POLSCI 318 Study Guide - Fall 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - President Of The United States, United States Congress, United States Senate
12 Oct 2018
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Department
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POLSCI 318
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
POLISCI 318 Congress and the President
9.02.16 Lecture Notes
Legislative
Executive – foreign relations/implementation of law
Judicial
Athens, Greece
Aristotle and Polybius
o Polybius was a Greek prisoner in Rome
Observed cycles of governance
o Anarchy → monarchy (one strong individual who consolidated power, usually devolved
into tyranny) → tyranny → rise of aristocracy (usually lose virtue, become corrupt) →
oligarchy → people rise up and form a democracy → democracy would degrade into
anarchy again (aka mob rule)
o In Ancient Greece, democracy was the form of direct democracy (referendums)
▪ Ex: Brexit vote
Believed that there should be a separation of the powers of governance in a way that enabled
stability
Also observed Rome – Polybius called it the perfect blend of aristocracy and democracy (called a
mixed regime)
o A mixed regime is different from separation of powers
▪ Mixed regime – separation by these classes
▪ Separation of powers – separation by function
o Democratic element
▪ Legislative assemblies – responsible for passing all laws
▪ Roman Senate – primary role is to give advice to the consuls (cannot pass laws, but
can veto laws)
▪ Consuls – highest office, two consuls at the head of the government (executive
function)
• Implements law
• Switched days that each consul commanded the military
Enlightenment
o John Locke – argued that the legislative power should predominate
▪ Ideal system of government
▪ Executive implements laws
▪ Federative – power of the monarch to effectively conduct international relations
• The US lumps the federative with the executive
▪ Mentions courts but not much
o In England, the executive and federative is the monarch
▪ Legislative is split into the House of Lords and the House of Commons
▪ Same class-based division as Ancient Rome
Montesquieu (Federalist 47)
o French political philosophy
o Americans in the colonies believed that separated powers had to be absolutely and
completely separated
▪ Madison provided insight into this – it is impossible for a government to not mix at
all (drawn upon state constitutions and the British Constitution)
o Legislative will should predominate
o Combines executive and federative into just the executive
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
o Judicial power is responsible for the execution of the law
Atmosphere of the colonies before the drafting:
Britain and the French had just been in the Seven Years War
o French and Indian War – occurs right before America declares independence
o Before the war, the colonies govern themselves (levied no direct taxes, free trade)
o After the international war, King George amassed a massive military
▪ King George kept the military forces even after the war in the American colonies
▪ Americans saw this force as a invading force
▪ Military collected taxes, enforced laws that were enacted by Parliament (served a
police force)
o Climate between colonists and the British military was very tense
▪ Boston Massacre – American colonists protested policies and taunted soldiers by
throwing rocks
▪ One of the soldiers fired and resulted in the death of 5 colonists
▪ Trigger the colonies to think about independence
o Tax abuses
▪ Stamp Act – every paper that the colonists used for official documentation had to be
printed in Britain and embossed with a special stamp
▪ Generated revenue for GB and made doing anything official costly
▪ Boston Tea Party
o King George claimed the Appalachian Mountains and west of it
▪ Colonists were not allowed to expand
Articles of Confederation
o Obsessed with limiting a large national government given their experience with King
George
o States have most of the power (ex: EU)
o Legislative and executive powers were centered in Congress
o Congress had the following powers
▪ Determine war/command military
▪ Enter into treaties
▪ Grant letters of marque (allows commercial ships in the America to attack enemy
ships)
▪ Settle land disputes amongst states
▪ Regulate value of money
▪ Responsible for standards and weights/measures
▪ Regulate trade with the Indians
▪ Establish post offices (could levy taxes for the post but that money can only be used
to run the post offices)
▪ Responsible for appointing military and naval officers
▪ Appoint a committee in recess (when Congress is not meeting, they can appoint a
committee)
▪ Request money from the states
▪ To do anything, 9/13 colonies had to agree → GRIDLOCK
o Did not enable governance – only addressed the most pressing issues
o Missing?
▪ Standing army
▪ Raise taxes
▪ No federal court
▪ Regulate interstate commerce
o US in Congress, despite the goal of defending the 13 colonies, could not actually fulfill that
goal because they had no means of doing it
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Aristotle and polybius: polybius was a greek prisoner in rome. Believed that there should be a separation of the powers of governance in a way that enabled. John locke argued that the legislative power should predominate: federative power of the monarch to effectively conduct international relations, the us lumps the (cid:498)federative(cid:499) with the executive, switched days that each consul commanded the military. Ideal system of government: executive implements laws, in england, the executive and federative is the monarch, mentions courts but not much. Implements law can veto laws) function: legislative is split into the house of lords and the house of commons, same class-based division as ancient rome. Judicial power is responsible for the execution of the law. Articles of confederation: obsessed with limiting a large national government given their experience with king. Federalist papers: federalism = weak national government, power is in the states, federalists = nationalists, anti-federalists = believe in federalism, most concerned with limiting the executive power.
