UE 4

Civilisation américaine 1
(1LIAY4)
POWERPOINT n° 2

Christophe Chambost
(christophe.chambost@u-bordeaux-montaigne.fr)
 The Constitution in detail
Article 1: How congress functions

House of Rep.: directly elected (by US citizens). The more populous the state,
the bigger the representation
Senate: indirectly elected (elected by stateth legislature). 2 senators per state
(regardless of size). (Modified in 1913: 17 Amendment >> direct election)
Article 1 explains how bills are turned into laws (section 7), what congress
can do (section 8) and what it cannot do (section 9)
Section 7: congress can override the president’s veto of a bill… yet, the president’s
“pocket veto” (something rare)
Section 8: list of congress’s specific powers >> power to establish an army, to
declare war, to raise money… The “elastic clause” = power to make laws seen as
“necessary”
Section 9: limits on how to impose taxes, how to prosecute people...
(in Section 9: importation of slaves must end in 1808)
A close-up on Article 1 (legislative power)
The power of “impeachment” (article 1, section 2 and 3)
The House of Reps. votes for the procedure of impeachment (simple majority)
The Senate judges the President (2/3 majority; Chief Justice presiding)

No President ever impeached:

Andrew Johnson (1868)
Bill Clinton (1998)
Donald trump (2019)
Donald Trump (2021)

One President resigned (to avoid impeachment)

Richard Nixon (1974) >> Watergate scandal
Article 1 (cont.): How to make a law (section 7)

A bill presented in the House of reps. >> vote (simple majority)

The senate accepts the bill, or it may modify it >> if so, the bill goes back to
the House of Reps. >> new vote >>> then the Senate votes again. (simple majority
each time)
Then, the bill is presented to the President:
>>> he approves it: the bill becomes a law
>>> he vetoes it (within a period of 10 days): the bill goes back to Congress >>> new
vote in both Houses >>> if 2/3 majority is reached in both Houses: the bill becomes a
law.

If the President neither approves it, nor vetoes it: after 10 days, the bill becomes a law.

“Pocket veto” = fewer than 10 days before end of session: the President neither
approves, or vetoes the bill >>> the bill is abandoned (till next session of Congress)
 Article 1 (cont.):
Section 8: the powers of Congress
Establish and maintain an army and navy
Declare war
Raise money (taxes)
Regulate commerce between states
…
The “elastic clause” = ”The Congress shall have the power … to make all laws
that shall be necessary and proper for carrying out the foregoing powers”…
>>> smthg liked by the Federalists (and “loose constructionists”) >>> smthg
disliked by the Anti-federalists (and “strict constructionists”)
- Section 9: Limitations on Congress, and announcing the end of the
importation of slaves (planned for 1808).
 Article 2: creation of the President of the USA (powers and limits)
(first President: G. Washington, elected in 1789).
section 1:
requirements to be a president (at least 35 years old, US resident for 14 years…).
Electoral process: indirect elections
>> 1) citizens (= voters) vote for an electoral college (= electors) = popular vote
>> 2) then: electors vote for the president. = electoral vote.
Electoral college = number of electors
The electoral college of a state depends on its size.
>>> number of electors for one state = its number of Representatives (it varies) +
number of senators (= 2)
>>> today: total number of electors (for the 50 U.S. states = Washington D.C)
= 435 + 100 + 3 (Washington D.C.) = 538 electors
>>> President elected with 270 electors
1) Election day: early November
Voters vote for a list of electors >> “winner-takes-all” basis
2) Then: the electors’ lists that have won vote for the President in December
(they vote for the candidate they represent: no surprise in their votes).
3) 6th of January: Congress meet on the Capitol: they count the electors’ votes
and officially declare who the president is.
N.B.: a candidate can have the majority of the electoral college without having
the majority of the popular vote >>> then that candidate is elected anyway:
- Rutherford B. Hayes (1876)
- Benjamin Harrison (1888)
- George W. Bush (2000)
- Donald Trump (2016)
 A (very basic) example for the U.S. presidential election ( = indirect
election)
States Voters Electors Candidate A Candidate B
California 10 million 55 51% of the votes 49% of the votes
Texas 7 million 38 0% 100%
Alaska 2 million 3 0% 100%
Montana 1 million 3 0% 100%

Popular vote 20 million ? ?

Electors 99 ? ?
Winner of the ? ?
election
 A (very basic) example for the U.S. presidential election ( = indirect
election)

States Voters Electors Candidate A Candidate B

California 10 million 55 51% of the votes 49% of the votes
Texas 7 million 38 0% 100%
Alaska 2 million 3 0% 100%
Montana 1 million 3 0% 100%

Popular vote 20 million 5,1 million (= 5,1 14,9 million (= 4,9

million + 0 + 0 +0) million + 7 million + 2
million + 1 million)
Electors
55
99 44
(55 + 0 + 0 + 0)
(0+ 38 + 3 + 3)
Winner of the
election
Numbers of electors per state (in 2020):
55 electors: California
38 electors: Texas
29 electors: Florida, New York State
20 electors: Illinois, Pennsylvania
…
3 electors: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota,
Vermont, Wyoming + Washington D.C.
 2016 elections:
Donald Trump:
- (popular votes = 62,984,825 votes = 46,1%)
- Electors = 304
Hillary Clinton:
- (popular votes = 65,853,516 votes = 48,2%)
- Electors = 227
+ 7 “faithless” electors (= members of an electoral college who refuse to vote for the candidate for whom they had
initially pledged to vote).
2020 elections
Joe Biden:
- (popular votes = 81,268,924 votes = 51,3%)
Electors = 306
Donald Trump:
- (popular votes = 74,216,154 votes = 46,9%)
- Electors = 232
Article 2 (cont.):
Section 2 lists the powers of the president:
Commander-in-chief of the armed forces, m
Makes treaties,
Appoints judges of the Supreme Court
D. Trump appointed: Neil Gorsuch (2017), Brett Kavanaugh (2018), Amy Coney Barrett (2020).

Limited powers (to prevent tyranny)

Yet: increasing influence of the Executive power over the years

(from George Washington…. To Donald Trump)
ex: - Andrew Jackson >>> Indians’ rights
- Bill Clinton >>> Kosovo
- George W. Bush >>> Afghanistan
- Barack Obama >>> Lybia
Article 3: Judicial Branch (on the federal level)

- Federal Supreme Court (the most important federal court)

Federal judges: appointed for life.
Different federal courts for different legal cases
- Shorter article (than Articles 1 and 2) >> judicial power neglected when created
Yet: “Marbury vs Madison” (1803) >> created the power of “judicial review” of the Supreme
Court (which can declare a law unconstitutional) >>> This is part of the “checks and balances”
system.

Some important decisions of the Federal Supreme Court (2 examples):

- “Roe v Wade” (1973): >>> Federal Supreme Court declared that laws prohibiting abortion were
unconstitutional.
Yet, in 2022, the 1973 verdict was overruled by the present Federal Supreme Court >>> Now, the right to
abortion : no longer protected by the Federal State (Each State will decide if abortion is legal or not).
2000 U.S. Presidential Elections: George W. Bush v. Al Gore: confused situation in Florida >>> recount >>>
legal battle paralyzing the election process >>> Federal Supreme Court ordered to stop the recount >>>
victory for George W. Bush
Article 4: about the states (their powers and the limits of them)
>> less power than before (with the Articles of Confederation)
>> Many important decisions still depend on the States (ex. Death penalty: legal
in 27 states in 2022)

Article 5: How to alter the constitution (system of amendments: ¾ of the States

must ratify the Amendment)

Article 6: Constitution = the “supreme Law of the Land” + No specific religion

shall be required for any public office.

Article 7: 9 states (out of 13) must ratify the Constitution for it to become
effective (>> ratified in 1788, New Hampshire being the 9th state to ratify it).
c) The Federalists and the Anti-Federalists:
The federalists:
>> Alexander Hamilton
>> want a strong centralized government, a common market in the USA, a
common policy in foreign affairs, a prosperous manufacturing sector…
>> made of merchants, bankers, great farmers… (= the elite of the country)
>> live in big cities (in Northen states)
>> want to strengthen the country’s links with GB
 The Anti-federalists:

>> Thomas Jefferson

>> in favor of states’ rights (distrust the federal government)
>> made of small farmers, city workers…
>> live in the countryside, in Southern states…
>> believe in an “agrarian society”, distrust “big business”
>> want to strengthen the country’s links with France
>> worried when constitution adopted: too much power for the federal
government, and nothing for the rights of the people >> want the “Bill of Rights”
>> pamphlets (Letters from an American Farmer…)
 The Bill of Rights (= third “sacred text” in the USA)
10 Amendments:
1st Am.: freedom of speech, religion, the press...

2nd Am.: right to possess firearms (controversial)

3rd Am.: protecting people from any quartering act (army taking houses)

From 4th to 8th Am.: against excessive legal procedures so as to protect American citizens
>>> “due process of law”
No arrest without warrant… (4th Am)
Can’ testify against oneself… (5th Am)
Trial by jury, assistance of counsel for defense… (6th Am)
Civil court cases, fair punishments… (7th and 8th Am)

9th and 10th Am.: limit the power of the Federal State (all the rights not mentioned in the
Federal Constitution depend on the States, or on the people)
 The other amendments
Today (2022): 27 amendments (10 + 17… the last amendment passed in 1992)
- The Reconstruction Amendments:
13th Am.: end of slavery (1865)
14th Am.: American citizenship to ex-slaves + “due process of law” (echoing 5th Am.)
15th Am.: race cannot be used to stop someone from voting (1870)
17th Am.: Direct election of senators (1913)
18th Am.: Prohibition of alcohol (1919) >> 21st Am.: Repeal of the 18th Am. (1933)
19th Am.: Women are given the right to vote (1920)
22nd Am.: 2 presidential terms only (1951)
After Franklin Delano Roosevelt being elected 4 times (from 1932 to 1944)

23rd Am.: 3 electors for Washington D.C. (in the Presidential election)
26th Am.: 18 years of age = legal age to vote (1971)
27 Am.: Any law increasing (or decreasing) the salary of Congresspersons takes effect after the next
election in the House of representatives.
III) Some Key notions in the development of the USA

1) The political parties in the USA

a)

a)

a) Their historical evolution (and the making of a two-party system)

- Before political parties: factions >>> 2 factions:
- the Federalists (Alexander Hamilton, John Adams…)
- the Anti-Federalists (Thomas Jefferson, James Madison…)
George Washington: only President not belonging to any party
Federalist Party: created in 1789

The Anti-Federalist factions >>> = the Democratic-republican Party (a.k.a. the

Jeffersonian-Republican Party: 1792
Federalist Party: decline after the War of 1812

The Democratic–Republican party (1792)

↓
The Democratic-Republican Party ← →the National Republican Party (1824)
↓ (the Anti-Jacksonian Party)
↓ ↓
↓ the Whig Party (1833/34)
the Democratic Party (1828) ↓
the Republican Party (1854)
(the G.O.P.)
 The Democratic Party (1828) >>> Andrew Jackson: first President of the
Democratic Party (1828/1836)

The Republican Party (1854) >>> Abraham Lincoln: first President of the
Republican Party (1860/1865)

“Tweedledee and Tweedledum” >>> Through the Looking Glass (Lewis Carol)

Democratic Party ≈ yet ≠ Republican Party

>> Both parties believe in: individual liberties, democratic principles, capitalism…
>> The Democratic Party >>> social matters
>> The Republican Party >>> economic “laissez-faire”
 How does a Party choose its candidate for the Presidential Election?

Primary Elections (in each of the 50 states): party members vote for
delegates representing one candidate of their party (for the future presidential
election)
Then, all the delegates who have won in their states meet in the “National
Convention” of the Party and they vote for the candidate they represent.
At the end of that National Convention, the candidate who has the majority of
the delegates’ votes becomes the “nominee” of the party (for the presidential
election)
During that National Convention, the candidate for the Vice-Presidency is also
chosen. The two chosen candidates form the “Presidential ticket” of the
party.
Some Key notions (for both parties):
“rugged individualism” >>> self-reliance
Puritanism and capitalism >>> fighting idleness
No official religion (1st amendment of the Bill of Rights)
Yet: funding of some religious groups (under George W. Bush)
>>> The “Christian Right”: open support to conservative politicians
>>> Mike Pence (D. Trump’s Vice-President): “I’m a Christian, a conservative,
and a Republican, in that order” (July 15th, 2016)
b) Some specific features of the two parties:

The Republican Party (1854) = the G.O.P. (Grand Old Party) >>> nickname
given in the 1870s

Republican Party v. Democratic Party (for the 2000 Presidential elections)

Thomas Nast (1840/1902, political cartoonist)

The two parties’ new logos:

v.
- The Republican platform:
Individual freedom
Free market
Economic liberalism (few taxes, but high tariffs)
Isolationism
No state intervention >>> Ronald Reagan’s Inaugural Address (1980):
“Government is not the solution to our problems… Government IS the problem!”
Generally opposed to measures implying Federal spending (like welfare programs…)

Some famous republican presidents:

Abraham Lincoln (1860/65)
Theodore Roosevelt (1901/08)
Dwight Eisenhower (1952/60)
Richard Nixon (1968/74)
Ronald Reagan (1980/88)
George H.W. Bush (1988/1992)
George W. Bush (2000/08)
Donald Trump (2016/20)
 Two examples of the opposition between Democrats and Republicans:

1) Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Dem.) and his “New Deal” (1933/39)

- Massive intervention of the Federal State so as to fight the Great Depression
(major public work projects)…
Many republicans thought this was akin to communism

2) Barack Obama (Dem) and the “Obamacare”

- Meant to create some social security system
- Then, Donald Trump (Rep) dismantled most of the social help that had been
developed
-The Tea Party Movement (in the 2010s)
Started in 2009
Within the Republican Party
very conservative
Opposed to Federal taxation
Wants to limit the role of the government as much as possible
Reference to the 1773 Boston Tea Party (American colonists opposing British tax on tea).
Quite active in the 2016 Presidential election (pro-Trump)
Now, ideas of the Tea Party Movement: integrated into those of the Republican Party
Right-wing populism

The electors of the Republican Party

Mainly upper-middle class and business world
 The electors of the Democratic Party
Mainly working class and minorities

The Democratic platform:

Egalitarian principles
Social issues (Health care, welfare benefits…)
In favor of some taxation
In favor of some Federal regulations and spending
In favor of some taxation
Social liberalism
Interventionism (in foreign affairs)

- Some famous democratic presidents:

Andrew Jackson (1828/36)
Woodrow Wilson (1912/20)
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1932/45)
Harry Truman (1945/1952)
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1960/63)
Lyndon Johnson (1963/1968)
Bill Clinton (1992/2000)
Barack Obama (2008/2016)
c) Some specificities of the political life in the South:
- 1860: Abraham Lincoln (Rep.): elected President of the USA
Secession of 7 Southern states in 1861 (Feb.), then a total of 11 states (still in 1861)
>>> The Confederate States of the USA (= the Confederacy)

The Stars and Bars (7, then 11, then 13 stars / states, starting in 1861) The Stainless banner
(13 states, from 1863 to 1865)

The Stars and Stripes (1860) The Stars and Stripes (2022)
The Reconstruction Era (1865/1877):
Northern politicians (Rep.) ruling the South
Southerners siding with the Democratic Party

After the Reconstruction Era (until the 1950s):

Democratic Party prevailing in the South (= the “Solid South”)
Southern Democrats: conservative tendencies
Southern Democrats passing ”Jim Crow” laws >>> segregation (end of 19th century until
1950s/60s)
1948: President Harry Truman (Dem.) supporting emerging Civil Rights ≠ creation of the
“Dixiecrat Party” in the South (a very conservative “splinter party” of the Democratic
party)

The 1960s and the Civil Rights Movement:

J.F. Kennedy + Lindon Johnson: 2 Democratic Presidents with liberal views
1964 Civil Rights Act + 1965 Voting Rights Acts
Republican Party (Richard Nixon): ”Southern Strategy”
End of the Supremacy of the Democratic Party in the South