John Locke

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What are John Locke’s ideas of natural law and the social contract theory?

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"The constructive doctrines which were elaborated in (John Locke's Second Treatise of Government) became the basis of social and political philosophy fo generations. (locke said) labor is the origin and justification of property; contract or consent is the ground of government and fixes its limits. Behind both doctrines lies the idea of the independence of the individual person. The state of nature knows no government. Men are subject to moral law. thus the government is instituted by a 'social contract'., its powers are limited, and they involve reciprocal obligations, moreover, they can be modified or rescinded by the authority which conferred them.

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How long did it take Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence

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There was a committee of five appointed by the Second Continental Congress to draft it, on June 11, 1776, The 5 were, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston and Roger Sherman. They present declaration back to Second Continental Congress on June 28 1776, debated, voted and passed on July 4, 1776.

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What documents that preceded the Constitution inspired its authors?

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Magna Carta, The Bible, some say it was man made, The Roman Empire, The Bill of Rights, The British Constitution, however, unlike Brit's US Constitution cannot be changed, whereas British one can be changed by Parliament and amended overnight.

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What political philosophers influenced the Declaration of Independence?

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greatest influence upon the members of the Constitutional Convention was Montesquieu's Spirit of Laws, first appeared in 1748. French Philosopher had, in turn borrowed much of his doctrine from Englishman John Locke, and various writers of the convention.

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What are natural rights?

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in accordance to the Declaration of Independence, the unalienable (natural) rights are...life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It is often believed that "natural rights" should be interpreted and /or added to as they pertain to specific circumstances or particular events. Almost every state constitution has some form of "natural rights" iincluded in the text.

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Must all revenue and appropriation bills originate in the House of Representatives?

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The Constitution provides that all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives. It is customary for appropriation bilols to originate there.

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What is meant by the word veto, in the President's powers?

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The word is from the Latin and means I forbid. The President is authorized by the Constitution to refuse his assent to a bill presented by Congress if for any reason he disapproves of it. Congress, may however pass the act over his veto but it must be by two-thirds majority of both houses. If Congress adjourns before the end of the 10 days, the President can prevent the enactment of the bill by merely not signing it. This is called a pocket veto.

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What are the standards for government in the Declaration of Independence?

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Thomas Jefferson wrote essentially of a new theory of government, in which the government itself was expected and required to protect "natural rights" of citizens. Have been used to justify other political and social movements.

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How are these standards reflected in the U.S. Constitution?

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The framers of the Constitution were especially concerned with limiting the power of the government and securing the liberty of citizens. The Constitution separated the branches of government, legislative, executive, and judicial.checks and balances against one another, and the explicit guarantees of individual liberty were all designed to strike a balance between authority and liberty.

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Who wrote the Articles of Confederation, and how long did these articles last?

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Established the first national government of the thirteen colonies (which declared themselves free and independent states in Dec. of Ind). The Second Continental Congress proposed to write the Articles of Confederation in July 1776, right after passing the Dec. of Ind. The Third Continental Congress convened in Dec 1776, and finalized the Articles of Confed. in Nov 1777. The Articles had to be ratified by each state and were finally ratified in March 1781. The Revolutionary War ended in April 1783. The US Constitution was then written in Philadelphia from May to Sept. 1787 and ratified by 9 states in June 1788. The First Congress of the USA took office in March 1789. So the country was under the Articles of Confederation from March 1781 to March 1789-eight years.

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What were the main weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?

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"a league of friendship" where the individual soverignty of the states was paramount. A confederation is one type of national government. Other types are unitary government (the Continental Congress) had no power to tax. Only the individual states could tax their own citizens. States were supposed to voluntarily give taxes to the Continental Congress yet were not forced to; consequently, many did not. The Continental Congress had no power to regulate interstate or foreign commerce. Each state made its own treaties. There was no national executive (only a president of the Continental Congress with no executive powers) Any national law passed by the Continental Congress would need unanimous consent from each state legislature; therefore, any state could veto any law.