Introduction to GOVT 2302
Review of key principles from 2301
Welcome
Or Welcome Back
As you know, GOVT 2302 is the
second of two classes designed to
introduce students to the United
States and Texas Constitutions, the
basic language of government and
politics, and the nature of
American Political institutions.
In this first set of slides I want to
recall the purpose of this class, as
well as GOVT 2301, and review key
principles from 2301.
Examples:
Natural Rights
Constitutional Design
Civil Liberties and Rights
Institutions
Elections
Political Parties
Participatory Rights
In brief, over the course of this
semester we will dig deeply into
the nature of the three branches of
government:
Legislative
Executive
Judicial
In order to put these into context,
we will begin by reviewing the
relevant material from GOVT 2301.
When you are finished, you will be
asked to answer a series of
questions regarding these
principles.
They should help this material
make sense.
Let’s review why this class is even
offered, much less required.
Because you are citizens
in a democratic republic.
Democracies are based on the people and
its actions are the culmination of the
preferences of the population.
This is expressed subtly when individuals
choose to follow or not follow the laws,
pay taxes, in protecting the republic when
threatened, or in deciding to participate in
public events like elections.
An educated participatory and
virtuous citizenry has always been
considered to be necessary to the
survival of a democratic republic.
Why?
Because democratic republics are
fragile. History provides many
examples of them losing public
support and falling into anarchy
and then despotism.
Key example: The Lessons of
Ancient Rome
The nation’s founders were
generally classically educated and
were familiar with the history of
Rome.
(Who were the founders? Here’s
the Wikipedia page on who
qualifies as a “founder.”
After almost 500 years as a
Republic (509 BC–27 BC), where it
was ruled by its citizens, Rome
became an empire.
The driving force behind this
change was Julius Caesar.
What is a Republic?
A republic is a type of government
where the citizens choose the
leaders of their country and the
people (or at least a part of its
people) have an impact on its
government. -Wikipedia
In short, a governing system where
the people rule themselves.
But while a republic, Rome was
also chaotic, unstable, and
sometimes ungovernable. Leaders
were often corrupt and unpopular.
What is an Empire?
A major political unit having a territory of great
extent or a number of territories or peoples
under a single sovereign authority; especially :
one having an emperor as chief of state. The
territory of such a political unit. Something
resembling a political empire; especially : an
extensive territory or enterprise under single
domination or control.
During the empire, all civil and
military power rested with the
emperor. The people had no say in
governance, though emperors had
to appease them in order to
minimize the possibility of
rebellion.
In short, a governing system where
the people are ruled by an
emperor and have little ability, if
any, to directly participate in public
affairs.
But these could also be times of
peace and prosperity.
Again, this shift from republic to
empire was driven by
Julius Caesar, an ambitious general
who attempted to turn the republic
into an empire under his control.
He failed because he was assassinated
by Senators who were aware of his
plans, now you know why he was
killed.
Here’s the scene from HBO’s Rome
But his nephew Augustus Caesar
would succeed.
A quick video about him.
Here’s some irony: The chaotic
republic was transformed into a more
peaceful empire. After Augustus there
would be over 200 years of peace in
Rome: The Pax Romana.
This creates a dilemma: Which system
is preferable?
A bit more history from the
movies: The emperor who would
end the Pax Romana was
Commodus – the guy from the
Gladiator. It is argued that the
decline of the Roman Empire
began with his rule.
A few videos on You Tube try to
explain this transition. Here are a
few you might want to watch:
Rome: The Fall of the Republic (1-4)
So the question became: What
factors led to the decline of the
Republic, and could the decline
have been prevented?
In short: Is a Republic – a system of
government – based on the
people, sustainable?
As a practical matter – considering
that the early empire seemed
temporarily to be a successful
system – what balance ought to be
struck between popular rule and a
central state?
Members of the founding
generation wished to avoid this
fate.
Benjamin Franklin put it this way:
Mrs. Powel: "Well Doctor, what have
we got, a republic or a monarchy?"
Benjamin Franklin: "A republic if you
can keep it“
- An exchange alleged to have taken
place at the conclusion of the
Constitutional Convention.
Abraham Lincoln would also ask
the question:
“Four score and seven years ago our
fathers brought forth on this continent a
new nation, conceived in Liberty, and
dedicated to the proposition that all men
are created equal. Now we are engaged in
a great civil war, testing whether that
nation, or any nation, so conceived and so
dedicated, can long endure. …”
Abraham Lincoln
The opening of the Gettysburg Address
Why are they difficult to maintain?
Human Nature
A democratic republic can only be
maintained if the people are willing
to look after its general long term
needs.
"Public virtue cannot exist in a
nation without private, and public
virtue is the only foundation of
republics." -John Adams
Public Virtue
But people tend to be more
focused on short term personal
needs.
Corruption
Ambition
Wealth
Complacency
Factions
All create problems for the
maintenance of a republic.
[Note: A key philosophic dispute
underlying governmental design is
whether human nature can be
improved.]
What’s worse, democratic
republics tend to develop the very
factors that will lead to their
demise.
Conflict over how government
ought to be run and over who
ought to be in charge can lead to
the dismantling of the republic.
But this conflict develops because
people are free to develop,
articulate and act on their own
opinions.
American Government is founded, in a
sense, on a contradiction. While it is
based on the people (popular
sovereignty) historically the people
have demonstrated themselves not to
be a solid foundation for government.
At least the elites thought so.
The country’s founders did not
necessarily expect the republic to
last. Previous republics had not.
One of history’s lessons is that
democracies tend to be very short
lived.
“For my part, I am not much attached to the majesty of
the multitude, and therefore waive all pretensions
(founded on such conduct), to their countenance. I
consider them in general as very ill qualified to judge
for themselves what government will best suit their
peculiar situations; nor is this to be wondered at. The
science of government is not easily understood. Cato
will admit, I presume, that men of good education and
deep reflection, only, are judges of the form of a
government; whether it is constituted on such
principles as will restrain arbitrary power, on the one
hand, and equal to the exclusion of corruption and the
destruction of licentiousness on the other”
- (Caesar #2) Alexander Hamilton
Which raises an important
question:
Is self-government possible?
That is the essence of the
American Experiment, to discover
whether this is in fact possible.
Can the population of
a country govern itself?
Alexander Hamilton would claim
that this was the question America
was to answer for the world.
“It has been frequently remarked that it seems
to have been reserved to the people of this
country, by their conduct and example, to
decide the important question, whether
societies of men are really capable or not of
establishing good government from reflection
and choice, or whether they are forever
destined to depend for their political
constitutions on accident and force.”
- Publius (Alexander Hamilton), Federalist #1
Reflection and choice
Accident and force
American government, Texas
included, is based on popular
consent. The governmental system
is a choice, It only survives to the
degree that people choose to
maintain it.
American government is based on
consent, but is the general
population capable of offering
informed consent?
What are people willing
to consent to?
Is the general population willing to
be persuaded to support one party
or the other, or one candidate or
the other, for superficial short
sighted reasons harmful to the
long term interests of the
community?
Bread and Circuses
Can the support of the people be
bought? At what price?
Government based on popular
consent requires an educated
population capable of providing a
solid basis for governing.
An educated choice
An understanding of the principles
of government is argued necessary
to maintain the republic
But here’s the problem:
Most public opinion surveys
demonstrate that people lack the
knowledge about governmental
issues, and attentiveness to politics
that was expected necessary
by the founders.
Actually, many founders expected
that the mass public would be
incapable of self-government and
purposely limited participation to a
ruling class that would have the
ability to govern effectively.
Those who own America ought to
govern it
- John Jay
But since the early years of the
republic, efforts have been made
to broaden participation. Public
education has been seen as being
central to this effort. An educated
citizenry can more effectively
govern itself.
Civic Education
Thomas Jefferson
Preamble to a Bill for the More
General Diffusion of Knowledge
A link to the entire bill.
Art. 3. Religion, morality, and
knowledge, being necessary to
good government and the
happiness of mankind, schools and
the means of education shall
forever be encouraged.
-- The Northwest Ordinance (1787)
It [the Mexican Government] has failed to
establish any public system of education,
although possessed of almost boundless
resources, (the public domain,) and although it
is an axiom in political science, that unless a
people are educated and enlightened, it is idle
to expect the continuance of civil liberty, or the
capacity for self government.
- one of the grievances in the Texas Declaration
of Independence.
As a result, a government can be
chosen by the population which
can then offer consent to it based
on its evaluations of its
performance.
The alternative is coercion.
As mentioned above, this class
focuses on the nature of the three
basic institutions of government
Legislative
Executive
Judicial
We will define each, explore their
historical evolution, how each is
designed in the U.S. and Texas
Constitutions, how they have
evolved over the years and how
their current design.
An exploration of British history
and the organic development of
British institutions will be central
to this effort.
Our institutions were based on
British institutions. Our history is in
many ways an extension of theirs.
Our institutions were designed to
learn from the lessons of history.
They are not based on theory, they
are based on reality.
This requires that we understand
the importance of basic historical
text.
Charter of Liberties
Magna Carta
Petition of Right
British Bill of Rights
British Common Law
Together these, and select other
documents, establish the British
Constitution. In many places, our
Constitution uses the same
terminology found in the British
Constitution.
To the extent possible, we will try to
establish these relationships this
semester.
Why is this important? If we want
to preserve our constitutional
structure is crucial to know this
history.
It should also give us a renewed
appreciation for the structure
established by the document.
It is the product of experience –
trial and error – dating back
centirues.
Examples
Our bicameral legislature is similar
in form to the bicameral legislature
in Britain. A lower branch is
connected closely to the general
population, while an upper branch
is removed from it.
The development of the legislature
can be traced to Magna Carta,
which was a response to the
abuses of King John. Part of the
function of legislatures since then
has been to check abusive,
potentially abusive executives.
Our singular executive and
administrative structure is similar –
with exceptions -- to the singular
executive which has existed over
British history and the
administrative apparatus which has
evolved to carry out the laws.
Concerns over the potential abuse
of executive power recur
throughout British – and American
– history. These conflicts peaked
during the Stuart monarchy, and
led to our constitutional
understanding of the role of the
executive.
Our judicial system, the concept of
judicial independence, and our
common law, is based on British
experience.
We will follow the following format
for each of the three principle
governing institutions.
First – We will define the powers of
each institution, investigate their
evolution through British history,
discovery what was stated about
each power in the Declaration of
Independence, and how they were
established in the Articles of
Confederation.
Second – We will read how each
institution is established in the United
States and Texas Constitutions. We will
also understand the principle
controversies associated with each
institution and how these were
handled in the Constitutional
Convention and the Federalist Papers.
Third – We will investigate the
principle changes each institution
has weathered over American
history.
Fourth – We will conclude with an
analysis of the contemporary state
of each institution and the issues
and controversies associated with
each institution.
Hopefully this will allow us to
effectively trace the evolution of
the powers of each institution.
Now for a quick review of the
central concepts of 2301.
Again, be prepared to answer
questions about this material.
Some Definitions:
A Couple Definitions of
“Government”
The institution, or institutions, with the
monopoly on the legitimate use of
coercion in society
The institutions and procedures through
which a land and its people are ruled.
Governments do three things
They Pass Laws
They Implement Laws
They Adjudicate Laws
In the American Constitutional
system, these three functions are
vested in three separate
institutions:
Legislative
Executive
Judicial
These are the separated powers.
The concentration of those powers
in the hands of one person or
entity is tyranny.
The purpose of the separated
powers is to prevent tyranny.
The purpose of the checks and
balances is to maintain the
separated powers.
Governments are based on
sovereign power.
What is “sovereignty?”
“supreme power, especially over a body
politic”
“the quality of having supreme,
independent authority over a territory”
“the power to do everything in a state
without accountability”
The only question is where
sovereignty lies.
Autocracy – rule of one
Oligarchy – rule of the few
Democracy – rule of the many
Each has advantages and
disadvantages
Autocratic rule is efficient but
arbitrary.
Oligarchic rule is knowledgeable
but biased.
Democratic rule is legitimate, but
subject to mob rule.
In the American system of
government, sovereignty rests with
the people (“We the People), but
the precise design of the
constitution incorporates aspects
of autocracy, oligarchy and
democracy.
The Executive – Autocratic
The Judiciary – Oligarchic
The Legislature - Democratic
The American Governing System is
best defined as a republic.
Defining “Politics”
What is Politics?
The authoritarian allocation
of values in society.
The struggle over who gets
what, when and how.
Intrigue or maneuvering within a political unit or
group in order to gain control or power
While “government” refers to
those institutions that can rule
with authority, “politics” refers to
the effort to determine what those
institutions will do.
Political institutions are largely
private organizations developed to
influence the activities of
government.
Principle Examples
Political Parties
Interest Groups
The Media
A political party is a group that
competes in elections in order to
hold public office and organizes
governing institutions once in
power.
Political parties are not mentioned
in the Constitution but they have
evolved as effective ways to
organize both the electorate and
governing institutions, especially
the legislature.
In addition to recruiting and
running candidates for elective
office, parties provide voters a
limited opportunity to influence
the course of public policy.
The winner take all voting rules in
most American elections has led to
the development of two major
political parties. Third parties are
uncompetitive beyond one or two
electoral cycles.
The Democratic and Republican
Parties have dominated American
politics since 1856.
Interest Groups are similar. They
organize to influence how
government officials establish
public policy in a particular area.
They do not complete in elections.
They engage in lobbying and other
activities.
All these activities are
constitutionally protected under
the right to peacefully assemble
and petition government for a
redress of grievances.
The U.S. has had a vibrant press
since the colonial era. The press
was central not only to the
revolution, but to the expansion of
political participation.
A free press is necessary for the
electorate to get the information
necessary to form opinions about
governmental activities.
The press is also constitutionally
protected. Congress cannot pass
laws abridging the freedom of the
press.
Ideology
A key source of political conflict:
differences in attitudes about
values and interests
Ideology: A set of positions on
issues based on some underlying
value or interest.
Two dominant ideologies
in the U.S.
Conservatism
Liberalism
While there is tension within each,
they can be defined somewhat
simply.
Conservatism tends to prioritize
freedom over equality and also
seeks to uphold traditional
relationships in society.
Liberalism tends to prioritize
equality over freedom and seeks to
expand participation and social
benefits to the lower classes.
We covered the development and
application of the concept of
natural rights.
Over the course of British history,
the doctrine of the Divine Right of
the Monarchy was replaced with
the doctrine of the Natural Rights
of the Individual.
The Divine Right of King held that
people are born into a divine social
order that must be maintained
Natural Right Theory argued that each
individual has natural, or unalienable
rights and it is the purpose of
government to secure them.
The American governing system
begins with the idea that rights are
innate in individuals, not granted
by a government or another
individual, like a king for example.
This is Jefferson’s argument in the
Declaration of Independence
“We hold these truths to be self-evident:
That all men are created equal; that they are endowed
by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that
among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments
are instituted among men, deriving their just powers
from the consent of the governed; that whenever any
form of government becomes destructive of these
ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish
it, and to institute new government, laying its
foundation on such principles, and organizing its
powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely
to effect their safety and happiness.”
The argument is presented as a
mathematical proof.
A central point of the argument is
that it is rational to consent to a
properly designed governing
system.
Be able to answer questions about
consent and the unalienable rights.
The Declaration of Independence is
does not establish a government,
so it is not a constitution.
The powers of government are
defined in written Constitutions on
the national and state levels. These
establish governmental institutions
and define the relationship
between them and between
government and the individual.
The men who adopted the
Declaration of Independence also
wrote the Articles of
Confederation.
All power rested with the states.
The commercial interests did not
find this arrangement acceptable
and called for a constitutional
convention to correct the
document’s alleged deficiencies.
Not everyone was in favor of the
convention.
Patrick Henry thought the
federalists meant to undermine
the authority of the states. He was
right.
Simply put, state control did not
allow for coordination between the
states. Interstate transactions were
difficult if not impossible. Business
suffered. The Federalists reflected
the interests of business.
The principle ringleaders:
Alexander Hamilton
James Madison
Both Hamilton and Madison
presented proposals to the
Constitutional Convention that
would have further expanded
national power.
But they were unsuccessful.
The U.S. Constitution was the
product of several compromises.
3/5ths Compromise
Great Compromise
Bill of Rights
The Constitution contains several
principles. We dug into four
dominant ones:
Republicanism
Separated Powers
Federalism
Individual Liberty
Principle #1:
Republicanism
(indirect democracy)
The United States is more
accurately described as being a
republic (a representative
democracy), not a democracy – or
at least a pure democracy.
The founders – at least those that
wrote the constitution – believed
that direct (or pure) democracies
were unstable and prone to
tyranny of the majority.
The founders believed that
indirect, or representative,
democracy is preferable to direct
democracy since it would be less
subject to the passionate, unsteady
preferences of the mob. Elites
were granted a special status in
early American history.
It was assumed that people in general
were more prone to conflict than
cooperation and that given the chance, the
majority would persecute the minority.
Pure democracy provided the majority that
opportunity.
This is the argument in Federalist #10
But as the country grew,
democracy grew, expansion
expanded, and more direct control
of governing institutions were
instituted. Texas government is
more “democratic” than the United
States government.
The U.S. has become more
democratic over its history
primarily due to the expansion of
suffrage.
Basic Democratic Principles
Majority Rules
Minority Rights
Universal Adult Suffrage
An ongoing problem with
democracy is the tension between
majority rules and minority rights
The majority can tyrannize the
minority.
Principle #1:
Separated Powers
backed up with the Checks and Balances
Here we discussed the purpose of
the separated powers, how powers
are separated and maintained, and
the logic behind the system of
checks and balances.
Concentrated legislative, executive,
and judicial powers allow for the
development of a tyrannical
system.
They must be separated in order to
resist tyranny.
The Constitution vests governing
powers in three institutions that
are made as independent as
possible.
This explains why each is elected
uniquely, and has a separate term
of office.
House – election by the people
Senate – originally elected by state
legislatures
President – Electoral College
Courts – Nomination and
Confirmation
But it was assumed that each
institution would be controlled by
people of great ambition, and that
continued ambition would lead
members of one institution to seek
to control the others.
The powers granted in the
Constitution to those institutions
are largely meant to allow one
institution to resist the threats
posed by the other two.
Examples:
Impeachment
Veto
Judicial Review
Principle #3
Federalism
The federal system: The U.S.
Constitution splits sovereignty
between the national and state
governments. Conflict continues
between these two levels of
government.
The Constitution delegates certain
powers to the national government
and reserves the rest to the states.
Some national powers are implied
by loose readings of the commerce
and necessary and proper clauses.
The nature of these powers has
been an ongoing source of conflict
between advocates of national and
state power respectively.
Key Terms:
Delegated (Enumerated) Powers
Reserved Powers
Implied Powers
While the Constitution only
mentions the national and state
governments, thousands of local
governments exist throughout the
country.
They exist by the authority of the
state constitutions.
Principle #4
Individual Liberty
or
Civil Liberties
Here we discussed the
justifications for individual liberty –
civil liberties -- and the way that
the Bill of Rights, and other
features of the Constitution secure
them them.
The Bill of Rights places limits on
the powers of the government.
th
14
Until the
Amendment, it
applied only to the national
government.
Two types:
Substantive: What government can
pass laws about
Procedural: How someone can be
searched, tried and punished.
Certain specific substantive and
procedural limitations are placed
on the powers of government.
These establish the idea that
people are free in those areas.
These are primarily found in the
Bill of Rights.
Substantive Liberties are
established by limiting the ability
of Congress to pass laws on certain
subjects, for example free exercise
or religious belief, press, and
speech.
Procedural liberties are established
by removing the ability of
government to arbitrarily search,
try and imprison individuals.
Civil liberties are not absolute.
They can be limited based upon
whether the courts determine that
a particular use of right has
violated the greater interest of
society.
Shouting fire in a crowded theater.
The breadth of civil liberties is an
ongoing source of controversy in
the United States.
Does, for example, a right to
privacy exist?
An additional source of controversy
th
is the consequence of the 14
Amendment. By nationalizing
citizenship the citizens of the state
could use the national courts to
seek redress against the state
government.
This gave the national government
additional power against the
states.
Civil Rights and the Equal
Protection Clause
The concept of civil rights and the
impact of the 14th Amendment,
most notably the equal protection
clause, on the constitutional order.
As a consequence of the 14th
Amendment, No state shall deny to
persons within their jurisdiction
the equal protection of the law.
The 14th Amendment made the
U.S. Bill of Rights applicable to the
states.
States had to treat people the
same before the law.
But what exactly does this mean?
It can be controversial depending
on what criteria is being used to
distinguish between people.
Race
Gender
Age
The Supreme Court has had to
weigh in over time to determine
what types of criteria can be used
to treat people differently and
what types are not.
Distinctions based on race and
citizenship are “suspect
classifications” meaning that they
must survive the most rigid
analysis by the courts.
The conflict continues.
Elections
We covered the purpose of
elections in a democracy, the
nature of the electoral system on
all three levels of government, with
a special emphasis on the
consequences of the winner take
all system.
Most, but not all, offices are
staffed with periodic elections.
Many judicial and bureaucratic
positions are appointed in order to
ensure professionalism in the
occupant, but this minimizes the
democratic nature of American
government.
While suffrage was limited in the
early years of the republic, over
the course of American history it
has expanded to include most
groups in society.
Turnout varies among different
groups in society. Wealth, age and
education are good predictors of
voter turnout.
A democratic society is dependent
upon an informed electorate.
Political Parties, which were
mentioned above, are the key
players in an electoral system
Participatory Rights
The Participatory Freedoms
The First Amendment limits the
ability of Congress to pass laws
restricting the ability of people to
participate politically. This has led
to the development of political
organizations.
The Freedoms Are:
Speech
Press
Assembly
Petition
These are considered to be
fundamental rights.
Freedom of Speech allows people
to develop and communicate their
own opinions. As a result, public
opinion has evolved as a distinct
force in society.
It is a hard earned right. At one
point government could curtail
both speech and the press with
claims that such acts were
seditious.
Sedition: Conduct or language
inciting rebellion against the
authority of a state.
Much of what people engage in
today politically would have been
considered to be sedition in
previous centuries.
While there is more to cover, this is
a reasonable review and should
place the governing institutions in
proper context.
In the next set of slides we will
outline the basic features of the
legislative branch and discuss its
historical evolution.