Texas Historical Event

Decent Essays
I believe that the historical event of E. J. Davis's time as governor during reconstruction had a major impact on the Texas constitution in place today. Because of Davis centralizing power in the executive and corrupting the system, Texas grew more in fear of a strong government (Davis Video Lecture). Also, the fact that Texas is an individualistic state and believes that "government should limit its role to providing order in society" is another reason why limited government is a major aspect of the Texas constitution (Ginsberg, et.al., p.743).

The Texas and U.S. constitutions differ because the Texas constitution is more detailed and complex, where as the U.S. constitution is more simple and can be interpreted in different ways (Ginsberg,

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    Conventionally, the law would limit the federal government from baselessly upholding tax and spending policies. This would equally ensure that federal government’s legislatures’ powers limited as they will not be able to write anything and everything into law. Equally, it is worth noting that the constitutional amendment process of the Texas Constitution is easy and fast. This has always made it simple to amend sections of the constitution that are unnecessary due to various aspects such as politics, economy, culture, and even the environment (Gillette & Skeel Jr, 2016). If this would have been adopted by the federal government, important amendments would be made easily and faster, all for the prosperity of Americans.…

    • 1255 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Event 3: In December 1835, during Texas’ war for independence from Mexico, a group of Texan volunteer soldiers occupied the Alamo, a former Franciscan mission located near the present-day city of San Antonio. On February 23, 1836, a Mexican force numbering in the thousands and led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna began a siege of the fort.…

    • 58 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Texas constitution is the legal framework within which the government works, and it impacts on the everyday life of Texan as much as the U.S. Constitution does. It does not only want to create sets of rules but it was to limit the power of political party and save it from being abused. The Texas Constitution has gone through many historical changes and amendments. Texas was a part of Mexico before, when Mexico was ruled by the Spain. On August 21, 1821 Mexico was formally independent from Spain then Texas had their first constitution under Mexican Constitution.…

    • 1152 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When it first became a state, land and cattle were a large portion of the economy, but when Pattillo Higgins and Anthony Lucas found oil, oil became what outsiders associate the state with. Texas’s government takes up the next portion of her book. When Texas was established, Texans wanted very little to do with the government. Because of this, the Texas legislature only meets one-hundred and forty days every two years. Texas also went through quite a few constitutions and finally landed on one that greatly limits the government. The political party of Texas has also been changing.…

    • 996 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    First of all, the issue caused by the constitution is of underpaid legislature causing officials to get easily influenced by special interest groups. The low pay of the officials is the reason behind high percentage of lawyers and businessmen in legislature in Texas. Secondly, the limitation of the legislature session for only every two years due which it becomes difficult to govern a large urban state. It is burdensome to make a budget for a two-year period and therefore there are chances of errors in calculations and eventually, a deficit…

    • 1023 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The State of Texas has many things going for itself from its growing economy to Chuck Norris but unfortunately its state constitution simply does not make the list. When it comes to Texas, political scientist John E. Paynter had one thing right in regards to its state constitution; it is a “perfect example of how not to write one”. The current Texas constitution is commonly referred as the Constitution of 1876. Since 2015, the legislature has proposed a total of 673 amendments.…

    • 823 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Expansionism In Texas

    • 358 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Before Texas became independent many ethnicities brought rise to various ideas that changed the way of politics. In the early the 1700s the Spanish invaded Mexico and along came their beliefs and traditions. The Tejanos adapted the form of government from the Spanish which the political position was passed down the same family, although elections were known but not popular. When Texas was part of Mexico, the politicians were afraid of American expansionism and therefore developed Anglo-…

    • 358 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Never the less it is very similar to the United States Constitution. There are many difference between the Texas Constitution and the United States Constitution. However, there are also many similarities as well. Both the Texas constitution and the United States constitution includes a Bill of Rights; which consist of the liberties and rights that are deemed essential to the citizens of the United States.…

    • 692 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    54). This makes it one of the longest and oldest standing state constitutions. Many of the provisions in the state constitution are unique to Texas, and are due to the state’s unique history (Ericson and Wallace). Some of these provisions are due to a Spanish and Mexican influence and deal with land law, debtor relief, water and mineral rights, and judicial procedures (Ericson and Wallace). Other provisions that are unique can be attributed to the wide support of agrarianism and frontier radicalism by immigrants to Texas prior to the Civil War, and include stricter separation of church and state, and sections prohibiting banks (Ericson and Wallace).…

    • 1138 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Texas Constitution: Differences and Amendments During any regular or special session, a member of the Texas legislature can propose an amendment to the state constitution. This proposal must be approved by two-thirds of the members of each house of Texas and the Amendment will be voted upon by qualified, registered voters. A brief description, or explanatory statement of the proposed amendment is then prepared by the Secretary of State and approved by the Attorney General.…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Territorial Expansion DBQ

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages

    One side felt Texas could “increase the wealth and happiness of all classes in our society” (Doc G) and believed “all this patriotism ¬-all this philanthropy -all this religion- appeals to us in favor of the addition of Texas to our Union” (Doc G). On the other hand, the opponents knew that “we are anxious to force free government on all” (Doc H) but only under “a very high state of moral and intellectual improvement, in a civilized state” (Doc H) is the nation able maintain a free government and form “a constitution capable of endurance” (Doc H).…

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Texas Revolution

    • 1212 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Texas Revolution seems like an almost forgotten conflict in the United States. Although it may not be very relevant today, it played a crucial part in the history of the United States. Without the Texas Revolution, America would be a very different place today. Texas was essential to helping the United States become the superpower it is today, and if Texas were to not be recognized as a state, the United States would have been at a disadvantage. There were many driving factors as to why Teas wanted to be independent, and many reasons why Mexico wanted to control the land.…

    • 1212 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Is also hard for Texas to let women, students and the poor to vote, it forces women to present a valid ID in order to vote, you need to a driver’s license, a state personal ID card, a concealed handgun license, a U.S. military ID card, a U.S. citizenship certificate, or a U.S. passport. Another good reason why Texas isn’t ready to secede is because Texas is running out of drugs to execute their inmates, and the only way they can get more is if they stay with the United States. And this is really a big thing for Texas because is the state with the highest execution rate in the country. And like I say before, Texas is not as good financially like they think they are that means Texas relies more on federal dollars and less on its own taxes than it did when Perry took office. Put another way: Texas is less independent than it was when the governor took office, not more.…

    • 885 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Colonization Of Texas

    • 199 Words
    • 1 Pages

    Texas began as a valuable territory in Mexico, highly coveted by the U.S., especially in the south. The climate of Texas was perfect for growing cotton, which was an important crop on southern plantations. In 1821, a man named Moses Austin was the first to pursue a colony in the territory. He was given a huge land grant, but died before he could do anything with it. His son, Stephen Austin took the land and continued the dream of colonizing Texas.…

    • 199 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Annexation Of Texas Essay

    • 2045 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The Annexation of Texas The annexation of Texas by the United States remains a controversial topic to this day. Occurring in 1845, it caused a great uproar amongst the citizens of the United States and Texas. The main question when debating the annexation of Texas is how it affected slavery. Indeed, and because the annexation of slavery served to extend the area in which slavery would be allowed, this caused a situation in which it shifted the balance of power away from the North and towards the South in relation to the question of slavery.…

    • 2045 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays