Principles of American Democracy and Economics
A comparison of American and world governments; changing interpretations of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the three branches of government; historical documents such as the Federalist Papers and civic literacy
Fundamental economic concepts and the application of tools (graphs, statistics, equations) in economic operations and institutions; micro- and macro-economics, international economics, comparative economic systems, and measurement and methods
Principals of American Democracy -
12.1 THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES AND MORAL VALUES OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY AS EXPRESSED IN THE U.S. CONSTITUTION AND OTHER ESSENTIAL DOCUMENTS OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
- The influence of ancient Greek, Roman, English and leading European political thinkers such as John Locke, Charles-Louis Montesquieu, Niccolo Machiavelli and William Blackstone on the development of American government
- The character of American democracy and its promise and perils as articulated by Alexis de Tocqueville
- How the U.S. Constitution reflects a balance between the classical republican concern with promotion of the public good and the classical liberal concern with protecting invidivual rights; and how the basic premises of liberal constitutionalism and democracy are joined in the Declaration of Independence as "self-evident truths"
- How the Founding Fathers' realistic view of human nature led directly to the establishment of a constitutional system that limited the power of the governors and the governed as articulated in the Federalist Papers
- The systems of separated and shared powers, the role of organized interests (Federalist Paper Number 10), checks and balances (Federalist Paper Number 51), the importance of an independent judiciary (Federalist Paper Number 78), enumerated powers, rule of law, federalism and civilian control of the military
- How the Bill of Rights limits the powers of the federal government and state governments
12.2 DEBATES ON THE SCOPE AND LIMITS OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS AS DEMOCRATIC CITIZENS, THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG THEM AND HOW THEY ARE SECURED
- The meaning and importance of each of the rights guaranteed under the Bill of Rights and how each is secured (e.g., freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, petition, privacy)
- How economic rights are secured and their importance to the individual and to society (e.g., the right to acquire, use, transfer and dispose of property; right to choose one's work; right to join or not to join labor unions; copyright and patent)
- The individual's legal obligations to obey the law, serve as a juror and pay taxes
- The obligations of civic-mindedness, including voting, being informed on civic issues, volunteering and performing public service and serving in the military or alternative service
- The recoprocity between rights and obligation; that is, why enjoyment of one's rights entails respect for the rights of others
- The process of becoming a citizen of the U.S., including the process of naturalization (e.g., literacy, language and other requirements)
12.3 DEBATES ON WHAT THE FUNDAMENTAL VALUES AND PRINCIPLES OF CIVIL SOCIETY ARE (I.E., THE AUTONOMOUS SPHERE OF VOLUNTARY PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RELATIONS THAT ARE NOT PART OF GOV'T), THEIR INTERDEPENDENCE AND THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF THOE VALUES AND PRINCIPLES FOR A FREE SOCIETY
- How civil society provides opportunities for individuals to associate for social, cultural, religious, economic and political purposes
- How civil society makes it possible for people, individually or in association with others, to bring their influence to bear on government in ways other than voting and elections
- The historical role of religion and religious diversity
- The relationship of government and civil society in constitutional democracies to the relationship of government and civil society in authoritarian and totalitarian regimes
12.4 THE UNIQUE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE THREE BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT AS ESTABLISHED BY THE U.S. CONSTITUTION
- Article I of the Constitution as it relates to the legislative branch, including eligibility for office and lengths of terms of representatives and senators; election to office; the roles of the House and Senate in impeachment proceedings; the role of the vice president; the enumerated legislative powers; and the process by which a bill becomes a law
- The process through which the Constitution can be amended
- Identification of current representatives in the legislative branch of the national gov't
- Article II of the Constitution as it relates to the executive branch, including eligibility for office and length of term, election to and removal from office, the oath for office and the enumerated executive powers
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