...Revolution a. Explain how patterns of exchange, markets, and private enterprise have developed, and analyze ways that governments have responded to economic issues. b. Analyze how technological innovation has affected economic development and society. c. Explain how interpretations of the Constitution and debates over rights, liberties, and definitions of citizenship have affected American values, politics, and society. d. Explain how interpretations of the Constitution and debates over rights, liberties, and definitions of citizenship have affected American values, politics, and society. 2. The Transformation of the West Group 1 e. Explain how different group identities, including racial, ethnic, class, and regional identities, have emerged and changed over time. f. Explain how popular movements, reform efforts, and activist groups have sought to change American society and institutions. g. Analyze relationships among different regional, social, ethnic, and racial groups, and explain how these groups’ experiences have related to U.S. national identity. h. Analyze causes of internal migration and patterns of settlement in what would become the United States, and explain how migration has affected American life. Group 2 i. Explain how ideas about democracy, freedom, and individualism found expression in the development of cultural values, political institutions, and American identity. j. Explain how geographic and environmental...
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...Sarah Rinehart Miss Keener AP US History November 2, 2015 The Shaping of American Politics Some would say that American politics began September third 1783 when the American Revolution ended, or that they began the fourth of July 1776 with the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Regardless of the starting date, it can be unanimously decided that the Federalist party was a major political influence during the beginnings of the country, especially after the signing of the Constitution. Even though it was not the only major political party in the United States at the time, the Federalists greatly shaped American politics during their reign of power through dominating government powers, using their beliefs to strengthen the central government,...
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...Strayer University POL110 Week 6 Assignment 1: What Is Federalism? Federalism is the type of government where there is segment of different powers between a state government and the central government. The United States is a federalist government where the states have their own individual powers and authority that they are able to exercise and the federal government has its own circle of authority that it tends to exercise. The evolution of Federalism in the United States was a gradual event that had definitions of federal government being given in federalist 46 and 28 which gave definitions of a federalist government to the United States. As stated by James Madison one of the architects of the federal kind of government, “the state and national governments are in fact but different agents and trustees of the people, constituted with different powers." The purpose of such a kind of government was to protect the rights of the people in all its earnestness. The evolution of the United States can be seen over a specific time period. Between 1970 and 1930 the form of government was known as layer cake federalism or dual federalism. There were clear powers divided between the states and the centre and there was sovereignty given in equal measure to both. Between the years 1930 and 1960 the structure was known as Cooperative federalism or marble cake federalism where the state and the central government shared functions and collaborated on issues of national importance...
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...Article VI of the constitution stated that “no religious test shall ever be required as qualification” (Mount, 2001), for federal office holders, the Constitution didn’t really say much about religion. The ones who wanted to give faith a greater part, and those who were afraid that it would do so, were very concerned. Some worried that the Constitution did not exclude the kind of state supported religion that had thrived in some colonies. This resulted in Congress adopting the first amendment to the Constitution. When it was ratified in 1791, it prohibited Congress to make any law "respecting an establishment of religion” (Paulson, 2001). Religion has become a very important topic in the US, today. The ideas that shaped our government were...
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...Clueless Americans American citizens have the responsibility of electing power within in the country. This varies from town mayor to the president of the United States. Ironically, Americans are given so much freedom to decide, but Americans know very little about politics. This is a problem because citizens are often unhappy with authoritative figures, but they do not even understand what is going on to know which candidates to elect. Matthew Robinson, the author of the Clued article “Party On, Dudes!” discusses how “ignorance is the curse of the information age” and how Americans know more about television than a single thing that goes on in Congress. Furthermore, Robinson focused on polls and how they are influenced, shaped, and dominated by voter ignorance. Media also plays a role in voter opinion because of the main focus points and and people’s attraction to media (Robinson, Clues). With that being said Americans know very little about politics, which brings up problems with polls, media, and the electoral college. Robinson describes what Americans know about politics as discouraging. For example, the constitution serves as the supreme law of the land that was...
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...cutting the national debt by a third. As the third president of the United States with a long political career, Thomas Jefferson had many accomplishments. His early life, education, writings and political experience shaped his presidency. Thomas Jefferson once famously wrote, “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.” How great of a president must Thomas Jefferson have been to have the citizens of the United States still live by these principles today? Thomas Jefferson's early life shaped his political career and his presidency. Born on April 13, 1743, into a prominent family of Virginia planters, Jefferson had ten brothers and sisters. Only a few of them survived past childhood. Jefferson started school at a young age and was very interested in every aspect of his education and what it had to offer. He...
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...1. Provide three (3) examples of how federalism has evolved from its origins to the American political system in place today Top of Form | | Bottom of Form 2. Examine three to five (3-5) factors that have allowed the concept of federalism to shape American political behavior 3. Discuss at least two (2) factors that illustrate how the relationship between the states and the U.S. federal government influences the creation of American policies overall 1. Provide three (3) examples of how federalism has evolved from its origins to the American political system in place today. Federalism defines a concept contrary to the federal government that takes all the authority of control. Federalism implies division of command among the levels of government. The central government does not take full control of the relationships of the nation but there is sharing of command between the governments at national and state levels. The Federal association has members from diverse groups represented by their heads and leaders and are held together by a required covenant. (Wilson, Diiulio andBose,2014) Before the political system was in place today, the colonies was later formed the United States have their own government and political system based on the traditions and culture of its citizens. Before the alliance, every state exercises its own command governed by laws unique to its citizens that may be not practically relevant to the other states (Bohm & Haley, 2007). The birth of United States...
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...largest country in the world by area and has a varied topography. The eastern regions consist of hills and low mountains while the central interior is a vast plain (called the Great Plains region) and the west has high rugged mountain ranges (some of which are volcanic in the Pacific Northwest). Alaska also features rugged mountains as well as river valleys. Hawaii's landscape varies but is dominated by volcanic topography Political three defining characteristics of the U.S. political system - U.S. politics are shaped by two major political parties: Democrats and Republicans. - Citizens have competing interests that differ based on their different backgrounds—the types of jobs they have, their race or age, whether they have children, etc. - Politics are also shaped by special interest groups, lobbyists, and the media. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct branches—legislative, executive, and judicial—whose powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the President, and the federal courts, including the Supreme Court, respectively . The United States is a representative democracy. Citizens elect representatives to national, state, and local government; those representatives...
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...Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, “The Broken Branch” Response The anecdote at the beginning of Mann and Ornstein’s text highlights the opening of a long series of examples of how partisan politics have shaped the political process in Congress into something contrary to the ideal envisioned by the Framers of the Constitution. This breach in the Framer’s ideological vision is exemplified in the text by issues such as the partisan behavior of the Speaker of the House. The Framers envisioned a Speaker who would be above influence of partisan politics. However, the role of the speaker in recent years has transformed into another position whose primary concern is advancement of the majority party’s agenda. This is demonstrated in the anecdote used...
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...email address by 5.00pm on Monday, 3 June. Section A 1. What are the key elements of U.S. political culture, and how do they express themselves in contemporary U.S. politics? 2. What limits does the U.S. Constitution place on the effective exercise of government power, and why? 3. How does the federalism constrain the U.S. government, and how have such constraints shifted over time? 4. Outline some of the main challenges that the Democratic Party and the Republican Party face in the 2012 Presidential elections. Section B 5. In what ways does the U.S. electoral system enhance democracy and in what ways does it impede democracy? 6. Discuss the relationship between the Legislature and the Executive, illustrating your answer with historical and/or contemporary examples 7. Some commentators have talked about the emergence of an “Imperial Presidency.” What do they mean by this, and is it a useful concept for thinking about contemporary Presidential power? 8. Discuss the impact that lobby groups have on the U.S. political system. Section C 9. What were the key factors contributing to the rise of the Christian Right in the late 1970s, and what were its main political impacts? 10. Discuss the main ways that “Race” has historically shaped the U.S. political landscape. 11. Is “Race” still an important factor in U.S. politics, and why? 12. Why has the development of the welfare state been much more limited in the United States than it has...
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...Historical Essay: Confederation and Constitution By History 405 Professor Aimee James January 26th, 2015 Historical Essay: Confederation and Constitution Confederation and Constitution As Colonial America moved from civil disobedience to open war with Britain, the States, at the behest of the Colonial Congress, started drafting constitutions and in the process “became laboratories for constitutional experimentation” ( Keene 120). The need to ensure a strong union and to ensure that it was strong enough to deal with both internal and external issues drove the colonies to send delegates to Albany to draft the Articles of Confederation. Ratified in 1781, the Articles of Confederation framed a new United States of America. The Articles of Confederation did not create a national government, “but rather a firm league of friendship” (Keene 121). Ultimately a fear of recreating the issues that were driving them from British rule shaped the Articles of Confederation and created a weak government with little power. It setup a national legislature called Congress where each state had one vote. It had no power to levy taxes, regulate commerce or otherwise interfere with the States. It could create money and declare war or peace. Notably any changes or amendments required a unanimous vote of Congress and “because of its weaknesses, Alexander Hamilton and other delegates called for a convention to be held in Philadelphia to improve and amend the Articles” (Articles of confederation...
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...government can have a type of authority over the same people. The power is shared between the units of government. Federalism has held much tension over who should control policies, individual states or national government as a whole. To the framers, federalism was important in the design of the constitution. Federalism would foster custom-made laws that would fit the special needs of particular communities; they would do this by ensuring that all the activities of the public life would directly affect the people taking place within the states and their local governments. Also the people of the states would remain involved in the process of making laws at the local and state levels. They thought that if they kept the government close to the people, they would be more comfortable with it. One change that Hickok pointed out is that “Today the national government dominates the American political system.” (Hickok 1991) Another change that federalism has gone through is that the states and the national government’s relationship has actually changed because of the clashing of political interests, rather than changing by the political principles that are contained within the constitution. Another change that federalism has gone through is that these days congress can spend money for pretty much anything that they deem an advance for the general welfare. They even take it as far as using the funds for something other than they were intended to be used for. “The impact of foreign...
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...While the word ‘Lord’ is generally related to power, the term power is contrary to the reality of the Upper Chamber. In spite of the considerable number of reforms which have been applied by the Government to make it representative, the question of whether to get rid of the House of Lords or not, has been a controversial issue for more than a century. Nevertheless, it is irrefutable that the Lower House has more power due to its legitimacy obtained from citizens voting for its members (MPs). Despite, the House of Lords has increased its influence and it continues to do so. The present clamour for a constitutional reform in the political field demands a close examination of the role and work of the House of Lords. This essay will analyse the advantages and drawbacks of the House of Lords. Firstly, the function of the Upper Chamber will be taken into account and analysed, followed by an evaluation of its unsuccessful reforms. The goal of this essay is to find an answer to the question whether the House of Lords should be reformed or not. As an essential part of the Westminster model, the House of Lords complements the work of the House of Commons, analysing laws from the Commons, scrutinising the decisions taken by the government and bringing a breadth of knowledge and experience to solve matters of public interest. The House of Lords plays a major role in legislation even with the limitations of the Parliament Act (it can only delay non-money Bills for one year) and...
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...development in the British North American colonies. Consider the period l650-1750 Analyze the cultural and economic responses of two of the following groups to the Indians of North America before l750/ British, French, Spanish Compare the ways in which religion shaped the development of colonial society in 2 of the following regions prior to l740/ New England, Chesapeake, Middle Atlantic How did economic, geographic and social factors encourage the growth of slavery as an important part of the economy of southern colonies between l607 and l775? Compare the ways in which 2 of the following reflected tensions in colonial society/ bacon’s rebellion, pueblo revolt, salem witchcraft trials, stono rebellion To what extent had the colonists developed a sense of their identity and unity as Americans by the eve of the Revolution? Dbq Analyze the impact of the American Revolution on both slavery and the status of women in the period from l775-l800 Evaluate the extent to which the Articles of Confederation were effective in solving the problems that confronted the new nations Analyze the contributions of 2 of the following in helping establish a stable government after the adoption of the constitution/ John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington Although the power of the national government increased during the early republic, this development often faced serious opposition. Compare the motives and effectiveness of those opposed to the growing power of the...
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...The New Media: Distorting Politics Carreon, Elimar Andree L. Valmores, Michael Aldrin S. Hidalgo, Jebb B. Saint Louis College Mr. Al Gerald S. Barde English IV IV – St. Alphonsus of Ligouri October 21, 2011 The New Media: Distorting Politics The crucial function of mass media in influencing public’s knowledge and understanding on global and national issues is indisputable. In the Philippines, media plays a critical and widespread role in daily life (Suguitan, 2007). Suguitan proclaims that it is an understatement to say that the media is merely influential, for it is powerful enough to make or break persons and institutions, and even shape society (2007). Performing as the main source of information, media serves as the medium in which the government informs, explains, and tries to win the support of the people for its programs and policies (Soifer, Hoffman and Voss, 2001). In this jurisdiction, the media is often called the fourth branch of the government for it monitors political matters to ensure political players don’t abuse democratic processes (University of San Francisco, n.d.). According to Political scientist Harold Lasswell, a pioneer in media studies, the media must perform three societal functions: surveillance of the world to report ongoing reports, interpretation of the meaning of events, and socialization of individuals into their cultural settings. Surveillance involves two major tasks. When it constitutes to the need of general public, it...
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