Us history & Government Study Guide I. Influence of Geography

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US History & Government Study Guide
I. Influence of Geography
Explain the advantages of the following four geographic features of the United States of America.

Mississippi River

Served as a way to move people & products.

Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

great for trade along the coast & with Europe
Promote fishing
Natural barrier—protection from foreign invasion

Great Plains

Breadbasket of America
Flat and easy to travel

Abundant Natural Resources

Tobacco, cotton, trees, crops, coal & oil
Developed into an economic powerhouse

13 Colonies

Geography was the primary influence on colonial life. So were the practices brought from the homelands of the colonists. This divided the colonies into three major areas. Explain the main economic activities in the three colonial regions:

New England Economy

Soil is not good for farming

Could only grow enough food to support

the population

Fishing is a key economic activity
Timber/wood supply is plentiful

Valuable natural resources

Ship building business will grow in New England

Middle Atlantic Economy

Soil is excellent for farming
Natural resources for future industrialization like coal, steel, iron, etc.
NYC becomes center of finances (money) for the colonies

Southern Colonies Economy

Soil is not good for edible crops, BUT
Soil is excellent for the production of Cash Crops.
Cash crops—crops grown to sell not to eat
Cash crops—1. Tobacco, 2. Cotton—harvesting/planting of these labor intensive crops needs many workers.
Demand for slaves increases as farms expand

II. Foundations of US Government

Choose one of the key people and highlight their achievements and the impact these achievements had on this time period in this section.

John Adams Samuel Adams Benjamin Franklin

Alexander Hamilton Patrick Henry Thomas Jefferson

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Voltaire George Washington

James Madison

This is your life__________________________!

Big Thinkers, Big Ideas for America

Explain how the following Enlightenment Philosophers influenced American Government

John Locke - Thomas Jefferson uses ideas from John Locke and the Enlightenment Thinkers to write the Declaration of Independence. Locke believed in:

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
Government had the responsibility of protecting an individual’s rights and liberties, and if the government did not protect them, people had the right to overthrow or abolish the government.

Baron De Montesquieu - a French political analyst who lived during the Age of Enlightenment. He wrote The Spirit of Laws, which talked about the separation of powers.
Jean Jacques Rousseau - Rousseau argued that human beings are basically good by nature, but were corrupted by complex events in society.

Early Attempts at Self-Government

	Ideals of Democracy
Mayflower Compact	This was an agreement for the settlers on how to govern their colony. This was one of the first steps in American for self-government (democracy).
Virginia House of Burgesses	A law making assembly made up of representatives from the colony. This is the first instance of limited self-government in the English colonies.
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut	The framework for the government of the Connecticut colony from 1639-1662.

What was the Proclamation Line of 1763?

The proclamation forbade all settlers from settling past a line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains. It closed off the frontier to colonial expansion. The King and his council presented the proclamation as a measure to calm the fears of the Indians, who felt that the colonists would drive them from their lands as they expanded westward.
How did the Proclamation Line help to push the colonies toward war with Britain?

The colonists resented this and ignored the King’s rule, which pushed them toward war with

Britain.

Causes of the Revolution – Explain how the following led to the American Revolution

CAUSES

Reversal of Salutary Neglect—An economic system of mercantilism still exists BUT the mother country (England) begins to relax economic control over the colonies  equal to economic freedom = more $$$ POWER. When Britain tried to impose more rules and take control over the colonies again, the colonies were upset.

Mercantilism—

Colonies exist to benefit the mother country
Raw materials are sold by the colony to the mother country (i.e. timber)
In return, mother country sells finished products back to the colony (i.e. desk
There are trade restrictions on the colonies selling to other countries.

Stamp Act and Intolerable Acts—This law placed a tax on newspapers, pamphlets, legal documents, and most other printed materials. This was supposed to pay the cost of keeping British troops in America. The Stamp Act and Intolerable Acts angered the colonists and caused them to renew boycotts and to call to the people of all the English colonies to arm themselves and form militias.

“No Taxation without Representation”— because the colonies didn’t have representation in the British Parliament, they felt the British had not right to force laws on the colonies. Therefore they used this argument to protest the Sugar Act.

Discuss three ideas the government expressed in the Declaration of Independence.

The people have self-evident truths: All men are created equal and they have certain unalienable rights.
The three unalienable rights are: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness
The government derives its “just powers” from the =consent of the governed.

Explain the main ideas of each piece of literature by Thomas Paine and how each one influenced the American Revolution.

Thomas Paine (1776) wrote Common Sense a 47-page pamphlet which discussed the Revolution. It convinced many readers to support a complete break with Great Britain. The Crisis were pamphlets that were written in a language that the common man could understand, and represented Paine's philosophy.

Articles of Confederation

1781-1789

Strengths

Weaknesses

Successful conclusion of the American Revolution
Negotiated the Treaty of Paris
Passage of the Land Ordinance of 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 which set a pattern of how new states could join the nation. It also did not allow slavery in the Northwest Territory

strong state governments and a weak central (national, federal) government
One vote for each state, regardless of size
No single national currency
Congress could not collect taxes
No separated executive branch to enforce acts of Congress
Congress powerless to regulate foreign and interstate commerce
No national court system to interpret laws
Amendment only with consent of all the states
A 9/13 majority required to pass laws

III. Writing & Ratifying the Constitution, 1787-1789

Explain what the constitutional issue was for each compromise and how compromise was reached.

Compromise	Issue		What compromise was reached
Great Compromise	New Jersey Plan: equal representation—favors smaller populated states. Create a new stronger central government and a weak state government Virginia Plan: representation based on population—favors larger populated states.		A bicameral system was reached. The New Jersey Plan was used for the Senate (2 members per state). The Virginia Plan was used for the House of Representation (number of representatives based on population).
3/5 Compromise		The south wanted to count slaves as people for representation and as property for tax purposes. The North said—No, you can’t have it both ways		They will count each slave as three fifths of a person, so 5 slaves = 3 people.
Trade Compromise		Southerners opposed tariffs because their economy was heavily dependent upon trade. Northerners wanted tariffs to protect their industries from foreign competition.		The Constitution allows the federal government to tax interstate trade but not intrastate trade.

Governments of the United States: 1781 and 1789

How the Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation Were Corrected by the Constitution
Articles of Confederation	Constitution of the United States
States have most of the power. The national government has little No executive officer to carry out the laws of Congress No national courts. Only state courts exist Congress is responsible to the states Nine out of 13 states have to approve a law before it can go into effect Congress has no power to tax Congress cannot regulate trade among the states Each state coins its own money. No national currency	States have some power, but most is given to the national government A president heads the executive branch of the government Both national and state courts exist. Congress is responsible to the people Laws may be passed by a majority vote of both houses of Congress Congress given the power to tax Congress given the power to regulate interstate and foreign trade Only the national government has the power to coin money

Definitions
Ratification	Approve
Reserved Powers	Powers reserved for the states Establish schools, Pass statewide laws, regulate intrastate trade
Delegated Powers	Powers delegated to the federal government Regulate interstate trade, coin money, declare war, sign treaties
Concurrent Powers	Powers held and exercised by both the national and state governments
Federalism	A strong central government
Federalist Papers	Written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison & John Jay, they were a series of essays to persuade the NY State convention to agree to the Constitution
Preamble	The preamble describes the purpose of the government set up by the Constitution. We the people…
Separation of Powers	3 Branches of Government Legislative Branch—make laws Executive Branch—The President, enforces laws Judicial Branch—Supreme & Federal Courts

Explain what the debate was between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. Include who supported the Bill of Rights and why?

The Great Debate

Federalists

Antifederalists

-James Madison

-They wanted a strong national government

-Thomas Jefferson

-Wanted strong state government

-They were afraid the president would be like a king

-They feared for Americans’ individual liberties

The federalists added the Bill of Rights to appeal to the antifederalists. These were amendments designed to protect citizens’ rights.

IV. The Constitution

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Implied Powers

Powers not written in the Constitution—future power
This makes the constitution a “living document” and gives the government most of its power today
Flexible document based on the necessary and proper (or elastic) clause
Gives the Legislative Branch flexibility to make laws today. i.e. radio, internet.

Federalism

Delegated Powers:		Reserved Powers:
Those powers specifically granted the Federal Government by the Constitution.		Those powers not delegated to the Federal Government or denied the states are reserved for the states.
	Concurrent Powers:
Regulate interstate and international trade Coin money Declare war Maintain an armed forces Establish a postal system Enforce copyrights Sign treaties	Powers that are shared by both the Federal and State Governments. Power to tax Maintain courts Borrow money		Regulate intrastate trade Establish schools Establish local governments Pass statewide laws (ex. Safety belt laws) Run elections

2. Give two specific ‘real life’ examples for each of the three powers.

Delegated Powers	Concurrent Powers	Reserved Powers
There is one common currency in the US Passports	There are federal prisons and state prisons Federal and state courts	Drivers’ licenses Create schools

Explain the responsibility of the President under each ‘role’?

Chief of State	This role requires a president to be an inspiring example for the American people.
Chief Executive	The president is “boss” for millions of government workers in the Executive Branch, deciding how the laws are to be enforced.
Chief Diplomat	The president represents the United States in negotiations with foreign countries, because the Constitution grants the President the power to negotiate and sign treaties on behalf of the United States
Commander in Chief	The President is ultimately at the head of the chain of command for the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and the Coast Guard.
Bill of Rights
1^st Amendment Freedom of Speech, Religion, Press, Assembly, Petition
2^nd Amendment Right to keep arms
3^rd Amendment Right to protection from troops being quartered in homes during peacetime
4^th Amendment Right against unreasonable search and seizure without a warrant
5^th Amendment Rights of the Accused
6^th Amendment Right to be informed of the charges against you, a speedy public trial, impartial jury
7^th Amendment Right to a trial by jury in a civil case (non-criminal case)
8^th Amendment Right to protection against cruel and unusual punishment
9^th Amendment Guaranteed the rights not listed in the Constitution are still protected
10^th Amendment Guarantee that the people and the states have all of the powers not specifically delegated to the federal government (reserved powers)

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