Magruder’s American Government...... Who can participate in the governing process. (2) The geographic distribution of the governmental power within the state. (3) The relationship

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© 2001 by Prentice Hall, Inc.

Magruder’sAmerican Government

C H A P T E R 1

Principles of Government

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 1

S E C T I O N 1

Government and the State

• How is government defined?

• What are the basic powers that every government holds?

• What are the four defining characteristics of the state?

• How have we attempted to explain the origin of the state?

• What is the purpose of government in the United States and other countries?

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Section:

What Is Government?

Chapter 1 Section 12 3

• Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies

• Every government has and exercises three basic kinds of power

1) Legislative power: the power to make law and to frame public policies

2) Executive power: the power to execute, enforce, and administer law

3) Judicial power: the power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within the society.

• The powers of government are outlined in a country’s constitution.

• Politics is a process, while government is an institution.

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 12 3

The State

Population A state must have people, the number of which does not directly relate to its existence.

Territory A state must be comprised of land—territory with known and recognized boundaries.

Sovereignty Every state is sovereign. It has supreme and absolute power within its own territory and decides its own foreign and domestic policies. A dictatorship can exist in a sovereign state.

Government Every state has a government — that is, it is politically organized.

The state can be defined as having these four

characteristics:

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Section:

Origins of the State

The Force Theory

• The force theory states that one person or a small group took control of an area and forced all within it to submit to that person’s or group’s rule. Typically how dictator’s gain power

The Evolutionary Theory

• The evolutionary theory argues that the state evolved naturally out of the early family.

The Divine Right Theory

• The theory of divine right holds that God created the state and that God gives those of royal birth a “divine right” to rule.

The Social Contract Theory

• The social contract theory argues that the state arose out of a voluntary act of free people. The state exists only to serve the will of the people.

Chapter 1, Section 12 3

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Section:

The Purpose of Government

The main purposes of government are described in the

Preamble of the Constitution of the United States:

“We the People of the United States, in Order (1)to form a

more perfect Union, (2)establish Justice (the law, in both

its content and its administration, must be reasonable, fair,

and impartial), insure (3)domestic Tranquility (peace),

(4)provide for the common defense (defend the nation

from foreign nations), promote the (5)general Welfare (act

as a servant to its citizens---public schools, protecting the

water and food we consume etc.), and (6)secure the

Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do

ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States

of America.” Chapter 1, Section 12 3

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Section:

Patriotism

• It is up to each generation to preserve and

protect the guarantees granted in the

Constitution.

• Patriotism fosters that:

• The love of one’s country; the passion that

drives one to serve one’s country

• It’s the defining characteristic of a good

citizen

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Section:

S E C T I O N 2

Forms of Government

• How can we classify governments?

• How are systems of government defined in

terms of who can participate?

• How is power distributed within a state?

• How are governments defined by the

relationship between the legislative and

executive branches?

Chapter 1, Section 231

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 231

Classifying Governments

Governments can be classified by three

different standards:

(1) Who can participate in the governing process.

(2) The geographic distribution of the governmental

power within the state.

(3) The relationship between the legislative

(lawmaking) and the executive (law-executing)

branches of the government.

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Section:

Classification by Who Can Participate

Chapter 1, Section 231

Democracy

• In a democracy, supreme political

authority (sovereignty) rests with the

people.

• A direct democracy exists where the

will of the people is translated into

law directly by the people

themselves. (not possible today

because of large populations)

• In an indirect democracy, a small

group of persons, chosen by the

people to act as their representatives,

expresses the popular will. (our

government today)

Dictatorship

• A dictatorship exists where

those who rule cannot be held

responsible to the will of the

people. Have complete

authority over the people

• An autocracy is a government

in which a single person

holds unlimited political power.

• An oligarchy is a government

in which the power to rule is

held by a small, usually self-

appointed elite.

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Section:

Classification by Geographic Distribution of Power

Unitary Government

• A unitary government has all powers held by a single, central agency.

Chapter 1, Section 231

Confederate Government

• A confederation is an alliance of independent states. Only have powers to handle matters that the member states have assigned to it. Possess little authority to act on their own.

Federal Government

• A federal government is one in which the powers of government are divided between a central government and several local governments.

• An authority superior to both the central and local governments makes this division of power on a geographic basis. (In the U.S. the Natl. Govt. has certain powers and the 50 states have others----they are defined in the Constitution.

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Section:

Presidential Government (relationship b/t Legislative and Executive branches)

• Features a separation of powers between the executive and

legislative branches. The two branches are independent of one

another and coequal

• The chief executive (president) is chosen independently of the

legislature (by the citizens via vote) and holds office for a fixed

term.

• The executive and legislative branches each can check the

actions of the other branch.

• The President has a number of significant powers not subject to

the direct control of the legislative branch.

• The U.S. is the world’s leading example of presidential

government.

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Section:

Parliamentary Government (relationship b/t Legislative and Executive branches)

• The executive is made up of the prime minister and that official’s cabinet.

• The prime minister and cabinet themselves are members of the legislative

branch (Parliament).

• The prime minister is the leader of the majority party in Parliament and

is chosen by that body. Therefore, he/she is subject to the legislature's

control

• With parliament’s approval, the prime minister selects the members of the

cabinet from among the members of parliament.

• The prime minister and cabinet remain in office only as long as their policies

and administration have the support of a majority in parliament.

• If parliament defeats the prime minister and cabinet on an important matter,

the government may receive a “vote of no confidence” and the prime

minister and the cabinet then must resign.

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Section:

FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

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Section:

Classification by the Relationship Between Legislative and Executive Branches

Chapter 1, Section 231

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 3

S E C T I O N 4

Basic Concepts of Democracy

• What are the foundations of democracy?

• What are the connections between

democracy and the free enterprise system?

• How has the Internet affected democracy?

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 321

The American concept of democracy rests on these basic notions:

(1) A recognition of the fundamental worth and dignity of every person;

(2) A respect for the equality of all persons; (does not claim that all

people are born with the same mental and physical abilities) Equality

of opportunity and equality before the law are guaranteed.

(3) A faith in majority rule and an insistence upon minority rights; the

will of the many is elevated above the interests of a few. Democracy

doesn’t say that the majority will always be right.

(4) An acceptance of the necessity of compromise; it is vital in the

decision-making process of democracy. Compromise helps serve

the varied needs of citizens when forming public policies.

(5) An insistence upon the widest possible degree of individual freedom

(still have to do things we don’t want to….like pay taxes….b/c the

govt. needs to be able to provide services for its citizens.)

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Section:

Being A Good Citizen

• Duties of being a good citizen all revolve around your

commitment to obey the law.

• Do you believe in the core beliefs on which democracy is based

in this country?

• Personal responsibilities: take care of yourself (responsible

for own behavior, taking care of yourself and family, and being

considerate of others)

• Civic responsibilities: Your role as a citizen of a larger

community (obeying the law, paying taxes, being informed and

voting (easiest way to be involved in politics), respecting the

rights of others, being a juror, and serving in the military).

• Part of every citizen’s responsibility is to serve the public good.

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Section:Chapter 1, Section 321

Democracy and the Free Enterprise System

• The free enterprise system (capitalism) is an

economic system characterized by private or corporate

ownership of capital goods; investments that are

determined by private decision rather than by state

control; and determined in a free market.

• Decisions in a free enterprise system are determined

by the law of supply and demand.

• An economy in which private enterprise exists in

combination with a considerable amount of

government regulation and promotion is called a

mixed economy.

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Section:

Democracy and the Internet

Chapter 1, Section 321

• However, all data on the World Wide Web is not

necessarily true, and the long-term effects of the

Internet on democracy has yet to be determined.

• Democracy demands that the people be widely

informed about their government.

• Theoretically, the Internet makes knowledgeable

participation in democratic process easier than ever

before.

• The ability to get information quickly does not

guarantee its reliability.