Unit 1 Constitutional Underpinnings
Goals of the US Constitution
 Create a strong union of states
 Establish justice
 Preserve Domestic Order
 Provide for the common defense
 Promote general welfare
 Promote individual freedoms
Constitution Remedies the
Articles of Confederation
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Creates Federalism
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A balance between the national and state
governments
National government could tax
Congress could regulate commerce between the
states and foreign nations
Article II created an executive department to
enforce laws
Article III created a national judiciary with a
Supreme Court and lower courts established by
Congress
Constitution Remedies the
Articles of Confederation
 Only the national government could coin money
 States are represented based on population in the
House of Reps and equally in the Senate
 Bills need a simple majority in the House and Senate
 2/3 of Congress and 3/4of the states are necessary to
amend the Constitution
Basic Principles of the Constitution
 Limited government
 Popular sovereignty
 Separation of powers
 Checks and balances
 Federalism
Amendments
 The Constitution has been formally amended 27 times.
 Please know all the amendments
 The first 10 amendments are known as the Bill of
Rights
Informal Amendments to the Constitution
 Legislative action: Judiciary Act of 1789
 Executive actions: Executive orders
 Judicial review: Marbury v. Madison
 Custom and usage: No 3rd term for Presidents
Federalism
 Delegated powers
 Expressed powers given to the national government
 Implied powers
 Powers that may be reasonably inferred from the Constitution
(Necessary and Proper Clause)
 Inherent powers
 Powers that exist from the national government because the
government is sovereign
 Concurrent powers
 Belong to both the states and national governments
 Reserved powers
 Powers that belong to the states (Amendment 10)
Federalism In Practice
 Interstate Relations
 Full faith and credit clause: states are required to recognize the
laws and legal documents of other states
 Privileges and immunities clause: states are prohibited from
unreasonably discriminating against residents of another state
 Extradition: states may return fugitives to states which they
fled
 Interstate compacts: states may work together to solve regional
problems
National Supremacy
 Article IV Supremacy Clause
 McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) Federal law is supreme
over state law
 Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) National supremacy over
interstate commerce
Federalism Today
 Dual Federalism (1789-1932)
 Layer cake federalism: National and state have power
within their own sphere of influence
 Cooperative Federalism (1932-1968)
 Marble cake federalism: National and state work
together
 New Federalism (Nixon, Reagan, Bush 41)
 Devolution of national power to the states
Fiscal
Federalism
 Grant in aid
 Money and resources provided by the national government to
state and local projects and programs
 Categorical grants
 Grants that have specific purpose defined by law
 Block grants
 General grants which can be used for a variety of purposes
 Unfunded mandates
 Requirements which are imposed by the national government
on the state and local governments
Political Beliefs and Behaviors
Political Culture
 A set of beliefs and basic values shared by most
citizens.
 Majority rule
 Free elections
 Equality in law
 Private property
 Individual freedoms
Political Socialization
 The process in which citizens acquire a sense of
political identity
 Family and home life
 Education
 Group affiliations (interest groups, labor unions)
 Demographic factors (age, sex, race, religion)
 Mass media
 Historical events
Public Opinion
 A collection of shared attitudes of many different
people in matters relating to politics, public issues, or
making of public policy.
Measuring Public Opinion
 1930’s George Gallup developed polling:
 Sampling
 Preparing valid questions
 Controlling how the poll is taken
 Analyzing and reporting results
Political Ideology
 A set of beliefs about politics and public policy that
creates the structure for looking at government and
public policy.
Political
Spectrum
 Radical: favor rapid, fundamental change in
existing social, economic, political order
 Liberal: supports active government in promoting
individual welfare and social rights
 Moderate: political ideology falls between liberal
and conservative
 Conservative: promotes a limited government role
in helping individuals, supports traditional
lifestyle
 Reactionary: advocates a return to a previous state
of affairs
Political Parties
Interest Groups
Mass Media
Political Parties
 An association of people who seek to control the
government through common principle.
 Two Party System: There are several parties but
only two major parties compete and dominate
elections
 Minor Parties: generally have little to no impact on
elections
What do Parties do?
 Recruit candidates
 Nominate and support candidates for office
 Educate the electorate
 Organize the government (majority vs. minority)
Party Identification
 Ideology
 Education
 Income
 Occupation
 Race
 Gender
 Religion
 Family tradition
 Region of country
 Marital status
Why a Two Party System
 British heritage
 Federalist/Anti-Federalist
 Electoral system
 Election laws
Electoral Dealignment and Realignment
 Dealignment: when significant number of voters no
longer support a particular party
 Realignment: voting patterns shift and new coalitions
form.
 Republicans (1860)
 Democrats (1932)
Political Participation
 Voting in elections
 Discussing politics and attending political
meetings
 Forming interest groups and PACs
 Contacting public officials
 Contributing money to a candidate or political
party
 Running for office
 Protesting government decisions
Issue
or
Policy
Voting
 Direct Primary
 Allows citizens to nominate candidates
 Recall
 Is a special election initiated by petition to allow citizens
to remove an official from office
 Referendum
 Allows citizens to vote directly on issues called
propositions
 Initiative
 Allows voters to petition to propose issues to be decided
by qualified voters
Low Voter Turnout
 Voter turnout is higher for Presidential elections
 Lower turnout for midterm elections
 Lower when compared to other nations
Low Voter Turnout
 Expansion of the electorate (26th Amendment)
 Failure of the political parties to mobilize voters
 No perceived differences between candidate or
party
 Mistrust of the government
 Apathy
 Satisfaction with the way things are
 Lack of political efficacy
 Mobility of the electorate
 Registration process
Types of Elections
 Primary Election: voters choose candidates from their party
 Closed primary: only voters who are registered in the party
may vote to choose the candidate
 Open primary: voters may vote to choose the candidate of
either party, whether they belong to that party or not
 Blanket primary: voters may vote for candidates of either
party
 Runoff primary: when no candidate from a party receives a
majority of the votes, the top two candidates face each other
Types of Elections
 General Election
 Voters get to choose from among all the candidates
nominates by political parties or running as
independents
Electoral College
 President and Vice-President are chosen by the 538
electoral votes
 435 districts
 100 senators
 3 Washington DC
 States use a winner take all method of assigning
their electoral votes based on popular vote
 The candidate that receives a majority (270) is
declared winner.
 If no winner is declared the House of
Representatives chooses the President and the
Senate chooses the Vice-President
Campaign Finance
 Federal Election Campaign Act (1971)
 Restricted
 Amount spent on campaign advertising
 Required disclosure of contributions and expenditures
 Federal Election Commission
 Enforces the FECA
 Created public financing for presidential candidates
 Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
 The Supreme Court ruled that spending limits
established by the FECA were unconstitutional
Interest Groups
 Raise awareness and stimulate interest in public affairs
by educating their members and the public
 Represent membership, serving as a link between
members and the government
 Provide information to the government
 Provide channels for political participation
Types of Interest Groups
 Economic Interest Groups
 Labor Groups (AFL-CIO)
 Business Groups (Chamber of Commerce)
 Professional Groups (National Education Association)
 Agricultural Groups (National Farmer’s Union)
The Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches
Congress
 Article I of the US Constitution creates a bicameral
legislature consisting of the House of Representatives
and the Senate
 The current structure was a result of the Connecticut
or Great Compromise reached at the Constitutional
Convention
House of Representatives
 Membership
 435 members apportioned by population
 Term of Office
 2 years; entire House elected every 2 years
 Qualifications
 At least 25 years old
 Citizen for 7 years
 Must live in state where district is located
 Constituencies
 smaller, by district
 Prestige
 Less prestige
House of Representatives:
Getting Elected
 Apportionment: distribution among the states based on the
population of each state
 Reapportionment: the redistribution of Congressional seats
after the census determines changes in population
distribution among the states
 Congressional districting: the drawing by state legislatures of
congressional districts for those states with more than one
representative
 Gerrymandering: drawing congressional districts to favor one
political party or group over another
House of Representatives
 Leadership
 Speaker of the House
 Presiding officer and most powerful member
 Assigns bills to committee
 Controls floor debates
 Appoints party members to committees
 Majority Leader
 Assistant to the Speaker
 Helps plan party’s legislative program
 Directs floor debates
 Minority Leader
 Major spokesperson for the minority party
 Organizes opposition to the majority party
How a Bill becomes a Law (House)
 A bill is introduced, numbered, and assigned to a
committee
 The bill may be assigned to a subcommittee for further
study
 The bill is returned to committee where it is approved or
rejected
 The rules committee sets terms of debate for the bill
 The bill is debated by the House
 A vote is taken. Bills that pass go to the Senate
 Conference committee resolves any differences between
House and Senate Bill
 Resolved bill is voted on in the House
 If approved, sent to the President
US Senate
 Membership: 100 members (2 from each state)
 Term of office: 6 years; staggered terms with onethird of the Senate elected every 2 years
 Qualifications:
 At least 30 years of age
 Citizen for 9 years
 Must live in state
 Constituencies: Larger, entire state
 Prestige: More prestige
US Senate
 Getting Elected
 Members were originally chosen by the state legislatures
in each state
 Since 1913, the 17th Amendment allows the direct election
of senators by the people of the state
US Senate
 Leadership
 US Vice President
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Presiding officer of the Senate.
Cannot debate and only votes to break a tie
 President pro tempore
 Senior member of the majority party
 A ceremonial position
 Majority leader
 The most influential member of the Senate
 The majority party’s spokesperson
 Minority leader
 Performs the same role as the House minority leader
How a Bill becomes a Law (Senate)
 A bill is introduced, numbered, and assigned to a committee
 The bill may be assigned to a subcommittee for further study
 The bill is returned to committee where it is approved or
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rejected
No rules committee!
The bill is debated by the Senate
A vote is taken, where the bill is passed or defeated. Bills that
pass the Senate are sent to the House
Conference committee resolves any differences between House
and Senate Bill
Resolved bill is voted on in the Senate
If approved, sent to the President
Congressional Override
 If the President vetoes the bill then it is returned to
the Congress, where they may override the veto by a
two-thirds vote in each house.
Types of Committees
 Standing
 A permanent committee that deals with specific policy
matters (agriculture, energy…)
 Select
 A temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose
(Senate Watergate Committee)
 Joint
 Made up of members of both Houses (Joint Committee on
the Library of Congress)
 Conference
 A temporary committee of members from both Houses,
created to resolve differences in the House and Senate
versions of the bill
Caucuses
 Informal groups formed by members of Congress who
share a common purpose of goals
 Congressional Black Caucus
 Women’s Caucus
 Democratic or Republican Caucus
Roles of Members of Congress
 Policymaker
 Representative
 Constituent servant
 Committee member
 Politician/Party member
House of Representatives/Senate
 Incumbency Effect: the tendency for office holders to
easily get reelected
 Name recognition
 Credit claiming (bringing positive results to the district or
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state)
Casework for constituents (helped constituents solve
problems)
More visible to constituents
Media exposure
Fundraising abilities
Experience in campaigning
Voting record
Powers of Congress
 Legislative Powers
 Expressed powers: Powers specifically granted to Congress,
mostly found in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution
 Implied powers: powers which may be reasonably suggested
to carry out the expressed powers; found in Article I,
Section 8, Clause 18, “necessary and proper”
 Limitations of powers: power denied Congress in Article I,
Section 9 and the 10th Amendment
Powers of Congress
 Non-Legislative Powers
 Electoral powers: selection of the President by the House and
Vice-President by the Senate upon the failure of the electoral
college to achieve a majority vote
 Amendment powers: Congress may propose amendments by 2/3
votes of each house
 Impeachment:
 House may bring charges, or impeach, the President, Vie-President, or any
civil officer by a simple majority
 Senate holds the trial and acts as a jury with a 2/3 vote needed to find guilt
 Executive powers of the Senate:
 Must approve appointees by the Executive Branch by a simple majority
 Must approve treaties by a 2/3 vote
 Investigation/oversight powers: investigate matters falling within
the range of its legislative authority
Legislative Tactics
 Caucuses: may form voting blocs
 Committee system
 Filibuster or Cloture: in the Senate only, unlimited
debate in an attempt to stall action on a bill; cloture is
the method by 60 votes to end a filibuster
 Pork barrel legislation: an attempt to provide funds
and projects for a member’s home state or district
 Logrolling: an attempt by members to gain support of
other members in return for their support on the
member’s legislation
Legislative Tactics
 Riders: additions to legislation which generally have no
connection to the legislation
 Amendments: additions or changes to the legislation
which deal specifically with the legislation
 Lobbying: trying to influence members of Congress to
support or reject legislation
 Conference committee: may affect the wording and
therefore intent of the legislation
 Legislative veto: the rejection of a presidential or
executive branch action by one or both houses of
Congress, used mostly between 1932-1980.
 Declared unconstitutional in the 1983 case, Immigration and
Naturalization Service v. Chada
Influences on Congress
 Constituents
 Other lawmakers and staff
 Party influences
 President
 Lobbyists and interest groups
President of the United States
 Article II of the Constitution establishes the many
responsibilities and functions of the President
 Term and Tenure
 4 year term
 2 terms (10 year max) 22nd Amendment
President of the United States
 Formal Qualifications
 Natural born citizen
 At least 35 years old
 Resident of the US 14 years prior to election
 Informal, many presidential candidates share several
characteristics
 Political or military experience
 Political acceptability
 Married
 White male
 Protestant
 Northern European ancestry
Succession and Disability
 The Constitution provides that if the President can no
longer serve in office the Vice-President will carry out
the powers and duties of the office
 25th Amendment
 The Vice-President becomes President if the office of
the president becomes vacant
 The President will nominate a new Vice-President, with
approval of a majority from both houses of Congress
Impeachment and Removal
 The Constitution gives the House of Representatives
the authority to bring charges against the President or
Vice-President for “Treason, Bribery, or other High
Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
 Once charges are brought the Senate holds the trial.
The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court presides over
the trial
 Conviction requires a 2/3 vote
Electoral College System
 12th Amendment
 An electoral college elects the President and Vice-President
 Each state chooses the number of electors equal to its number
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of members in the House of Representatives and Senate.
In December, after the general election, the electors meet in
their state capital to cast their ballots for president and vicepresident.
The electoral college then sends its ballots to the President of
the US Senate where they are opened before a joint session of
Congress
To win a candidate needs a majority (270)
If a majority is not reached the House votes on the top 3
candidates for President and the Senate votes on the top 2
candidates for Vice-President
The Vice-Presidency
 Presides over the Senate, casting tie-breaking votes
 Help determine presidential disability under the 25th
Amendment and take over presidency if necessary
 Has the same formal qualifications as the President
Presidential Powers
 Executive powers
 Enforces laws, treaties, and court decisions
 Issues executive orders to carry out policies
 Appoints officials, removes officials
 Assumes emergency powers
 Presides over cabinet and executive branch
 Military powers
 Serves as commander in chief
 Has final decision making authority in matters of
national and domestic defense
 Provides for domestic order
Presidential
Powers
 Legislative Powers
 Gives annual State of the Union message
 Issues annual budget and economic reports
 Signs or vetoes bills
 Proposes and influences legislation
 Calls for special sessions of Congress
 Diplomatic Powers
 Appoints ambassadors and other diplomats
 Negotiates treaties and executive agreements
 Meets with foreign leaders
 Accords diplomatic recognition to foreign governments
 Receives foreign dignitaries
Presidential Powers
 Judicial Powers
 Appoints members of the federal judiciary
 Grants reprieves, pardons, and amnesty
 Party Powers
 Leader of the party
 Chooses vice presidential nominee
 Strengthens the party by helping members get elected
(coattails)
 Appoints party members to government positions
(patronage)
 Influences policies and platform of party
Limitations on Presidential Powers
 Congressional Checks
 Override presidential veto
 Power of the purse
 Power of impeachment
 Approval powers over appointees
 Legislation limiting the president’s power (War Powers Act)
 Judicial Checks
 Judicial review of executive action
 Political checks
 Public opinion
 Media attention
 popularity
The Bureaucracy
 A systematic way of organizing a complex and large
administrative structure.
 Hierarchical authority: similar to a pyramid with the top
having authority over those below
 Job specialization: each worker has defined duties and
responsibilities, a division of labor among workers
 Formal rules: established regulations and procedures
which must be followed
History and Growth
 Beginnings: standards for office included qualifications
and political acceptability
 Spoils system: practice of giving offices and government
favors to political supporters and friends
 Reform movement: competitive exams were tried and
failed due to inadequate funding from Congress
 Pendleton Act: Civil Service Act of 1883, replaced the
spoils system with a merit system
 Hatch Act of 1939: prohibits government employees from
engaging in political activities while on duty
 Civil Service Reform Act of 1978: created the office of
Personnel Management to recruit, train, and establish
classifications and salaries for federal employed
Organization
 The federal bureaucracy is divided into four basic types
 Cabinet departments (15 executive departments)
 Independent executive departments (NASA, Small
Business Administration)
 Independent regulatory agencies (Securities and
Exchange Commission, Federal Reserve Board)
 Government corporations (Tennessee Valley Authority, US
Postal Service)
Influences on the Federal Bureaucracy
 Executive influences: appointing the right people,
issuing executive orders, affecting the agency’s
budget
 Congressional influences: influencing
appointments, affecting the agency’s budget,
holding hearings, rewriting legislation
 Iron triangles: alliances between bureaucratic
agencies, congressional committees, and interest
groups
Executive Office of the President
 White House Office
 National Security Council
 Office of Management and Budget
 Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives
 Office of National Drug Control Policy
 Office of Policy Development
 Council of economic Advisors
 Office of US trade Representative
Executive Departments
 State
 Health and Human
 Treasury
Services
 Housing and Urban
Development
 Transportation
 Energy
 Education
 Veterans affairs
 Homeland Security
 Defense
 Interior
 Justice
 Agriculture
 Commerce
 Labor
The Federal Court System
 The US has a dual court system of courts-a federal
court system and the court system of the 50 states
 Article III of the Constitution states that there shall be
a Supreme Court and that Congress may establish a
system of inferior courts
Jurisdiction
 Original jurisdiction
 Lower courts have the authority to hear cases for the first time.
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District Court conducts trials, evidence is presented, and juries
determine the outcome of the case
Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in cases involving
representatives of a foreign government, and certain types of cases
where a state is a party
 Appellate jurisdiction
 Courts that hear reviews or appeals of decisions from the lower
courts
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Court of Appeals
Supreme Court
Structure of the Judicial System
 District Courts
 Created by the Congress in the Judiciary Act of 1789.
 There are 94 District Courts
 Decide civil and criminal cases
 Court of Appeals
 Created by Congress in 1891
 There are 13 US Court of Appeals
 Decide appeals from the District Courts
 Supreme Court
 Created by Article III of the Constitution
 Most of its cases are appeals from the US Court of Appeals and
State Supreme Courts
 Has original and appellate jurisdiction
Judicial Selection
 The President appoints all federal judges with
confirmation from the US Senate
 There are no formal qualifications
 Serve a life term
 Federal judges may be removed through impeachment
Supreme Court Selection
 Presidents only make appointments to the Supreme Court if
a vacancy occurs during their term of office
 When making appointments, Presidents often consider:
 Party affiliation
 Judicial philosophy
 Race, gender, religion, region
 Judicial experience
 Political ideology
 Acceptability
The Supreme Court at Work
 The term of the Supreme Court begins on the first
Monday in October and generally lasts until June or
July of the following year.
Accepting Cases
 Cases that are accepted must pass the rule of four: four of
the nine justices must agree to hear the case.
 Writ of certiorari: an order by the court directing the lower
court to send up the records of a case for review
 Certificate: a lower court may ask the Supreme Court about a
rule of law or procedures in specific cases
Briefs and Oral Arguments
 Once a case reaches the Supreme Court, lawyers for each
party to the case file a written brief
 Written briefs include: detailed statements of the facts of the
case supported by relevant facts and citations from previous
cases
 Interested parties may be invited to submit amicus briefs
(friends of the court) supporting or rejecting arguments of
the case
 Oral arguments allow both sides 30 minutes to present their
positions to the justices
Writing Opinions
 Once the Supreme Court has made a decision in a case,
the decision is explained in a written statement
 Majority opinion: a majority of the justices agree on the
decision and its reasons
 Concurring opinion: a justice who agrees with the majority
opinion but not the reasoning behind the decision
 Dissenting opinion: a justice or justices who disagree with the
majority opinion
 Majority opinions become precedent in deciding future
cases
Judicial Activism
 Holds that the court should play an active role in
determining national policies
 The philosophy advocates applying the Constitution to
social and political questions
Judicial Restraint
 Holds that the court should avoid taking the initiative
on social and political questions.
 Operating strictly within the limits of the Constitution
Politics and Public Policymaking
Agenda-Setting
 Recognizing an issue as a problem which must be
addressed as a part of the political agenda.
 Problems are brought to the political agenda by:
 Citizens
 Interest groups
 The Media
 Government Entities
Formation/Adoption/
Implementation
 Formation: finding ways to solve the problems
 Adoption: adopting a plan of action to solve the
problem; may require legislation
 Implementation: executing the plan of action by
appropriate agency or agencies
Policy Evaluation
 Analysis of policy and its impact upon the problem
 Judging the effectiveness of policy
Domestic Policy
 Crime Prevention: FBI, DEA, & ATF
 Education: States run education but since the creation
of the Department of Education (1979) the Fed has
used grants and vouchers as influence
 Energy: The study of alternative and
renewable sources of fuel. Regulates nuclear waste.
Domestic Policy
 Health Care: Medicare (elderly),
Medicaid (poor), CDC, VA, FDA
 Social Welfare: Social Security, Housing
Programs, unemployment benefits
Economic Policy
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Raising Revenue: income tax, cooperate
tax, estate tax, customs
Government Spending
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Discretionary Spending
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Defense, Education, Student Loans, Scientific
Research, Environmental Clean-up, Law Enforcement,
Disaster Aid, Foreign Aid
Nondiscretionary Spending
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Interest of the national debt, social welfare programs
Economic Policy
 Federal Budget: Proposed each year
(fiscal year is October 1
September 30)
through
 Proposals
 Each federal agency must submit a budget request to the
Office of Management and Budget.
 The President submits a budget proposal to Congress based
on the OMB
 The Congress proposes its own budget based on the advise of
the Congressional Budget Office
Economic Policy
 The budget must be passed by Congress and signed by
the President by September 15.
 Failure to pass a budget could lead to the federal
government to shut down.
Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
Civil Liberties
 Constitution
 Writ of habeas corpus: you must be brought before the
court and informed of charges against you
 No bills of attainder: you cannot be punished without a
trial
 No ex post facto laws: laws applied to acts committed
before the laws’ passage are unconstitutional
 Trial by jury
Civil Liberties
 Bill of Rights
 Freedom of religion, speech, press, petition, and
assembly
 No unreasonable search and seizure
 Protections against self-incrimination and double
jeopardy
 Protections in criminal procedures
Civil Liberties
 14th Amendment
 Provided for the expansion of the Bill of Rights to the
states and local governments
 Incorporation
 Legislation
 Laws that set limits or boundaries on one person’s rights
over another person
 Courts
 Judicial review
Freedom of Religion
Establishment Clause
 Congress cannot:
 Establish a national religion
 Favor one religion over another
 Tax citizens to support any one religion
Freedom of Religion
Establishment Clause
 Please know the following Supreme Court cases
 Engle v. Vitale (state sponsored prayer)
 Abington Township v. Schempp (school sponsored bible
reading)
 Lemon v. Kurtzman (3 part test)
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Purpose of aid must be secular
Aid can neither advance of hinder religion
No “excessive entanglement” between gov’t and religion
 Minersville v. Gobitus (allowed mandatory pledge)
 West Virginia v. Barnette (overturned Gobitus)
 Wallace v. Jaffree (mandatory moment of prayer)
Freedom of Religion
Free-Exercise Clause
 Guarantees the right to practice any religion or no
religion at all
 Know these cases
 Reynolds v. United States (banned polygamy)
 Wisconsin v. Yoder (no compulsory education past 8th
grade for Amish)
 Oregon v. Smith (banned drugs used for religion)
 Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah
(animal sacrifice as part of religion UPHELD)
Freedom of Speech
 Pure Speech: the most common form of speech, verbal
speech
 Symbolic Speech: using actions or symbols to convey
an idea
 Speech Plus: verbal and symbolic speech used together
Freedom of Speech
 Know these cases
 Abrams v. United States (restricted anti-war “speech”)
 Schenck v. United States (“clear and present danger”)
 Gitlow v. New York (selective incorporation)
 Tinker v. Des Moines (symbolic student speech)
 Texas v. Johnson (symbolic speech – flag burning)
 Reno v. ACLU (struck down some restrictions on
internet materials)
Freedom of the Press
 Know these cases
 Near v. Minnesota (prior restraint)
 New York Times v. Sullivan (malicious intent
requirement for libel/slander)
 New York Times v. United States (Pentagon Papers and
prior restraint)
 Hustler v. Falwell (public figures not protected from
parody)
 Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (student
newspapers subject to some censorship)
Freedom of Assembly
 The government is allowed to set limits on assembly to
protect the rights and safety of others
 DeJonge v. Oregon (upheld the right to organize a local
communist party)
Property Rights
 The due process clause of the 5th and 14th Amendments
provide for the protection of private property by
guaranteeing that citizens would not be
“deprived of life, liberty,
or property, without due
process of the law”
Due Process
 Substantive due process
 Involves the policies of government or the subject matter
of the laws, determining whether the law is fair or if it
violates constitutional protections
 Procedural due process
 The method of government action or how the law is
carried out, according to established rules and
procedures
Right to Privacy
 The Constitution makes no mention of a “right to
privacy,” however the Supreme Court has interpreted
several rights that may fall under the category of
privacy
 Griswold v. Connecticut
 Roe v. Wade
Fourth Amendment
Search and Seizure
 Know these cases
 Wolf v. Colorado (4th applies to states, but NOT
exclusionary rule)
 Mapp v. Ohio (applied exclusionary rule to states)
 TLO v. New Jersey (“reasonable suspicion” for school
searches)
 Weeks v. United States (no warrantless seizures)
 Katz v. United States (extends illegal searches to wire
tapping)
Fifth Amendment
Self-Incrimination
 Know this case
 Miranda v. Arizona
Sixth Amendment
Right to an Attorney
 Know these cases
 Powell v. Alabama (right to counsel in capital cases)
 Gideon v. Wainwright
Eighth Amendment
Cruel and Unusual Punishments
 Know these cases
 Furman v. Georgia (moratorium on death penalty)
 Gregg v. Georgia (reinstates death penalty within
established guidelines to create uniform application)
Civil Rights
 Are the positive acts of government, designed to
prevent discrimination and provide equality before the
law
 The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment
prevents the states from discriminating against
citizens.
Civil Rights Movement
 13th Amendment abolished slavery
 14th Amendment defined citizenship and provided due
process and equal protection of the law
 15th Amendment provided that all males 21 and older
could vote
 24th Amendment outlawed the poll tax in federal
elections
Civil Rights Movement
 Black codes: state laws passed to keep freed slaves out
of politics (literacy test, poll tax, registration tests)
 Civil Rights Act of 1876: outlawed racial segregation in
public places
 Jim Crow Laws: created segregation in schools, public
transportation, and hotels
 Plessy v. Ferguson: separate but equal facilities are
constitutional
Civil Rights Movement
 Executive Order 8802: Franklin Roosevelt banned
racial discrimination in the federal government
 Executive Order 9981: Harry Truman ordered the
desegregation of the military
 Brown v. Board of Education: overturned Plessy v.
Ferguson, separate but equal is unconstitutional
Civil Rights Movement
 Civil Rights Act of 1964: prohibited discrimination in
employment and in places of public accommodations
 Voting Rights Act of 1965: outlawed discriminatory
tests in voter registration
The Women’s Movement
 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote
 Equal Pay Act of 1963: made it illegal to base a person’s
pay on their gender, race, religion, or national origin
 Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972
prohibited gender discrimination in hiring, firing,
promotions, and pay
People with Disabilities
 The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibited
discrimination against people with disabilities in
federal programs
 The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 forbids
employers from discriminating against people with
disabilities
Affirmative Action
 A policy designed to correct the effects of past
discrimination.
 University of California v. Bakke (1978): the court ruled
that affirmative action was constitutional but that
Bakke had been denied equal protection because the
university used race as the sole criteria for admissions
 Grutter v. Bollinger (2003): allowed race to be used as a
plus in the admissions process (narrowly tailored)
 Gratz v. Bollinger (2003): the court struck down a 20
point bonus for underrepresented minority groups.