Chapter 8 PDF

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Chapter 8 Constitutions and Constitutional Design 1. Concepts a. Constitutions i. Institution: Social or political structure or set of practices, including government organizations, that shapes the behavior of individuals ii. Constitution: Fundamental and supreme laws, usually written in a charter, that establish the basis of a political system and the basis for other laws iii. Constitutionalism: The limitation of government through a constitution b. Constitutional Design i. Constitutional design: Features of constitutions that shape the basic features of political system 1. Such as separation of powers and responsibilities between levels of government and branches of government ii. Federalism: System of government with constitutional design of separation of powers between central government and subnational governments iii. Unitarism: System of government in which central government is predominant and the powers of sub-national governments are limited to those delegated by the center iv. Separation of powers: The division of powers in a government system between branches of government or between levels of government v. Judiciary: The branch of government responsible for interpretation of laws in courts vi. Judicial review: System of constitutional interpretation in which judges rule on the constitutionality of laws passed by the legislative and the executive 2. Types a. Flexible and Rigid Constitutions i. Rigid - designed to be relatively difficult to change 1. US ii. Flexible – designed to be relatively easy to change 1. UK b. Separation of Powers i. Constitutional courts are usually separated from the civil and criminal court systems ii. Judicial review is the central political power of the judiciary iii. Parliamentary sovereignty: System in which the constitutionality of laws passed by legislature and executive are not subject to constitutional interpretation by judiciary c. Federalism and Unitarism i. Federalism 1. US established

2. Designed to unify diverse territories while preserving subnational autonomy 3. Examples a. China, India, US, Indonesia, Brazil 4. Subnational governments have constitutional guarantees of some power and autonomy in their own jurisdictions ii. Unitarism 1. Central government is the only level of government specified in the constitutional charter 2. Power is not constitutionally divided between layers of government but resides exclusively in the central government 3. Characteristics a. Small population/geography b. Ethnically, linguistically, and culturally homogenous d. Authoritarian and Democratic Constitutions i. Monarchs faded by the drafting of constitutions became one way to limit the power of government ii. Constitutions do not guarantee unalienable rights iii. Authoritarian constitutions will not typically declare dictatorial rule 1. Progressive in terms of the rights and powers they list iv. Military regimes have been known to establish martial law or states of emergency 3. Cause and Effects a. Constitutional Design Supporting Social Stability i. Federalism may be an institution uniquely capable of holding together a polity ii. Federalism might lead to exacerbating differences and undermining stability b. Constitutional Design Supporting Democratic Rights i. Federal institutions may make government more stable and may facilitate democratic incorporation of the demands of many groups ii. Federalism may reinforce divisions c. Constitutional Design Supporting The Economy i. Federalism generates healthy competition among states or regions ii. Decentralized power can allow people to sort themselves into different jurisdictions along with other people who share their policy preferences iii. Federalism can allow for inefficient resource allocation d. Judicial Review and Democracy i. Judicial activism: Characterize judicial actions that actively reinterpret legislation and thus imply exercising powers typically reserved for the legislative branch...