citizens of one state must abide by laws of another state when in that state. Federal government respects all laws of the individual states provided they are not in direct conflict with individual law
Amending the Constitution – Need either 2/3 House and 2/3 Senate OR 2/3 (34 of 50) of states to propose formal amendment. From there ¾ (38 of 50) of states need to ratify or approve

18. Amendments – Bill of Rights
1st – Right to free speech, assembly, petition, press, etc.
2nd – Right to bear arms
3rd – No quartering of troops
4th – Right to privacy – no illegal search and seizure
5th – Protection against double jeopardy and self-incrimination

19. Amendments – Bill of Rights
6th – Due Process rights in criminal proceedings
7th – Due Process right of a jury trial extended to civil proceedings
8th – Protection from Cruel and Unusual Punishment and Excessive Bail
Due process – must be formally notified of charges against you, fair and speedy trial, public/jury trial, right to an attorney, etc.

20. Amendments – Bill of Rights
9th – Enumerated rights - other rights aside from those listed may exist, and just because they are not listed doesn't mean they can be violated.
10th – Powers reserved to the States/People - any power not granted to the federal government belongs to the states or to the people

21. News Article Assignment– Principles of American Government
In groups of four, search, read and choose 4 news articles pertaining to America or American Government online and print them.
CNN Fox news online MSNBC Online
You must be able to apply one or more of the 5 principles of government to each article
Each person in the group should be assigned a specific principle of government

22. Article Assignment - continued
The following must be answered regarding each article:
1. Provide a thorough, written summary of the article
2. Identify the primary principle of government that applies
to the article and explain how/why.
3. Determine if the article is a positive or negative example
of the principle at hand and explain
4. Identify any other principles that may apply and explain
how/why.
5. In your opinion, is the way the government principle
being applied in this article what the Framers had in mind?