Documents: Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, Constitution, Bill of Rights Principles of Democracy: Majority rules with Minority rights, Rule of Law, Popular Sovereignty, Individual Rights and Freedoms, Limited Government, Equality of All People, Judicial Review, Federalism Related Principles: Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances, Representative Democracy, Consent of the Governed, Eminent Domain, Equal Protection. Purposes of Government: PENS: public services, economic decisions, national security, social order. Structure and Organization Legislative Branch Executive Branch Judicial Branch (Highest to Lowest) National Congress President and Vice President Supreme Court (federal) House of Reps and Senate Cabinet, Agencies Appeals District State General Assembly Governor and Lt. Governor Appeals House of Delegates and Senate Cabinet, Agencies Special Appeals Circuit District County County Commissioners Same as Leg Branch Local Town Council Mayor Public Policy Issues: Environment (pollution, land use), Entitlements (Social Security, welfare), Health care and public health (costs, substance abuse, diseases), Censorship (media, technology), Crime (preventions, punishments), Equity (race, ethnicity, region, religion, gender, language, socio-economic status, age, and individuals with disabilities) Ways to influence the government: political parties, interest groups, lobbyists, candidates, citizens, media, elected officials, public opinion, referendum, initiative Supreme Court cases: Marbury v. Madison, McCulloch v. Maryland, Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education, Miranda v. Arizona, Gideon v. Wainwright, Tinker v. Des Moines Board of Education, New Jersey v. T.L.O. Laws designed to promote equity: Civil Rights Act, Voting Acts Right, Title IX, Individuals with Disabilities, Affirmative Action Due process: Found in the 5th Amendment and 14th Amendment, incorporation doctrine (States must follow Bill of Rights) (Equal Protection) Civil Law: Relating to disputes among two or more parties, one of which may be the government. Vocabulary: Plantiff, defendant, contract, breach of contract, torts, negligence, damages, preponderance of evidence, petit jury, and out-of-court settlements Criminal Law: Relating to the situation when the state brings charges against a citizen. Vocabulary: Defendant, prosecutor, reasonable doubt, felony, misdemeanor, grand jury, Indictment, probable cause, presumption of innocence, plea bargaining, writ of habeas corpus and subpoena Foreign Policy Goals Category International alliance Methods AND Effects National Security Security North Atlantic Treaty Organization National Defense (military), Arms (Military) Control, Control Weapons of Mass Destruction, Terrorism Free and Open Trade Economic North American Free Trade Agreement Trade, Economic Well Being International Monetary Fund Monitor Global Economic conditions World Bank World Peace Political Security of other nations Spread of Democracy Political Humanitarian Aid Social International Red Cross Human Rights, Economic sanctions Food + Funds= Friends United Nations apply to them all, Foreign aid applies to all, International Issues the U.S considers in foreign relations: How to help developing countries, National Sovereignty, Self determination and Human rights Types of political systems Democracy Authoritarian Presidential Monarchy Parliamentary Oligarchy Direct Dictatorship Republic Totalitarian Limited Government Absolute Power—Unlimited Government Elections Rulers seize power and stay in power Individual rights and freedoms Very limited rights and freedoms United States, England, Japan China, North Korea, Cuba Forms of Government Unitary Federal Confederation All power is in one central, national Power is shared / split / divided between Power is given to states, who make up a government one national, several states, and many loose union local government
Great Britain
United States The South during the Civil War Constitution Articles of Confederation Effects of Changes in population—Census—REAPPORTIONMENT AT NATIONAL LEVEL States may lose, gain or have the same number of Representatives in the House RESDISTRICTING STATE LEVEL—Divide up new number of Representatives (maybe either for Congress or state Legislature) Voting Patterns—Older, Higher Income levels and Higher Education levels vote more than Younger, Lower Income levels and lower education levels Influence of demographic factors on government funding decisions—population, age, race, gender, socio-economic status, religion (Usually where more people are gets more money, develop opportunities where there are not as many) Smart Growth: Eliminate Urban Sprawl and try to balance the economy with the environment through effective policy on growth and land use / zoning. Region—may be classified as international, national, state, local and can be defined through economic development, natural resources, population, religion, climate. Regional Cooperation—when two nearby areas work together (use their combined resources) to solve a problem. (like trying to Save the Bay) Changes in population change the environment, society and government. (Use of more resources, more people need public services and education, strain on existing budgets) Types of Economic systems: Traditional—Habits and Customs, Market—Buyers and Sellers, Demand and Supply, Command— Government in Charge, and Mixed—combination of all three, with government regulating business to keep consumers and workers safe and competition fair. Basis of Economics—Scarcity—not enough supply to meet demand, Opportunity Cost—what is given up when a decision is made. These two ideas guide our government’s decision making. Always balance and compromise. Goals of government in dealing with economy: economic freedom (start companies, buy and sell goods and services), growth, stability, equity, security (Social Security), be productive, national defense, protect the environment, provide for quality education How regulatory agencies respond to issues and market failures—ACTING LIKE A REFEREE Agency Function Environmental Protection Agency Preserve the land, water, and air quality, protect endangered animals Food and Drug Administration Make sure new foods and medicines are safe, study contents Federal Trade Commission Prevent Monopolies, ensure fair competition and truth in ads Federal Communications Commission Regulate content in Media, Grant station license, regulate cell phones Federal Aviation Administration Ensure the safety and maintenance of airliners and its equipment FISCAL AND MONETARY POLICY—ACTING LIKE A CHEERLEADER Fiscal policy—Government (Legislative and Executive Branches) using taxing and spending to influence the economy Monetary Policy—The Federal Reserve controlling the amount of money in the economy Deflation means that there is not enough money in the economy, people do not have money to spend. Inflation means that there is too much money in the economy, thus each dollar buys less and less. State of Economy It is deflated (Not enough $) Monetary Policy Reaction Decrease Discount (interest) rate Decrease Reserve Amount Buy Government Securities It is inflated Deflate it Increase Taxes—Democrats Increase Discount (interest) rate (Too much $) (Take $ out) Decrease Spending--Republicans Increase Reserve Amount Sell Government Securities A recession is when the economy is shrinking (Two straight quarters in which the GDP has decreased.) A tariff is a tax on imported goods, meant to protect American business Measures of economic performance—Used to determine if economy is in state of inflation or deflation Gross Domestic Product Total amount of goods and services produced in a country (If it grows too fast, then inflation has occurred) Consumer Price Index Average cost of selected goods and services combined (The higher it is, the more inflation is.) Unemployment Rate Percentage of people out of work looking for jobs. (A high rate is not good for the economy) Notes in General Remember EHS: Ensure Health and Safety America is a federal representative presidential democracy. Citizens have 4 responsibilities: SPORT Serve on a jury, Pay taxes, Obey the law, Register for the draft(males)Testify in Court. Forms of dissent and protest include: writing a letter to the media or elected official, having a peaceful public protest, a lawsuit, a petition. Checks and balances may both help and hurt our government functioning First Amendment freedoms: RAPPS: Religion, Assembly, Petition, Press, Speech What to do Inflate it (Put $ in) Fiscal Policy Reaction Increase Spending –Democrats Decrease Taxes—Republicans