1. Introduction to Government CH 1.1

2. What is Government? Government- the formal institutions and processes through which decisions are made for a group of people.

3. What is Government? 3 Components of Government People Power Policy - elected officials and public servants who carry out the business of the gov. - government’s authority and ability to get things done. (legislative: make, executive: carry out, judicial: interpret laws.) - any decision made by the gov. in pursuit of a goal. (law, tax, defense, agency, etc.)

4. 4 Characteristics of a State Population- must have people Territory- must have land with known boundaries Sovereignty- must have supreme and absolute power within its own territory and the ability to decide its own foreign and domestic policies (not subordinate!) Government- must be politically organized

5. Origins of the State Force Theory- States form when a group uses force to make enough people submit to central authority. Evolutionary Theory- states form gradually over time, growing from family and extended kinship groups. (family-clan- tribe- state)

6. Origins of the State Divine Right Theory- States are founded by God(s) and the ruler gets their power/authority from God.

7. Origins of the State Social Contract Theory- States form when people reach a contract to surrender some power to a common authority in return for security

8. Origins of the State Social Contract Theory… Thomas Hobbes (English philosopher) said:  Life begins in a STATE OF NATURE where people are competing for resources and therefore life is nasty, brutish, and short.  To escape this people submit to the authority of a government in exchange for security

9. Origins of the State Social Contract Theory… John Locke (English philosopher) said:  People are justified to rebel if the government does not uphold their end of the contract (by violating natural/human rights)

10. We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. 6 Purposes of American Government 12 34 5 6