POL SCI 1 Lecture Notes - The The, Early Voting, Voting Rights Act Of 1965
government and give large states more
powers through proportional representation
→ Sherman supported state authority
nation: effective national revenus creates dependable
funds for public goods and relieve states from taxing
its people to fund national government.
“The Union as a Safeguard
Against Domestic Faction
and Insurrection”
-Madison’s Fed. 10
Under the Constitution, a republic will solve
the problems of a pure democracy in giving
too much political authority to an oppressive
majority.
→ insulate government from popular
passions
- criticism of Articles of Confederation
1. Measures decided not by justice or rights of minor
party but to superior force of the majority.
- under Constitution, majority party will be forced to
sacrifice its ruling passions for the public good and
rights of other citizens
-republic = delegation of the govt. through a small
number of citizens elected by the rest
“The Structure of the
Government Must Furnish
the Proper Checks and
Balances Between the
Different Departments”
-Madison’s Fed. 51
The Constitution’s system of checks and
balances keeps politicians from taking
advantage of their political authority.
-ambition must be made to counteract ambition
- enable the government to control the governed and
in the next place, oblige it to control itself
Week 3: Transformation I - The Right to Vote
Major Them: Transformations
- Voting Rights, Government Growth
- Could ask you to use one or more to explore the changing role of institutions
Main Topic Notes
Studying Long Term
Trends
-Highlights important factors in Politics!
~slow moving changes (industrialization, migration, urbanization) happen occasionally
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
~changes in economy, politics and race are broad but have long-term effects
-allows for broad comparisons: in stable institutions (constant) you get different outcomes at
different times
-draws attention to the stakes (what people care about; what is up for grabs) in political conflicts
Right to Vote: Some
Political Puzzles
- Why did suffrage take so long?
- Why did the right to vote expand at all?
~Why did people with power share it?
- Why have there been significant reverses? Or plateaus?
Sources of Support for
Expanded Suffrage
Why did the right to vote expand?
- voting = fundamental right = simple cultural norm
- reducing voting qualifications (inevitability of universal suffrage) makes it harder to exclude people
(Tocqueville)
-Party Competition: endgame dynamic = you don’t want to be the last person to deny voting rights,
esp. if there’s significant momentum
-industrialization and urbanization make property rights absurd
-war: requires mass mobilization that includes people without right to vote; hard to deny the right
Sources of Opposition and
“Rights Retrenchment”
Why have there been significant reverses?
-Pandora’s Box: when will it stop?
-ideas of racism, sexism, nativism: you have to be qualified; voting isn’t a right
-class tensions: people in power want to maintain it; rise in immigration → banning policies
-Party competition: trying to figure out which party will support expansion
The Rise and Fall of
Reconstruction
-both rise and fall of Reconstruction can be attributed to two parties seeking two different types of
durable reform through moments of partisan advantage.
-Rise (Republicans seeking durable form)
~permanent gains for African American rights & Republican foothold in the South through coalition
of few white Republicans in the South and the African American population (=majority)
-Fall (Democrats gain back control of South through Compromise of 1878)
~initial violence and fraud turns into aggressive legislative assault on voting rights → “less public
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
51 government and give large states more powers through proportional representation. Sherman supported state authority nation: effective national revenus creates dependable funds for public goods and relieve states from taxing its people to fund national government. Under the constitution, a republic will solve the problems of a pure democracy in giving too much political authority to an oppressive majority. Criticism of articles of confederation: measures decided not by justice or rights of minor party but to superior force of the majority. Under constitution, majority party will be forced to sacrifice its ruling passions for the public good and rights of other citizens. Republic = delegation of the govt. through a small number of citizens elected by the rest. The constitution"s system of checks and balances keeps politicians from taking advantage of their political authority. Enable the government to control the governed and in the next place, oblige it to control itself. Week 3: transformation i - the right to vote.
