AMER

2008: House D / Senate D

2010: House R / Senate D

2012: House R / Senate D

2014: House R / Senate R

divided Government = opposed Party in at least one chamber

Party-intern, um Kandidaten zu wählen (von Januar bis Juni)

2016: February 1st - Iowa

February 9th - New Hampshire

! Counted by State !

- each state has a certain number of electoral votes

- candidate who wins popular vote gets all votes -> Winner takes all

- to become President: 270 electoral votes 

Number of Popular Votes = Number of Representatives + Number of Senators

- D.C. has no representation in Comhress but 3 electoral votes

Blue = dem. / Red = rep.

- Swing states = States which are neither blue nor red (ex. Iowa)

- Problem: ex. Republican living in Blue State -> Why should I vote? / Scandal Bush & Gore

1865: abolished slavery

1868: citizenship/equal protection (referred to in same sex marriage discussion)

1870: former male slaves given right to vote

1913: Direct Vote of Senators

1919: Prohibition (limited rights, sale of alcohol)

1920: Women given right to vote

1933: Prohibition repealed

- passed by Congress on March 4, 1789 - ratified in 1791

- based on Virginias Decleration of Rights (1776)

- afraid: implies that some rights that were not listed, don't exist

- function: "in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of the const. powers" + +further restrictive clauses should be added"

- Jefferson = anti-federalist, afraid of Bill of Rights

Protected Freedoms: religion, speech, press, assembly

- Religion Clauses = "establishment" + "free exercise" clauses (Jefferson: "two clauses built a wall of separation between church and state", "closer to the truth to believe nothing, than something that is wrong")

No official church, no favoritism

Inspiration: John Locke (English Enlightment phil.) & Roger Williams (theologian)

Has concerned public schools:

1962: Engel v. Vitale: prayers = unconstitutional

1968: Epperson v. Arkansas: schools must teach evolution

1987: Edwards v. Aguilard: creationism shouldn't be taught

1920s: Monkey trial - teacher in trial for teaching evolution

- protects religious beliefs & practice; different cult are allowed except when they're actions are crime related

- accomodation: compromise, if there is an undue burden caused by a law on an individual's religious practice, the gov. will accomodate (ex. native american tribe smoking peyote)

- ex. 1944 U.S v. Ballard: invented religion, asked for donations, got arrested for mail fraud. "freedom of religion embraces the right to maintain theories of life and death"

Belief vs. Conduct

- belief is absolute, conduct can be controlled if state has a compelling interest

- ex. SIKH boy wearing knife on leg to school; Jehova Witness keeping boy from blood transfusion

1984 Lynch v. Donelly

"They have lost through rote repetition any significant religious concept" -> public holidays don't hurt establishment clause

- "Freedom to speak foolishly and without moderation"

- 1944 Baumgartner v. US: Held speeches

- Limits? Imminent Lawless Actions: if the speaker intends to incite a violation of the law that is both imminent and likely 

- role of the press is to hold the government accountable (ex. Watergate)

1. religion 2. internet privacy 3. national security vs. civil liberties 4. same sex-marriage 5. size of government 6. election of president

George Washington: "not gonna last"

James Madison (one of writers): "not lose sight of changes to make it last"

Colonies in New World (16th, 17th, 18th)

- Famous British settlements: 1607 Jamestown / Virginia -> reason of commerce

1620 Plymouth / Massachussets -> religious reasons

Brit. Colonies = Some of the freest people in 17th, moving towards a more representative form of gov.

13 colonies established between 1607-1733

English Civil War: 1640 - 1660 -> Charles I executed (König vs. Parlament), zeitweiligie Abschaffung der Monarchie

Glorious Revolution 1688: constitutional monarchy established (no absolute monarchs, parliament gained power)

English Bill Of Rights: 1689

- Colonists have written compact forms of self governments (rights) - Mayflower (Puritans), Virginia Declaration of Rights etc.

Decleration of Independence: July 4, 1776 = indpendent country based on John Locke's ideas: "life, liberty, pursuit of happiness" (people are born with natural rights)

- war, reaction to document, Brit vs US, violent break

- government protects rights, but does not give rights:

-> if it fails people have duty to rise up

-> people give gov. permission to exist = consent of the governed

- 1st paragrapgh: why they break away from UK

- balance of power is going to be shifted

- God references don't refer to Christians God, they believe in scientific principles

- pursuit of happiness = being able to use your potential

- 1781, lasted 8 years (replaced by Constitution

- was a failure

- goal: avoid tyrannical form of gov. (no president, no taxes)

- every state is independent, weak central government

- gov. too weak -> didn't follow the same interests and needs 

- individual states laws conflicted

- big versus small

- agricultural vs. industrialized

- Pro-French vs. Pro-British

- arguments over borders

- slave states vs. free states

How to create a form of gov. that is strong enough to unify, yet protects the autonomy of the states? 

- 1783: US beats Brit., treaty signed ending American Revolutionary War

- 1787: Constitution 

- 1788: ratification by 2/3 of the states

- 1789: Washington first president, First Congress meeting, Bill Of Rights

- 1792: ratification Bill Of Rights

- States needed to be convinced - concerned it would create a central gov., suspicion of power

- Federalist (pro central gov.) vs. Anti-Federalist

- Federalist Papers -> to convince population

-  Jefferson sought to establish a federal government of limited powers

1. Great Compromise: 2 chambers

• House of Representatives (lower chamber): proportional to state's population, representative serves 2 years, today: 435 / represent district, more personal to the people; ex. California: 53 Repr. -> 33 districts
• Senate (upper chamber): 2 senators, serves 6 years, today: 100; represents all of a state

- population gets counted every 10 years -> 3/5 of slaves included (free states: "don't count slaves!")

- population number would then be used to determine the number of seats that the state would have in the United States House of Representatives

??

- The preamble + 7 articles

- 27 amendments adderd (first 10 = Bill of Rights)

- legislature

- Congress makes laws

- most detailed article

- executive

- president + cabinet (secretaries) enforce laws

- article places limits on president, how he is elected, head of military (commander in chief), have to be US citizen (only position), how many years he/she must have lived in US 

- judiciary (Supreme Court, federal court system) 

- interpret law

- federalist system (relationship among the states, between gov. and states), full faith and credit clause -> state supposed to ratify documents, laws. etc. of other states, ex. same sex marriage)