CH. 2: CONSTITUTIONAL UNDERPINNINGS

What shaped the political beliefs (who should govern , to what ends) of the

founding fathers (as well as the colonists)?

QUESTIONS WE WILL ANSWER IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS

- 18th century-Reason could be used to

combat ignorance, superstition, and tyranny

and to build a better world-goal of political authority:

protect “natural rights”- founding fathers were deeply influenced by the enlightenment thinkers, especially from England,

to e lesser extent France.

WHAT SHAPED THE POLITICAL BELIEFS OF THE FOUNDING FATHERS? LET THERE BE… THE

ENLIGHTENMENT!

Hobbes Locke Montesquieu

Rousseau

Man in a state of natureWho should govern?

To what ends? (what is the goal of the social contract /government?)Contributions to the Declaration

Contributions to the Constitution

WHAT SHAPED THE POLITICAL BELIEFS OF THE FOUNDING FATHERS?

Hobbes Locke Montesquieu

Rousseau

Man in a state of nature

Free to do anything to survive so life isSolitary, poor, nasty, brutishContinued fear of violent deathMan is born equal

Some good / some bad , but everyone still has natural rights

Fearful, avoid violence and war, conflict doesn’t begin until man creates society

Naturally good, equal, peaceful, conflict doesn’t occur until man creates society and claim ownership of property

Who should govern?

Autocratic Monarch ideally/ or oligarchy

Constitutional Monarch

Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches that can check each others power

Popular Sovereignty / Direct democracy / General Will = majority rule

To what ends? (what is the goal of the social contract /government?)

Make and enforce laws to ensure a peaceful society

To protect natural rights of life, liberty, and property – if gov’t not doing this it can be abolished

Living communally creates conflict, need government to maintain law and order, political liberty and property

To make laws that represent the general will for the good of the public

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLSOzcEQjiE

This is whyWhy we fight

Why we lie awakeAnd this is why

This is why we fight

When we dieWe will die

With our arms unbound

And this is whyThis is why

Why we fightCome hell

WHY DECLARE INDEPENDENCE?

Why is it being written? The British Constitution was no longer seen as the basis of legitimate

authority, the British were continually violating the political liberties of the colonists

(misconception alert! The colonists didn’t fight because of economic complaints, that was a symptom,

not the illness)

Who is writing it? Thomas Jefferson

Goal of independence?: to secure “natural rights” ordained by “higher law”.

Why a written document? How specifically did the Framers justify the DOI? Let’s examine the DOI

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

Colonists, as British Citizens, wanted protections of the Magna Carta, and the Bill of Rights of 1689. Additionally, the Declaration relied on precedent:

(salutary neglect) most British colonies had enjoyed self-rule and had been governed through their own legislative bodies since their founding.

By 1774, most of the colonists that had once protested "no taxation without representation" found themselves without any representation

whatsoever…They decided to fight for there rights (no, not to party …think Decemberists, not

Beasties)

EXTREMELY BRIEF BACKGROUND TO THE DOI

What was the purpose of the Declaration? 

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the

powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the

separation.

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

What was the purpose of the Declaration? 

a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should (need help of foreign nations) declare the causes which impel them to

the separation (justify the revolution)

DOI

What are the political beliefs (who should govern?/ to what ends?) of the founders? (sound

familiar??) 

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

DOI

Who should govern?

Governments …instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed

Why? All men are created equal

To what ends?

To secure these rights : unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness

Happiness?!? For Jefferson: happiness was the ultimate value of your life , measuring how well you have lived up to your full potential as a human being

DOI

Why we fight?

DOI

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world…

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offencesFor taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering

fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known

rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

DOI

Why we fight?Our political liberties are being violated

Examples: representative government taken away

(1,8,11,12)No Independent judiciary, fair trial (2, 6,9,

10) Martial law imposed ( 3,4,5)

Protection of natural rights: life, liberty, property (7,13,14)

DOI

Why we fight?• Navigation Acts 1696: basically all trade decisions were made by

Brits, not enforced until after F/I War • The Proclamation of 1763, Parliament stripped colonists of the right

to settle in the land between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River.

• Sugar Act (1764), the Stamp Tax (1765), the Townshend Acts (1767) and the Tea Act (1773) to repay war debts

• Intolerable Acts: port of Boston closed to all trade, military governor was also appointed and the people of Massachusetts no

longer had the right to elect their representatives, select jurors, or hold town meetings. British soldiers accused of crimes would be

tried in England, not in the colony, and a new Quartering Act forced colonists in Massachusetts to feed and house British soldiers.

• Lexington and Concord, removal of troops from frontier borders, confiscated ships and sailors

DOI

What does all this “declaration” business mean?That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be

Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political

connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War,

conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent

States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine

Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

DOI

What does all this “declaration” business mean?

1. We are free 2. We have the inherent rights of any

nation3. We will fight and die to protect our

liberty

DOI

Hobbes Locke Montesquieu

Rousseau

Contributions to the Declaration

There is a social contract : a defining feature of that contract is that the gov’t is created to protect make and enforce laws and maintain peaceWhat complaints indicate this isn’t taking place?

inherently men are equal (biology, baby)

All men created equal

Government must protect natural rights…life, liberty, property (purist of happiness) If a government isn’t protecting rights it should be abolished. This is the FIRST revolution fought to protect rights!!!!!HUGE

Political liberties must be protected!!!!! All 27 complaints pertain to this.

Government needs to have separation of powers, not tyrannical King

Examples of specific complaints?

“Governments are instituted… deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”

Examples of specific complaints?

• The real revolution, according to Adams was the, “ radical change in the principals, opinions,

sentiments, and affections of the people.” New vision of government:

• Power is derived from the people• Purpose of government is to protect your

natural rightsNow a new central government had to be created to run this new nation, the question became how much power should the new government have.

THE REAL REVOLUTION

Questions to ponder, we will discuss after the quiz

Should the US government take action to block clips and /or links of the film

Innocence of Muslims from appearing on You tube, twitter…?

Should New York City be able to ban the sale of sugary drinks over 16oz?

HOW MUCH GOVERNMENT?

1776-1787: The Articles of Confederation was our first official system of government

It set up a Confederal system of government: sovereign states delegate power to a central

government for specific purposes (defense, trade, manage conflicts)

Other systems of government:Unitary: all power is invested in the central

governmentFederal: power is shared between a central, state,

and local governments

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION

Questions the Continental Congress had to address:• What type of government? How much power should the

central government have? How much power should the states have?

• Fears: will one state have too much power? How can we make sure a central government doesn’t become

tyrannical?Conservatives: strong central government, without it there

will be anarchyRadicals: weak central government, don’t want to replace

tyranny with tyranny, states are more likely to protect liberties because they are more directly linked to the

people

WE’VE GOT TO CREATE A NEW GOVERNMENT

What problems do you see in this document?Why do you think we add that bit about Canada?

BIG PROBLEMS: INFLEXIBLE AND INEFFECTUAL

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION

Good: Northwest ordinance passed under this government (formula for new territories to join the nation) , war is won

Bad: the structure of the government makes it very difficult for the states to effectively work well together

1 branchEach state gets 1 vote9 votes to pass a law

13 votes to amend articlesNo ability to tax

No national currencyCan’t regulate trade between states

The Ugly: Shays rebellion illustrated the ineffectual nature of the central government

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY

Hobbes Locke Montesquieu

Rousseau

Man in a state of nature

Solitary, poor, nasty, brutishContinued fear of violent death

Chaotic, not everyone is bad…

Fearful, avoid violence and war…need food

Naturally good, free, equal, peaceful…

Who should govern?

Autocratic Monarch

Constitutional Monarch

3 branches separated, checks and balances

Popular Sovereignty / Direct democracy

To what ends? (what is the goal of the social contract /government?)

Make and enforce laws to ensure a peaceful society; making life , liberty, and property possible

To protect natural rights of life, liberty, and property

Maintain law and order, political liberty and property

To make laws that represent the general will for the good of the public

Contributions to the Declaration

“ All men are created equal”

If a government isn’t protecting rights it should be abolished

Political liberties need to be protected

DOI states: “Governments are instituted… deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”

Contributions to the Constitution

Need to control the impulses of the people

fear of the “common man” having too much influence on gov’t

Separation of powers / checks and balances

“We the people” / Popular SovereigntyProtect against majority tyranny( actually refuting ideas Rousseau wrote about