Government and the State
Chapter 1
Section 1

• Government – the institution through which society makes and enforces its public policies. It must have power and authority over its people
• Public Policy – all things the govt. decides to do

• Constitution – fundamental laws setting out a country or state’s principles, structure and processes of the government

• Legislative – makes laws
(Congress: Senate and House)
• Executive – executes, enforces and administers laws
(President)
• Judicial – interprets laws
(Supreme Court)

• The way those three tasks are processed are written into a
Constitution.

• Popular Sovereignty – the government is responsible to the people and the government is based on the consent of the people
• Sovereignty – the people are the source of power

• Separation of Powers – our government has three branches, (executive, legislative, judicial) each with its own duties and responsibilities. This system is in place to make sure that no branch has too much power

Vocabulary
• The state is a body of people, living in a defined territory, organized politically and the power to make and enforce laws without the consent of any higher authority
• Often, a state is a nation or a country

• To be a state, it must have absolute power to decide on its own foreign and domestic politics.
• Therefore, Florida is NOT a state in this sense as it does not do this.

The Territory
• To be a state, it must have land
• It does not have to be connected or large.

The Population
• To be a state, it must have people
• They do not have to be united either ethnically, politically or culturally.

• Because our government affects YOU.

• Because our government settles conflicts
• We cannot decide among ourselves how to divide our resources
• Our government has the authority to make their decisions legal.

• Because our government provides things for us that we could not do independently
• Construction of roads, police and fire protection, public health and environmental codes.

• Because our government protects our entire nation.
• The government raises and fund the military, defense systems, and immigration

• Because our government makes decisions and policy that directs our country.

• In a dictatorship, all of these powers are held by one person or a small group.

• In a democracy, these powers are in the hands of the citizens of that country.

Who Controls Government?
• All governments involve politics.
• Politics is the process that decides who gets what, when and how.

•
• Evolutionary Theory
The state evolved out of the early family or clan
• The oldest male was the head
• The family grew into clans and finally, tribes

Political Origins
• Force Theory
• One person or group claimed control over an area and forced its inhabitants to submit to that group’s rule

Political Origins
• Divine Right Theory
• God decided through birth who was to lead and who was to follow
• They believed that because
God made the decision, it was not up to people to make changes.

• Thomas Hobbes and John
Locke agreed that all people must have a government to protect ourselves.

Thomas Hobbes
1588-1679
• Without government there would be “continual fear and danger of violent death and life would be solitary, poor nasty, brutish and short.”
• Humans are basically selfish creatures
• Wrote Leviathan

John Locke
1632-1704
• Locke believed that man had natural rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of property
• People choose to have a government, a social contract, to protect our natural rights.

Political Origins
• During the 1600’s, several philosophers challenged the divine right theory
• Although they all agreed that man must have a government, they disagreed with the idea that the right to rule comes from God

Political Origins
• Social Contract Theory
• People have the power to voluntarily choose to have a government to serve their will
• The people are free to give or withhold that power if they choose

• The Declaration of
Independence justified the
American Revolution through social contract theory, that
King George III violated this contract.

Preamble to the
Constitution
• The purpose of our government is written in the
Preamble to the Constitution
• “We the People of the
United States,

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Purpose of Government

Review
• Why do we study government
• What is a government?
• Who holds the power in a dictatorship?
• Who holds the power in a democracy?
• What is the purpose of our Constitution?
• How is our Preamble an example of a social contract?

Forms of Government
Chapter 1
Section 2

Vocabulary
• Autocracy – rule by one
• Dictators and monarchs
• Oligarchy – rule by selected elite

Vocabulary
• Unitary govt.
- power in the hands of a central agency
• Federal govt – power divided between federal and state governments
France
U. S.

Vocabulary
• Division of powers – power is in the hands of different branches
• Confederation – loosely organized group of states

• Presidential government – the executive branch is separate from the legislative branch
• Parliamentary government – the prime minister and cabinet are both the executive and legislative body

• Who can participate?
• What is the distribution of power within the state?
• What is the relationship between the legislative and executive branches?

Who Can Participate?
• In a democracy, the power is in the hands of the people
• Direct democracy does not exist in large communities.
Everyone votes for everything.
It is not practical in cities and countries.

Who Can Participate?
• In a representative democracy, or republic, people vote for representatives to carry out their wishes on a day to day basis
• They are accountable on election day
• 98% are re-elected

Who Can Participate?
• In a dictatorship, only the ruler makes decisions.
• Whether an autocracy or oligarchy, dictatorships are authoritarian.
• Dictators control every aspect of peoples’ lives

Who Can Participate?
• Examples of dictatorships would be Nazi Germany under
Hitler
• Even children (Aryan) were forced to become members of the Nazi Youth Movement (like the current pope, Benedict

Who Can Participate?
• Josef Stalin - Russia
• Muammar al-Qaddafi – Libya
• Fidel Castro - Cuba
• Dictatorships stay in power through the use of military might

Distribution of Power -
Unitary
• All governmental power is centralized into a single agency
• Local governments have only the power than the central government allows it to have

Distribution of Power -
Federal
• Government power is shared between a central government and local agencies
• The division of powers are separated by geographically and are each regulated by their own laws, officials and agencies

• The central government only has the powers that the states assign to it.
• The US under the Articles of
Confederation gave the federal government few powers
• The Confederacy during the Civil
War hindered Pres. Davis

• The EU,
European Union, has established free trade among its member states.

Relationship Between
Branches
• Under a presidential government, the US,the legislative and executive branches have different duties and can over-ride the authority of each other
• They are independent in function

Relationship Between
Branches
• Under a parliamentary government, England, the prime minister and the legislative branch work together
• In fact, the legislative body selects the executive branch
• This is the typical type of govt.

Gotcha before you know it

PROPAGANDA
• n. information meant to persuade people to think or act a certain way.
• Not all propaganda is bad although the word has a bad connotation.
• Hitler skillfully used propaganda in a harmful way
• Saying the Pledge is promoting propaganda/patriotism in a good way

PROPAGANDA
• Celebrity testimonials – companies and organizations recruit ‘stars’ to promote their ideas
• The idea is that they are smarter than you so you should buy or vote as they say.
• Is Michael Jordan, Angelina Jolie, or Britney Spears really smarter than you?

PROPAGANDA
• Multiple Identities/Folksy – “I’m just like you, watch me swim and fish”
• Does Star Jones really buy her shoes at Payless?
• Does George Bush really clean his own horse stalls?

PROPAGANDA
• Bandwagon – “Everyone is doing it”
• Wants you to feel left out if you do not join the majority
• “Don’t be the last one on your block not to have red shoelaces!”

PROPAGANDA
• Name Calling – “He has not been honest about his background.”
• Rather than explain the positive aspects of “A”, focus on the negative (or untruths) about “B”
• This is VERY popular during political campaigns – watch them this during the primaries.

PROPAGANDA
• Scare Tactics – “A vote for
Mr. Smith, is a vote for high taxes and increased terrorism.”
• Although there is no basis for the claims, repetition will cause people to believe false accusations.

Basic Concepts of
Democracy
Chapter 1
Section 3

Vocabulary
• Compromise – a position where both sides give up something to be acceptable to the majority
• Free enterprise system – capitalism, economic system where individuals control the factors of production

• In a democracy, all people are treated fairly, even if they do not make up a majority of the population
• Most Americans are Christian but a Nativity scene may not be displayed in public schools.

• Majority opinions may not be fair to all
• People without children should not have to pay school taxes
• Old people should not drive after 4 PM
• Rappers should be allowed to have profane lyrics on the radio

• Law of Supply – As the price for a good goes up, the producer will make more . As the price goes down, they will make less
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• Law of Demand – As the price for a good goes up, the consumer will buy less. As the price goes down, they will buy more
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Vocabulary
• Mixed economy – an economic system with a mixture of capitalism and government regulation.
The US has a mixed economy, privately owned companies are regulated by OSHA, Food &
Drug Admin, Labor Laws, etc
Utilities are regulated as they are a monopoly

Vocabulary
• Factors of Production
• Land
• Labor
• Capital
• Entrepreneurship
• Technology

Vocabulary
• Traditional Economy – people do things the way they have always done them. An example would be poor, 3 rd world countries.
• Command Economy – the government controls the factors of production and controls the economy. An example would be Communist China or
Saddam’s Iraq

Foundations
• For democracy to work, it must recognize
– 1. the fundamental worth and dignity of every person
– 2. Respect for the equality of all
– 3. majority rule and minority rights
– 4. necessity of compromise
– 5. widest possible degree of freedoms for all

Foundations
• Our democratic government works in tandem with capitalism.
• Both rely on the individual to make it successful.
• Both democracy and capitalism were founded on the ideas of the
17 th century philosophers –
John Locke and Adam Smith

Foundations
• The internet has opened up new markets and a method to get updated news events.
• Until voter fraud is eliminated, it is doubtful that people will vote via the internet anytime soon.

• Should Congress be allowed to limit access to the Internet in
Public Libraries?
• Should people be able to access porn or violent sites?
• What if children can see the screen?