Fri h/w:
1. pick up your Constitution printout from Tank.
2. read actively w/ PK, NK, Comments, & Qs
3. Post your “what” clarification Qs here tonight.
4. Use the Constitution popup study guide for help. Find it on the top menu bar above.
**Note:as of 6pm popups are working!!**
5. Don’t forget to post your Federalists papes Qs on yesterday’s assignment post.
– Bromley
1. If Madison saw his current government system as flawed, how does he want society to change to be better?
2. Does Madison see diversity within society as an advantage or disadvantage?
3. What makes a faction powerful?
4. Does Madison think that the government has evil motives?
5. Considering Madison’s view on the social structure, are human beings born good or evil?
Bromley replies:
2. For Madison diversity is an advantage. See his explanation for the reason why a large republic will produce more virtuous leaders.
3. exercising power over other factions, especially if unjust
4. he admits that man is potentially not nice
5. Per Madison: neither evil nor good, but potentially both. Only God is good, so be careful with the ppls!
1. By giving to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and the same interests as James Madison mentions in The Federalist 10, would it completely remove faction? Does faction exist in a communist government?
2. Why does Madison advocate for a democratic republic form of government over a pure democracy in Federalist 10?
3. Can a republic protect liberties better than a democracy and why?
4. When James Madison states, “If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary”, why does he state this?
5. James Madison wants both majority and minority to have their rights secure, if so how does he plan in achieving that idea?
Bromley replies:
1. exactly!!! that’s what totalitarian societies attempt to do. Impossible task, though, and evil in its application.
2. make sure you can answer this for the exam!
3. yes yes yes!! Per Mad, democracy will always lead to tyranny, b/c the people will attach passion to their differing opinions and some group will always impose itself on another. Republics filter those passions and keep power out of the hands of faction by splitting, separating, balancing, etc.
4. re-read it. Angels are good. If men were angels, no need for government or fear of it.
5. That’s his argument for the Constitution.
Is the president the “Executive Authority” and what powers does he have in concerns to vacancies in the House of Representatives?
How is the Speaker of the House picked? And is their party affiliation representative of the majority of the House’s?
Is it only the Senate the votes on impeachment?
Which votes would be deemed “secret”?
Bromley replies:
1. Executive = execute, or carry out the laws. Prez has no say on congressional elections
2. by majority vote. House = passionate, responsive to the people, etc.
3. House impeaches, Senate judges on the impeachment
4. Let’s be sure to get this one: secret votes are designed to allow votes of conscience so that individual members can’t be held to them. Very dangerous stuff, but necessary in the views of the Founders.
Did the Articles of Confederation cover Vacancies like the constitution does?
Why are some words capitalized in the constitution?
Has the Senate ever tried a president for impeachment and failed to reach 2/3 vote?
Why can’t judgment in cases of impeachment extend further than removal of Office?
Why don’t we elect presidential candidates by popular vote like many other democracies?
Bromley replies:
1) The states chose delegates under the Articles, so no need to worry about vacancies.
2) good question!
3) no President has ever been impeached in the Senate (Clinton was in the House). A few judges have, I think, and a few Members have been ejectd. Very infrequent, this process.
4) Seapration of powers! Anachronistic?
Why should there be an age limit of 25 years to be a Representative?
What is Writs of Election?
Shouldn’t Congress hold more than just one meeting every year? Why was it established so that it was only one day a year?
Why should the Houses be allowed to hide certain recorded proceedings? Why would they hide something in the first place?
What is the significance in capitalizing certain words within the Constitution?
Bromley:
1. the age requirement is an attempt to find more virtuous and wise representatives, thinking that yutes are irrational and inexperienced.
2. A “writ” is an order, thus order for an election
3. Each “congress” or session has a start and end date. They may “adjourn” during it for brief periods, or when the session has ended = adjournment.
4. I don’t know.
Clarification questions on the U.S. Constitution
1) What has been the accepted scope of “general welfare”?
2) what does “constitutes a quorum to do business” mean?
3) what was the purpose of the override? Why does it require supermajorities from both the senate and house?
4) what was the history behind the ex post facto law?
5) what was the idea behind the electoral college? What is bad about direct voting by the people?
Bromley:
1. Good Q!!! Generally, the scope of the “general welfare” is limited to whatever the Congress can get away with within the bounds of the rest of the Constitution. It gets argued out in Court, ultimately.
2. quorum = min. number of attendees to hold business in Congress
3. another protection from and division of power
4. kings and despots use the power of making laws to imprison political enemies by making what they have been doing legally illegal, then arresting them for it. = arbitrary law
1) What does it mean by, “[s]ecure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity”? Does this mean that the constitution does grant full liberty? Is this relevant in our modern world?
2) What is the importance and how does keeping a journal of each house’s proceeding beneficial to the bicameral?
3) What does it mean by, “No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State”?
4) What are Letters of Marque and Reprisal
5) What’s the point of the president vetoing a bill if the congress can override it?
Bromley:
1. “secure the blessings of liberty” is a rationale for enacting the constitution. This is an indepdent clause of the sentence
2. No clarity, no record = they can say anthying happened, thus that would be arbitrary.
3. Constitution outlaws taxing of trade between the states, and the Federal gov will control trade w/ foreign nations, not the states.
4. king stuff: labeling enemies and rewarding freiends
5. separation of powers; the override puts more pressure on the President and holds him/her accountable for a veto, if a super majority in congress really wants it.
What is the writ of habeas corpus?
What do the founders mean when they say, ” No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.”?
Bromley reply:
1. “Show the body” (as per above, a writ is an official order, usually from a court)
2. direct taxes were considered arbitrary unless they were exactly the same for each person, thus the need for “enumeration,” or dividing a tax by the people in a state or the country). Direct taxes are a strong tool of despots — tax is a huge power.
Is there a specific reason why Representatives have to be citizens for only seven years, why not ten, twelve, or fifteen, why seven years?
Why is the minimum for Congress to meet at least once a year? Isn’t that to little for a branch of the government to have any important effect?
Isn’t Article 1 section 5 obsolete because if one party is two thirds of the vote and they want to expel someone from the next party they have the power to do so freely?
Why is each House allowed to keep some parts secret from America? Wouldn’t the Founders try to avoid something like that considering that they would be able to do things without informing the American people?
Why was Article 1 Section 8 made? Congress should not be able or allowed to lay and collect taxes.