...Federalism 1. Protecting Liberty 2. Moderating the Power of Government 3. Strengthening the Union B. The Powers of the Nation 1. Enumerated Powers 2. Implied Powers C. The Powers of the States II. Federalism in Historical Perspective A. An Indestructible Union (1789–1865) 1. The Nationalist View: McCulloch v. Maryland 2. The States’ Rights View: The Dred Scott Decision B. Dual Federalism and Laissez-Faire Capitalism (1865–1937) 1. The Fourteenth Amendment and State Discretion 2. Judicial Protection of Business 3. National Authority Prevails C. Toward National Citizenship III. Federalism Today A. Interdependency and Intergovernmental Relations B. Government Revenues and Intergovernmental Relations 1. Fiscal Federalism 2. Categorical and Block Grants C. Devolution 1. The Republican Revolution 2. Devolution, Judicial Style IV. The Public’s Influence: Setting the Boundaries of Federal-State Power Chapter Summary The foremost characteristic of the American political system is its division...
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...Reading Comprehension 3 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. oligarchy citizen democracy constitution state two basic levels; certain decisions; only the federal government; each of the states Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a central government and several regional, or state, governments. 1. Population; the people who live within the boundaries of the state 2. Territory; land with known and recognized boundaries 3. Sovereignty; the supreme and absolute power within a state’s territory to decide its own foreign and domestic policies 4. Government; the institution through which society makes and enforces public policies 5. Force theory; the state was born of force, when one person or a small group gained control over people in an area and forced them to submit to that person’s or group’s rule. 6. Evolutionary theory; the state evolved from early families that united to form clans. Later, clans united to form tribes. As tribes settled into agricultural groups over time, they formed states. 7. Divine right theory; God created the state and gave a chosen few the right to rule. 8. Social contract theory; people voluntarily agreed to create a state and give to the government just enough power to promote the safety and well-being of all. Government exists to serve the will of the people, and the people are the sole source of political power. Chapter Outline 2 I. Section 1: Government and the State A. Definition of...
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...the first ten amendments of the US constitution that prohibit the powers of the federal government. Written by James Madison, the Bill of Rights seeks to offer constitutional protection for the personal freedom and liberty of the US citizens. In addition to these personal freedoms, the Bill of Rights limits governmental powers in controlling judicial proceedings, with a reserve of specific powers to the public and individual states. Therefore, the Bill of Rights presents the US citizens with freedoms that were demystified in the principal Constitution, and transfers to the states or the citizens, any power that the main constitution does not grant to the federal government (Lewis 38). In the Bill of Rights, provisions bestowed upon states or individuals limit the power of the federal government (Levi 215). To start with, most of the amendments address the provisions about the people, and this paper looks at just a few of them. The first amendment of the Bill of Rights warrants freedoms of individuals in terms of religion, assembly, the right to expression, and petition. It limits the Congress from taking sides on religion, or controlling an individual’s religious beliefs. The amendment requires the Congress to allow people to speak freely, to promote a free press, and to permit peaceful assemblies of the citizens. The second amendment allows people to own firearms for their self-defense. The fourth amendment prohibits the powers of the federal government to forcibly search and...
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...cities and or states; Tanya also drives through the state of Confusion when doing business. Currently, in the state where Tanya drives through to conduct her business, the state of Confusion approved a law mandating that all trucks a like roaming into Confusion must obtain a B-type truck hitch that goes onto each truck that passes through the state of Confusion. Owners of such trucks selecting that he or she will not like the B-type hitch part installed will not have permission allowing truck driver to and from the freeways that are connected to the state of Confusion. As an alternative to going across to the state of Confusion, all operators of trucks will have to go a different route than the truck operators will normally do in Confusion, there will be a fee to all truck drivers and their businesses, which will cost them money, and also time. What court will have Jurisdiction over Tanya’s suit? Why? Federal court will become jurisdiction in reference to Tanya Truckers legal lawsuit case. The Trade Article grants the government the authority to regulate transportation trade. A clause of the U.S. Constitution that grants Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with Indian tribes. This validates federal law usage in non-common interstate matters. Is the Confusion statute constitutional? Discuss your legal reasoning. Is the Confusion statute constitutional? In my opinion it does not seem to be. Is Confusion trying...
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...(before the tube has been placed), she became combative, disoriented, and refused to have the feeding tube placed. Her mother and father insisted that the feeding tube be inserted despite her refusal to allow it. Her ex-husband wishes to uphold June’s decision. The hospital administrators seek risk management for legal counsel. Utilize your Showalter textbook and at least two other sources to answer the following questions: 1. Explain how the Patient Bill of Rights applies to this situation. The U.S constitution is called the supreme law of the land because it sets standards against which all other laws are judged. The constitution is a grant of power from the states to the federal government. The constitution is a grant of power from the states to the federal government. This grant of power to the federal government is both express and implied. The U.S congress levy and collect taxes, borrow and coin money, declare war, raise and support armies. Congress may also enact laws that are necessary and proper for exercising these expressive powers. The first ten were ratified in 1791 which are known now as the bill or rights some rights include the following: the right to exercise freedom of speech, practice religion, be secure from unreasonable searches and seizures, bear arms in an organized militia, demand a jury trial, to be protected against self-incrimination and be accordance substantive and procedural due process of law. The bill...
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...Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution, thoroughly discuss the requirements, duties and responsibilities, and policies and procedures, and enumerated powers of the legislative branch. The legislative branch of the federal government consists of the Congress, which is divided into two chambers -- the Senate and the House of Representatives. The legislative branch was granted several powers by the constitution. Among those are powers to levy and collect taxes, power ti coin money and regulate its value, power to provide for punishment for counterfeiting, power to establish post offices and roads. There are only a few qualifications that one must meet to run for congress. They are: must be at least 25 years old and must have been a US citizen for at least 7 years. There is no limit on the number of terms one can serve in the house of representatives and by contract the senate members can only serve six terms. It is said that roughly 1/3 of the senate stand for reelection every two years. The duties and responsibilities do differ among the two divisions of congress. The senate has to give its approval if many of the appointment, by the president. This approval includes but is not limited to the appointment of cabinet officers, federal judges, department secretaries and US military and naval officers. Congress powers are limited to the enumerated powers on the specific right, given to it by the Constitution of the United States. Congress also has the power to impeach the president...
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...Federal Government Exam 1 Review: The first exam will consist of questions generated from the following review sheet. Make sure you understand each of these topics before proceeding to the test. The exam will be timed so you will not have the ability to peruse your notes or retake the exam. The exam itself will consist of 30 multiple choice questions and you will have 35 minutes to complete the exam. Federalism: The Basic elements of a Federal system of government (i.e. how is it structured/how power is shared) • Layers of gov • Equal power • Distinct powers Powers of the federal government: delegated powers, implied powers (necessary and proper clause), and concurrent powers. • Delegated Powers: (expressed/enumerated powers) powers given to the federal government directly by the constitution. Some most important delegated powers are: the authority to tax, regulated interstate commerce, authority to declare war, and grants the president role of commander and chief of the military • Implied Powers: Powers not expressed in the constitution, but that can be inferred. “Necessary and proper clause” • Concurrent powers: powers shared by both levels of government. Ex: Taxes, roads, elections, commerce, establishing courts and a judicial system • Reserved powers: powers not assigned by the constitution to the national government but left to the states or the people. Guaranteed by the 10th amendment. Include “police power”-health and public...
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...A woman in one state is suing a woman in another state for $25,000. Which one of the following statements is accurate regarding the jurisdiction of the court in which the case was filed? A. The court can exercise personal jurisdiction over the nonresident. B. The court has exclusive jurisdiction over the nonresident. C. Since the women live in different states, the Supreme Court has jurisdiction. D. The courts in both states share concurrent jurisdiction in this case. C is this correct? So. Pacific Co. v Arizona (1945) demonstrates that state laws might violate the Commerce Clause even when in-state and out-of-state commerce are treated equally. The case involved a challenge to Arizona's law prohibiting trains from crossing the state that contained more than 70 freight cars. Southern Pacific complained that the law required them to choose between disassembling at the Arizona border larger trains, making two runs across the state, and then reassembling the trains or avoiding Arizona altogether. Arizona argued the law was a safety measure designed to minimize the risk of "slack action" accidents to which longer trains are susceptible. The Court applied a test that balanced the state's safety interest against what it saw as the very substantial burden the law imposed on interstate commerce. The law was struck down. The same test was used in 1959 to strike down an Illinois law requiring trucks to have contoured rear fender mudguards rather than the straight mud...
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...------------------------------------------------- Logoff * ------------------------------------------------- Web 2.0 Tools | | | Exam: 04.20 Midterm Exam52Score: 52 of 100 pointsInstructions: You are about to enter a TIMED EXAM! You have 50 minutes to complete this exam. One point will be deducted for each minute you go over the allotted time. Once you enter the exam, you cannot stop the clock.Answer Key------------------------------------------------- Top of FormQuestion 1 (Worth 2 points)Which of the following statements about states� ratification of the Constitution is best supported by the information in the graph?------------------------------------------------- New Jersey had the most delegates reject the Constitution.------------------------------------------------- Pennsylvania delegates tend to reject more often than Delaware delegates.------------------------------------------------- In 1787, the maximum number of delegates to reject the Constitution was...
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...following the Civil War carried consequences for the nation’s future. Reconstruction helped set the pattern for future race relations and defined the federal government’s role in promoting equality. This section describes President Lincoln’s and Johnson’s plan to readmit the confederate states to the Union as well as the more stringent Congressional plan; it also describes the power struggle between President Andrew Johnson and congress, including the vote over the president’s impeachment. This section also identifies the groups that ruled the southern state governments from 1866-1877 and explains why Reconstruction ended in 1877. (2) Immediately following the war, all-white Southern legislatures passed black code which denied blacks the right purchase or rent land. These efforts to force former slaves to work on plantations led Congressional Republicans to seize control of Reconstruction from President Andrew Johnson, deny representatives from the former Confederate states their Congressional seats, and pass the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and draft the 14th Amendment, extending citizenship rights to African Americans and guaranteeing equal protection of the laws. In 1870, the 15th Amendment gave voting rights to black men. The freedmen, in alliance with carpetbaggers and southern white Republicans known as scalawags, temporarily grained power in every former Confederate state except Virginia. The Reconstruction governments drew up...
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...what to expect. I am not all that big on politics but I do know how I feel about what our government is trying to do and to be honest I am not a fan. I feel if we would just stop using as of this political party nonsensical thinking we would get so much more. Well in the book “The Liberty Amendments” written by Mark Levin he states how he feels about what is going on and it seems like him and I have a lot of the same views. Throughout this report I will list some examples of what I am talking about and compare them to how I feel about them. In the early parts of the book he mentions of manipulative Congress can be with all of the bills, laws, and benefits the try to pass “under the radar” I agree with him on most of that, they do try and pass a lot of bills through Congress but I don’t think they are under the radar. Everyone has access to pretty much anything the government tries to pass the problem is they do not even try to put them in terms we can understand. They put it in all technical terms that I’m not even sure they know what it means. I feel as if the Congress should have to try and put anything they try to pass in laments terms. In the upcoming pages of this paper I will explain to you some of the amendments of the constitution known as the Liberty Amendments that will hopefully help our country in its time of need during what is known as a convention process. I will let you know if I agree or disagree with what Mark states and tell you why we both feel the way we...
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...Final Exam Review POLI 2051 Dr. Kenny Ch 11: Congress • Approval of Congress relative to the president. o Congress tends to be less popular than the president. • Basic info. on Congress o Why is it bicameral (why are there two chambers?) 1. Practical Reasons ▪ Came from the Great Compromise 2. Philosophical Reasons ▪ To keep power spread out and dispersed • House of Representatives o Representation based on population o 435 Total o 2 year terms o Seats are reapportioned every ten years because we get the census back every ten years. o Entire membership elected in November of even number years. • Senate o 2 Per state o 100 total o 6 year terms that are staggered ▪ Staggered means that only 1/3 of the seats are up for election in each two year election cycle. This is so that it does not change radically in one election. o This means one third elected in November of even numbered years. • Congressional organization: o Leadership – the political parties work through the leadership structure of congress because the leaders of the majority political party are, at the same time, the leaders of the House and the Senate. ▪ Leaders (know the top posts) • Leadership in the House o...
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...The Texas Constitution 1 Why the Texas Constitution Matters • The Texas Constitution is the legal framework within which the government works • Rights guaranteed in the Texas Constitution go beyond those of the U.S. Constitution • The length and detail of the Texas Constitution make the amendment process central to the political process 2 The Role of a State Constitution • State constitutions perform a number of important functions – Establish political institutions and explain the source of their power and authority – Delegate powers to particular institutions and individuals and define how they are to be used – Protect against the concentration of political power in one institution or individual – Define the limits of political power 3 The Role of a State Constitution: Influence of U.S. Constitution • Texas’s constitution is heavily influenced by the U.S. Constitution – Political power is derived from the people – Both constitutions feature a separation of powers • Legislative, executive, and judicial branches – A system of checks and balances limits the powers of each branch, as a way to protect against tyranny – Certain individual rights must not be violated 4 The Role of a State Constitution: How U.S. Constitution Is Different • The idea of federalism is also embodied in the constitutions of the U.S. and Texas • Important differences distinguish the two – Supremacy clause: the U.S. Constitution and federal laws are...
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... Introduction and Historical Background A. What the course will cover? This is not an introductory course. You are all lawyers; I shall assume a good deal of professional expertise, and that many of you already have a body of knowledge about American law. The task: prepare you for the coming year, give you the basic grounding that you will need for the courses you are going to start taking in September. For this, you need two things: ♥ A great deal of basic factual information about how the courts and the legal system function, and about basic legal concepts (and legal vocabulary); ♥ But more importantly: background information about some of the critical ways in which the American legal system is unique, and differs from legal systems elsewhere in the world. This is hard: often you will find that your professors or fellow‐students will make assumptions or presuppose certain ways of doing things that aren’t explained in class. A large goal of this course is to explain those assumptions, and make them explicit. >> UNIQUENESS OF AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEMS Briefly, there are four aspects of the American legal system that set it apart: 1) Inherited common law, existing out of three components: (a) judicial power; (b) civil jury trial; (c) law‐equity ; 2) Written Constitution and Bill of Rights; judicial...
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...referred as the “fourth branch” (three branches, legislative, executive, and judicial) Administrative agencies have been objects of controversy. Enabling Legislation Administrative agencies are created by enabling legislation, which usually specifies the name, composition, and powers of the agency. Administrative procedure Act (APA) The APA was enacted by Congress in 1946 in an attempt to standardize federal agency procedures and to respond to critics who said that administrative power was out of control. Functions of Administrative Agencies In their roles, administrative agencies serve three main functions: rule-making, adjudicating and investigating. * In rule making, the agency takes laws passed by Congress and adds the technical expertise need for them to apply to real-life situations. E.g., a bill may mandate public vaccinations, but a rule will explain which age groups and demographics need the vaccination. * Agencies serve a judicial function when in-house lawyers and judges help individuals resolve disputes with the agency. They can also fine those who break agency rules. * As investigators, they can subpoena and question those who may have violated federal law. The Environmental Protection Agency is probably best known for seeking out and punishing polluters as part of its investigative and judicial authorities. Administrative agency‘s Purpose: The purpose of an “administrative agency”...
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