Foundations of American Government

Key Terms

●State●Sovereignty●Nation●Nation-state●consensus●government●social contract●philosopher●affect●theory

What is the State?

●The first serious students of politics and government were the Greeks.●In the Western World, scholars look to the Greek philosopher Aristotle who wrote famously, “man is a political animal.”●For Greeks, state meant city-state which was made up of a town and its surrounding area.

●In the modern world the term state means a political community with a precise territory.●A state has sovereignty – it makes and enforces its own laws without approval from another authority●Many of the Greek ideas survived through the Romans, however the Romans were a republic, not a democracy. How do the two differ?

What is the State?

●Currently, 193 sovereign states are recognized by the UN, including the United States.●In an American context, we recognize 50 states in our federal system.●The term nation is used for state, but actually means a sizable group of people who believe themselves united by common bonds of race, language, custom or religion.●Not every modern state shares this make up: Not everyone in France is of French descent, however both the nation and the state coincide. This is known as a nation-state.●Some national groups have no state but desire one:○ Ex: Some African states are made up of different nations or tribal groups.

●In most cases the terms state, nation and country are used interchangeably.

Essential Features of a State

What are the four essential features of a modern state?

Essential Features of the State

There are four essential features that make the modern state: population,

territory, sovereignty and government.

Essential Features of the State:Population

●The nature of a state's population affects its stability.●In states where there is a consensus about basic beliefs and values, the government is most stable.●The United States government is stable because most Americans believe in a democratic system.

●Another way population affects a state is through distribution.●Recent population shifts have moved political power from the Northeast to the Southwest.●States with greater population gain representatives in Congress and vice versa.

Essential Features of the State:Territory

●Every state has establish boundaries.●What are the boundaries of the United States?○Canada○Mexico○Pacific Ocean○Atlantic Ocean●Political boundaries are often the source of conflict among states and may change due to war, negotiations or purchase.

Essential Features of the State:Sovereignty

●The key characteristic of a state is sovereignty.●Sovereignty means the state has supreme and absolute authority within its boundaries.

●In theory - no state has the right to interfere with the affairs of another state.●In theory - every state is equal with respect to rights and duties.

●In practice - states with great economic strength and military capabilities have more power than other states.

Features of the State:Government

Government is the institution through which a state maintains social order, provides public services and enforces decisions that are binding on all its residents.

Origins of the State

●How did the state come to be?●No one knows for sure but scholars have created theories to explain the origins of the state.●Include:○Evolutionary Theory○Force Theory○Divine Right Theory○Social Contract Theory

Origins of the State:Evolutionary Theory

●Evolutionary Theory - believes the state evolved from the family.●The head of the primitive family supposedly served as the government authority●An extended family may include hundreds of people and need a more organized government.

●Example - Abraham’s descendants in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.

Origins of the State: Force Theory

●In early civilizations, people cooperated to survive by building walled cities.●Some point to this fact to prove the state was born out of force.●They believe the state would not exist without a force to keep out.●A state then emerged when an area was brought under the authority of a person or group.

Origins of the State: Divine Right Theory

●Divine Right - the idea that certain people are chosen by a god or gods to rule

●Specifically refers to European monarchs of the 1600s and 1700s who claimed right to rule from God alone.●To oppose the monarch was to oppose God, so not only treason but sinful as well.

Origins of the State:Social Contract Theory

●In the 1600s, Europeans began to challenge the divine right theory.●Among the challengers were Englishmen John Locke and Thomas Hobbes.●They believed in any society that a “state of nature” existed where there was no government.●To create a government a social contract was made between ruler and ruled.●Both had different views on contract terms.

Origins of the State:Social Contract Theory

●Hobbes thought in the “state of nature” life would be “nasty, brutish and short”.●What does he mean by this?●In Hobbes social contract, people surrendered their freedom in return for order and security.●Hobbes believed as long as the government kept order, people could not break their contract.

Origins of the State:Social Contract Theory

●Locke lived during the removal of James II (divine right believer) and replacement with William and Mary of Orange.●Locke defended the overthrow by this reasoning:●In the “state of nature” men and women had certain natural rights - life, liberty and property.●Locke’s contract was made between people and government promising to preserve those natural rights, if they did not the people could rebel.●A century later, American colonists used Locke's theory to revolt against King George III.

Purposes of Government

●Modern government has several functions-○maintain social order○provide public services○provide security and defense○provide for the economy●To fulfill these functions governments make laws and then carry them out●Authority is derived from two sources:○legitimacy and force

●Legitimacy - willingness of citizens to obey the government○Obtained in democratic countries through the power to vote●Force - the police, judiciary, and military○Example - pay your taxes or be imprisoned.

Purpose: Maintain Social Order

●According to social contract theory, people need government because humans cannot live in peace.●Government provides ways to resolve conflicts thus maintaining social order.●Governments can also make and enforce laws, requiring people to do things they may not do voluntarily.○Examples?

●Government provides law and order, making civilized life possible.●An effective government allows citizens to plan for the future, get an education, raise a family and live orderly lives.

Purpose: Provide Public Service

●Providing essential services is an important purpose of government making community life possible and promoting general welfare.●Examples of government provided public services?

●Other services promote public health and safety.●Examples?

Purpose: Provide Security

●Protecting national security is a major concern of each sovereign state●In addition to protecting the nation from attack, government also handles day-to-day relations with other nations●The Constitution gives the federal government a monopoly over the relations with foreign nations.●Government provides economic security by signing trade agreements●Some state governments have informal relations with other nations to increase trade or cultural exchanges but the national government can place limits on these exchanges.

Purpose: Economic Decisions

●No country provides its citizens with everything they need or desire.●Poverty and scarce resources has been a basic cause for conflict in most countries●The greater the income gap, the greater chance for conflict●Poverty has even contributed to full blown revolutions●With that in mind, leaders often try and reduce economic conflict through intervention●Governments may also intervene in other nations econimc affairs to promote their own national security○After WWII, the US funded the Marshall Plan due to fears of Communist revolutions●Government makes monetary policy, including but not limited to:○farm subsidies○tax incentives○inflation control○regulations