What is government?
Government
 Institution through which a society
makes laws and enforces public policy
 Public Policy: All the things governments
decide to do
Politics
 Government and politics are not the same thing!
 Politics: The process of determining who shall be in
leadership roles and how the power of government
shall be exercised
Bad Politics???
General Purposes of
Government
 Maintain order
 Protect life and property
 Provide public goods
 A product or service that is available for all people to
consume, whether they pay for it or not
Preamble
 Introduction to the US Constitution – 1 sentence
 States where power comes from
 Lists the 6 goals of US government
We the People of the United States, in order to
form a more perfect Union, establish Justice,
insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the
common defense, promote the general Welfare,
and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves
and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this
Constitution for the United States of America.
Preamble
“We the People of the United States”
 The power of the US government is in the hands of the
people
“Form a more perfect union”
 Act as one country
“Establish justice”
 The law must be reasonable, fair, and impartial
“Insure domestic tranquility”
 Keep peace within the country; maintain order at home
Preamble
“Provide for the common defense”
 Protect US interests in the world
“Promote the general welfare”
 Provide people with basic services
“Secure the blessings of Liberty to ourselves
and our posterity”
 Guarantee our freedoms today and for future
generations
Preamble in Practice
Pair up with someone sitting next to you and
give examples of how each purpose of the
Preamble fulfilled in everyday life
Be ready to share your examples with the
class.