Government
Rational Approach - focuses on individuals. It assumes that individuals act rationally and
logically in order to maximise their own self-interest to provide the most beneficial outcome
for themselves. Each individual has their own set of political goals e.g., social, economic,
cultural or environmental and will make decisions to achieve these goals. Important when
looking at voting behaviour, political parties and pressure groups. This approach ignores the
difficulty for ordinary individuals to gain access to information to make rational choices and
overestimates human rationality.
Cultural Approach - focuses on ideas e.g., political, social, economic and religious ideas
within each nation that highlight the shared, learnt and symbolic system of values, beliefs
and attitudes that shape and influence people’s perceptions and behaviour. Culture tells us
the collective interest among members of a community and often these shared ideas, beliefs
and values determine the actions of individuals and groups. Culture is large and socially
complex in the USA and UK, especially with the existence of subcultures which makes it
difficult to identify a culture without the danger of generalisation. Culture is criticised for being
just reflections of the culture of elite groups, particularly white anglo-saxon protestants
(WASPS) in America. As a result, other groups e.g., Black American, Catholic, Jewish,
Hispanic and Latinos have been seen as sub-cultures. Often views differ on issues e.g.,
homosexuality, pornography and right to life such as the 1990s American ‘culture wars’
where views differed drastically on what constituted to US culture. Culture explains how
people react to safeguard fundamental rights and culture of the nation.
Structural Approach - focuses on institutions. Political outcomes are largely determined by
the formal processes laid out within the political system, particularly the relationship between
the government and the governed, employers and employees, party and members. As a
result, lives of individuals and groups within a society are determined by their position within
a structure. Lacks focus on the individual. Legislative, executive and judiciary, Constitution,
class structure, electoral and political parties and pressure groups.
The Constitution
The Origins and Development of the US Constitution
Origins:
● 13 British colonies with written charters and forms of government
● American colonies existed for the economic benefit of the British government and
Americans didn’t have representation in the British parliament which led to
resentment with James Otis stating ‘Taxation without representation is tyranny!’
● In 1776, 13 colonies signed the Declaration of Independence which led to war and
the defeat of the British in 1783
● After the colonies were no longer ruled by Britain, a confederacy was formed. A
confederacy is a loose collection of independent states rather than a national
government. Articles of Confederation were agreed in 1781 and ratified 13
independent states. All decisions were collective with all 13 states needing to agree
, on them. Competing interest between states with different state sizes e.g., large vs
small
● The confederacy had many problems, it was weak with no executive or judiciary
branch, lacked leadership and the Congress was unable to tax and relied on funding
from the states so it was deemed that ex-colonists had failed to form a nation and a
new solution was needed
● Washington and Hamilton believed that a strong central government was essential in
order for the states to cooperate on issues e.g., currency or otherwise fear the
reappearance of the British if they remained divided
● As a consequence, the Philadelphia Convention was held where 55 delegates
representing 12 of 13 states met and concluded that the confederacy was structurally
flawed and weak but they faced a dilemma. A strong central government was needed
but there was the fear that it could lead to the trampling of citizens’ rights and
liberties. A strong centre that preserves states’ rights and individual liberties as
needed. A federal Constitution and bill of rights with checks and balances between
different levels of branches of government were proposed
● The Connecticut Compromise was the solution, it led to a new Constitution where
some political power rests with federal government and other important powers with
the state government and so satisfied both federalists and anti-federalists. The Great
Compromise was created by the ‘founding fathers’ at the Philadelphia Convention
The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise):
● Proposed a congress of 2 chambers with one based on state population (House of
Representatives) and one based on equal representation (the Senate) with 100
senators each state having 2 representatives
● Before the compromise, the New Jersey Plan proposed a congress with 1 chamber
that was based on equal representation of states and so was favoured by states with
smaller populations.
● The Virginia Plan proposed a Congress of 2 chambers where the states would be
represented in proportion to their population. This was flavoured by states with larger
populations
● The Great Compromise provided the perfect balance between these 2 previous plans
which all the states could agree on
Bill of Rights:
● Even after the Constitution was ratified, many still questioned the powers of the
federal government and the rights of the individual. Anti-federalists feared that
without a Bill of Rights, the federal government would grow too powerful
● Under Article 5, the Constitution could be amended
● James Madison proposed 20 amendments to Congress, Congress approved 12 of
them in 1789 and only 10 were ratified by the states. These 10 proposals are what
are collectively known as the ‘Bill of Rights’
● 1st Amendment protects freedom of religion, speech, assembly and petition. Texas v
Johnson (1989) Supreme Court ruled that burning the American flag was protected
as ‘free speech’ after Johnson was charged with violating Texas law
● 2nd Amendment gives people the right to ‘keep and bear arms’. People debate
whether the amendment actually refers to the individual right to own guns or does it
protect the collective right to form a militia. United States v Miller (1939) Supreme
, Court upheld the National Firearms Act which required the registration of sawed-off
shotguns whereas in DC v Heller (2008) the court ruled that a law banning handguns
was unConstitutional under the 2nd Amendment
● 4th Amendment requires ‘probable cause and warrant before any searches and
seizures of property
● 5th Amendment protects the rights of those accused of committing a crime, people
can’t be deprived of ‘life, liberty or property’ without due process of law (right to a fair
trial), can’t be forced to testify against oneself, tried for the same offence twice and a
‘Grand Juries’ made up of civilians must decide if an individual should be indicted for
a crime before they can be tried in court. Miranda v Arizona (1966) Supreme Court
ruled that Miranda’s confession couldn’t be used as evidence as he had not been
informed of his rights and during arrests, law enforcement must inform individuals of
their Constitutional rights
● 6th Amendment primarily guarantees the right to a fair and speedy trial
● 7th Amendment gives the right to a trial by jury in most civil cases (disputes between
2 parties over noncriminal matters) e.g., Tull v United States (1987)
● 8th Amendment protects against excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and
unusual punishments. Coker v Georgia (1977) Supreme Court ruled that Georgia
couldn’t apply the death penalty for those convicted of rape as only a few states had
passed such laws making the sentence ‘cruel and unusual’
● 9th Amendment has been argued to affirm that the Bill of Rights does not list every
right that people have. Just because some rights are not included, doesn’t mean that
they don’t exist e.g., the right to privacy is not mentioned in the Bill of Rights but in
Griswold v Connecticut (1965) the court argued that it was implied in the 1st, 3rd and
14th Amendments and that the 9th Amendment supported their interpretation
● 10th Amendment states that any power that is not delegated to the federal
government then it should be up to the states and the people
The Constitution
The Codification:
● Article I established Congress as the national legislature with the power to propose
legislation and power to veto legislation. Congress has specific powers e.g., ‘to coin
money’, ‘declare war’, tax collection, borrow money on behalf of the US government,
power to impeach and remove the other branches and approve cabinet
members/ambassadors and judges.
● Article II decided on a singular executive by vesting all executive powers in the hands
of a ‘President’ chosen indirectly by the electoral college. The president has the
power to grant pardons, is the commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and has the
power to negotiate international treaties on behalf of the US
● Article III established the United States Supreme Court. Although not explicitly
granted, the court was to umpire the Constitution as implied by the supremacy clause
of Article VI and the provision in Article III
Vagueness of the Constitution:
● The Constitution is a blend of specificity and vagueness, the vagueness allowed
delegates to compromise at the Philadelphia Convention and allows the Constitution
, to evolve without formal amendment. However, the lack of clarity also leads to
conflict and disputes on what can be classed as Constitutional
● Implied powers are powers of the federal government that the Constitution doesn’t
explicitly mention whereas enumerated powers are those delegated to the federal
government under the Constitution.
● The absence of comment on slavery in the original document led to divisions in the
American Civil War 1860s although slavery was later banned by the 13th
Amendment (1865)
● Implied powers are deduced from the ‘necessary and proper clause’ of Article I which
empowers Congress to make all laws 'necessary and proper’ to carry out the federal
government’s duties also known as the ‘elastic clause’. ‘Necessary and proper’ mean
different things for different periods, so this part of the Constitution allows for
interpretation
● Implied powers are controversial because at times it has been used to expand the
powers of the federal government beyond enumerated powers e.g., when the
Supreme Court ruled in McCulloch v Maryland (1897) that Congress had the power
to create a national bank despite it not being an enumerated power of Congress
under the Constitution. Many argue that the implied powers give federal law too
much power over state law
● The power of the judicial review where the Supreme Court can declare the acts of
Congress, actions of the executive and acts/actions of the state governments as
unConstitutional is an implied power, it isn’t enumerated but found in the 1803 case
of Madbury v Madison. State law henceforth had to follow the Constitution as set by
the court after the historical case
● Marbury v Madison was the 1st judicial review of federal law and in the ruling, the
Supreme Court discovered its ability to be arbiter of the Constitution, it decides what
is Constitutional or not and so can veto an Act of Congress etc
Reserved and Concurrent Powers:
● Reserved powers are reserved to the states alone or to the people e.g., creating laws
about marriage and conducting elections. It is held in the 10th Amendment added
into the Constitution in 1791. Powers not delegated specifically to the federal
government fall to individual states or to the people.
● Concurrent powers are shared by the federal and state governments e.g., collecting
taxes, building roads, maintaining courts and amending the Constitution
● The Supremacy Clause of Article VI in the Constitution provides that the laws passed
by the federal government under its Constitutional powers are the supreme laws of
the land. Any legitimate national law automatically supersedes any conflicting state
law
● An example of controversy of when state law conflicts with federal law is seen with
the legalisation of Marijuana in 29 states. Despite the fact that drugs are legalised in
some states, the federal national government have criminalised them. Supporters for
the states to make their own legislation claim that under the Tenth Amendment,
states have the right to do so as it is not delegated to the federal government.
However, supporters of the federal government to uphold this power claim that
‘Congress may regulate activity that is neither interstate nor commerce under the
Interstate Commerce Clause’. The Interstate Commerce Clause implies the power to
regulate economic activity between states.
Rational Approach - focuses on individuals. It assumes that individuals act rationally and
logically in order to maximise their own self-interest to provide the most beneficial outcome
for themselves. Each individual has their own set of political goals e.g., social, economic,
cultural or environmental and will make decisions to achieve these goals. Important when
looking at voting behaviour, political parties and pressure groups. This approach ignores the
difficulty for ordinary individuals to gain access to information to make rational choices and
overestimates human rationality.
Cultural Approach - focuses on ideas e.g., political, social, economic and religious ideas
within each nation that highlight the shared, learnt and symbolic system of values, beliefs
and attitudes that shape and influence people’s perceptions and behaviour. Culture tells us
the collective interest among members of a community and often these shared ideas, beliefs
and values determine the actions of individuals and groups. Culture is large and socially
complex in the USA and UK, especially with the existence of subcultures which makes it
difficult to identify a culture without the danger of generalisation. Culture is criticised for being
just reflections of the culture of elite groups, particularly white anglo-saxon protestants
(WASPS) in America. As a result, other groups e.g., Black American, Catholic, Jewish,
Hispanic and Latinos have been seen as sub-cultures. Often views differ on issues e.g.,
homosexuality, pornography and right to life such as the 1990s American ‘culture wars’
where views differed drastically on what constituted to US culture. Culture explains how
people react to safeguard fundamental rights and culture of the nation.
Structural Approach - focuses on institutions. Political outcomes are largely determined by
the formal processes laid out within the political system, particularly the relationship between
the government and the governed, employers and employees, party and members. As a
result, lives of individuals and groups within a society are determined by their position within
a structure. Lacks focus on the individual. Legislative, executive and judiciary, Constitution,
class structure, electoral and political parties and pressure groups.
The Constitution
The Origins and Development of the US Constitution
Origins:
● 13 British colonies with written charters and forms of government
● American colonies existed for the economic benefit of the British government and
Americans didn’t have representation in the British parliament which led to
resentment with James Otis stating ‘Taxation without representation is tyranny!’
● In 1776, 13 colonies signed the Declaration of Independence which led to war and
the defeat of the British in 1783
● After the colonies were no longer ruled by Britain, a confederacy was formed. A
confederacy is a loose collection of independent states rather than a national
government. Articles of Confederation were agreed in 1781 and ratified 13
independent states. All decisions were collective with all 13 states needing to agree
, on them. Competing interest between states with different state sizes e.g., large vs
small
● The confederacy had many problems, it was weak with no executive or judiciary
branch, lacked leadership and the Congress was unable to tax and relied on funding
from the states so it was deemed that ex-colonists had failed to form a nation and a
new solution was needed
● Washington and Hamilton believed that a strong central government was essential in
order for the states to cooperate on issues e.g., currency or otherwise fear the
reappearance of the British if they remained divided
● As a consequence, the Philadelphia Convention was held where 55 delegates
representing 12 of 13 states met and concluded that the confederacy was structurally
flawed and weak but they faced a dilemma. A strong central government was needed
but there was the fear that it could lead to the trampling of citizens’ rights and
liberties. A strong centre that preserves states’ rights and individual liberties as
needed. A federal Constitution and bill of rights with checks and balances between
different levels of branches of government were proposed
● The Connecticut Compromise was the solution, it led to a new Constitution where
some political power rests with federal government and other important powers with
the state government and so satisfied both federalists and anti-federalists. The Great
Compromise was created by the ‘founding fathers’ at the Philadelphia Convention
The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise):
● Proposed a congress of 2 chambers with one based on state population (House of
Representatives) and one based on equal representation (the Senate) with 100
senators each state having 2 representatives
● Before the compromise, the New Jersey Plan proposed a congress with 1 chamber
that was based on equal representation of states and so was favoured by states with
smaller populations.
● The Virginia Plan proposed a Congress of 2 chambers where the states would be
represented in proportion to their population. This was flavoured by states with larger
populations
● The Great Compromise provided the perfect balance between these 2 previous plans
which all the states could agree on
Bill of Rights:
● Even after the Constitution was ratified, many still questioned the powers of the
federal government and the rights of the individual. Anti-federalists feared that
without a Bill of Rights, the federal government would grow too powerful
● Under Article 5, the Constitution could be amended
● James Madison proposed 20 amendments to Congress, Congress approved 12 of
them in 1789 and only 10 were ratified by the states. These 10 proposals are what
are collectively known as the ‘Bill of Rights’
● 1st Amendment protects freedom of religion, speech, assembly and petition. Texas v
Johnson (1989) Supreme Court ruled that burning the American flag was protected
as ‘free speech’ after Johnson was charged with violating Texas law
● 2nd Amendment gives people the right to ‘keep and bear arms’. People debate
whether the amendment actually refers to the individual right to own guns or does it
protect the collective right to form a militia. United States v Miller (1939) Supreme
, Court upheld the National Firearms Act which required the registration of sawed-off
shotguns whereas in DC v Heller (2008) the court ruled that a law banning handguns
was unConstitutional under the 2nd Amendment
● 4th Amendment requires ‘probable cause and warrant before any searches and
seizures of property
● 5th Amendment protects the rights of those accused of committing a crime, people
can’t be deprived of ‘life, liberty or property’ without due process of law (right to a fair
trial), can’t be forced to testify against oneself, tried for the same offence twice and a
‘Grand Juries’ made up of civilians must decide if an individual should be indicted for
a crime before they can be tried in court. Miranda v Arizona (1966) Supreme Court
ruled that Miranda’s confession couldn’t be used as evidence as he had not been
informed of his rights and during arrests, law enforcement must inform individuals of
their Constitutional rights
● 6th Amendment primarily guarantees the right to a fair and speedy trial
● 7th Amendment gives the right to a trial by jury in most civil cases (disputes between
2 parties over noncriminal matters) e.g., Tull v United States (1987)
● 8th Amendment protects against excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and
unusual punishments. Coker v Georgia (1977) Supreme Court ruled that Georgia
couldn’t apply the death penalty for those convicted of rape as only a few states had
passed such laws making the sentence ‘cruel and unusual’
● 9th Amendment has been argued to affirm that the Bill of Rights does not list every
right that people have. Just because some rights are not included, doesn’t mean that
they don’t exist e.g., the right to privacy is not mentioned in the Bill of Rights but in
Griswold v Connecticut (1965) the court argued that it was implied in the 1st, 3rd and
14th Amendments and that the 9th Amendment supported their interpretation
● 10th Amendment states that any power that is not delegated to the federal
government then it should be up to the states and the people
The Constitution
The Codification:
● Article I established Congress as the national legislature with the power to propose
legislation and power to veto legislation. Congress has specific powers e.g., ‘to coin
money’, ‘declare war’, tax collection, borrow money on behalf of the US government,
power to impeach and remove the other branches and approve cabinet
members/ambassadors and judges.
● Article II decided on a singular executive by vesting all executive powers in the hands
of a ‘President’ chosen indirectly by the electoral college. The president has the
power to grant pardons, is the commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and has the
power to negotiate international treaties on behalf of the US
● Article III established the United States Supreme Court. Although not explicitly
granted, the court was to umpire the Constitution as implied by the supremacy clause
of Article VI and the provision in Article III
Vagueness of the Constitution:
● The Constitution is a blend of specificity and vagueness, the vagueness allowed
delegates to compromise at the Philadelphia Convention and allows the Constitution
, to evolve without formal amendment. However, the lack of clarity also leads to
conflict and disputes on what can be classed as Constitutional
● Implied powers are powers of the federal government that the Constitution doesn’t
explicitly mention whereas enumerated powers are those delegated to the federal
government under the Constitution.
● The absence of comment on slavery in the original document led to divisions in the
American Civil War 1860s although slavery was later banned by the 13th
Amendment (1865)
● Implied powers are deduced from the ‘necessary and proper clause’ of Article I which
empowers Congress to make all laws 'necessary and proper’ to carry out the federal
government’s duties also known as the ‘elastic clause’. ‘Necessary and proper’ mean
different things for different periods, so this part of the Constitution allows for
interpretation
● Implied powers are controversial because at times it has been used to expand the
powers of the federal government beyond enumerated powers e.g., when the
Supreme Court ruled in McCulloch v Maryland (1897) that Congress had the power
to create a national bank despite it not being an enumerated power of Congress
under the Constitution. Many argue that the implied powers give federal law too
much power over state law
● The power of the judicial review where the Supreme Court can declare the acts of
Congress, actions of the executive and acts/actions of the state governments as
unConstitutional is an implied power, it isn’t enumerated but found in the 1803 case
of Madbury v Madison. State law henceforth had to follow the Constitution as set by
the court after the historical case
● Marbury v Madison was the 1st judicial review of federal law and in the ruling, the
Supreme Court discovered its ability to be arbiter of the Constitution, it decides what
is Constitutional or not and so can veto an Act of Congress etc
Reserved and Concurrent Powers:
● Reserved powers are reserved to the states alone or to the people e.g., creating laws
about marriage and conducting elections. It is held in the 10th Amendment added
into the Constitution in 1791. Powers not delegated specifically to the federal
government fall to individual states or to the people.
● Concurrent powers are shared by the federal and state governments e.g., collecting
taxes, building roads, maintaining courts and amending the Constitution
● The Supremacy Clause of Article VI in the Constitution provides that the laws passed
by the federal government under its Constitutional powers are the supreme laws of
the land. Any legitimate national law automatically supersedes any conflicting state
law
● An example of controversy of when state law conflicts with federal law is seen with
the legalisation of Marijuana in 29 states. Despite the fact that drugs are legalised in
some states, the federal national government have criminalised them. Supporters for
the states to make their own legislation claim that under the Tenth Amendment,
states have the right to do so as it is not delegated to the federal government.
However, supporters of the federal government to uphold this power claim that
‘Congress may regulate activity that is neither interstate nor commerce under the
Interstate Commerce Clause’. The Interstate Commerce Clause implies the power to
regulate economic activity between states.
