...Congress System and It’s breakdown After independence and before 1967, the Congress was in a dominant position and this period normally referred as a “Congress Dominated System” or “Congress System”. Congress was a dominant force under the leadership of a majestic personality like Nehru and formed governments in centre and in most of the states. After the demise of Nehru, the Congress System started breaking up because of the fights between internal factions and power ambitions. This essay is an attempt to study the reasons behind break down of the congress system. Breakdown of Congress System Congress dominance started crumbling from the mid of 1960s. Fourth general election held in 1967 saw a fall in congress vote share and seats. The party system which emerged from this general election and till 1989 can be termed as a bipolar system where congress was facing a united opposition in almost all the states. This period also witnessed making of many coalition governments in the states where opposition posed a united front to keep congress out of power. One point can be noted here is that the votes of the congress party declined much more drastically in the assembly elections than in parliamentary elections. Following are some of the reasons which can be identified for the breakdown of the Congress systemUnited Opposition: Indian electoral system is a “First past the post” system or in India the candidate who gets the maximum vote wins. Congress never secured more that 50%...
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...“British history has been a history of invasion.” Please illustrate this point. – 1st century AD (43): Briton was invaded by the Roman Empire → found valuable metals → decided to settle down. – 4th century AD: invasion of a group of barbaric people over the Europe. The Romans had to return to Rome to protect their own country. – 5th century AD (410): Anglo–Saxon invasion – Germanic peoples: the Anglos, the Saxons. They were powerful. → They divided the country into 2 parts: + Anglo – Saxon area in England + Celtic area in Wales, Scotland and Ireland The Anglo-Saxon invaders were the forefathers of the English, the founders of "Angle-land" or "England". – From the late 8th century on, raiders from Scandinavia, the cruel Vikings threatened Britain's shores. – The next invaders were the Normans, from northern France in 1066. – Next few hundred years: a process of joining together the various parts of the British Isles under English rule. What are some general characteristics of Scotland? – The second largest of the four nations, both in population and in geographical area. – The most confident of its own identity. – The most rugged part of the UK, with areas of sparsely populated mountains and lakes in the north (the Highlands), and in the south (the Southern Uplands). – Scotland was not conquered by the Romans or the Anglo–Saxons. – Scotland began to experience Viking raids in the 9th century, and it was the...
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...REALLY CROSS THE LINE? I. Introduction In 1996, Congress and the President passed the Line Item Veto Act, purporting to give the President some sort of line-item veto authority over certain spending items. Less than two years later, however, the United States Supreme Court in Clinton v. City of New York struck down the Line Item Veto Act for violating the Presentment Clause of the United States Constitution. The Court focused on the textual language of the Presentment Clause and failed to discuss the broader separation of powers issue. Many have critiqued the Court’s narrow invalidation and avoidance of discussing separation of powers. This note criticizes the Court’s approach in Clinton v. City of New York and argues that the Court should have addressed the more important issue of separation of powers. In doing so, however, this note will argue that there was not even violation of the Presentment Clause like the Majority had decided. In analyzing the Line Item Veto Act under separation of powers, this note argues for a functionalist approach, recognizing the need for a workable government, as opposed to the more textual, narrow formalist approach. Because the Line Item Veto Act did not violate separation of powers or threaten our tri-partite system of government, the Court should not have struck down the Act as an unconstitutional delegation but should have instead upheld the Act as a sound policy decision of both Congress and the President. II. The Line Item Veto Act ...
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...years and is still currently trying to overcome today was triggered in part by the United States banking system (Whitney, 2010); because of this there was a tremendous collapse of some of our major financial institutions, the bailout of banks by national governments, and a stock markets plummeting everywhere around us (Whitney, 2010) In many areas, the number of evictions, and foreclosures rose to insane heights; the housing market experienced a huge hit (Whitney, 2010). The financial crisis in 2007 is considered by many economists to be the worst since the Great Depression of 1930 (Pendery, 2009). It has contributed to the failure of many key businesses, the decline in consumer wealth, substantial financial assistances by the United States governments, and a significant decline in economic activity. (Baily, & Elliot, 2009) The cry out for assistance was heard, “President Bush, in a televised address Friday morning, said the nation's economy is at risk, adding he believed that Congress will move quickly on a bailout proposal.” "We've got a big problem," he said. (Ellis & Sahadi, 2008) Henry Paulson, Treasury Secretary, proposed an act which he believed would help alleviate some of the issues during this financial fallout. In October of 2008 Congress enacted the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, it is known to US citizens as the bailout of our financial system (Public Law 110–343, 2008). The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 is an act “to provide authority...
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...BOOK REVIEW THE RULEMAKERS HOW THE WEALTHY AND WELLBORN DOMINATE CONGRESS The congress or the House of Representatives and the Senate or the upper house are the two components of the legislative branch of the Philippine government. They are meant to pass bills, create laws, and approve budgets that benefit their constituents and the nation as a whole. In theory, this is the ideal upon which they were built, they would legislate for the people to best serve them and to ensure the nations capacity to carry out the legislation that they pass and that they are aligned with the needs of the people they represent. This is not the case however, even as we step in to the 15th congress the House of Representatives is still truly not representative. Since the 1898 Malolos Congress to our 15th congress, The Filipino people have witnessed, participated, fought and experienced how senators and congressmen handle the power and opportunity they gain from membership in this institution. The way in which the power and privileges that come from their positions are used are often kept secret and outside the knowledge of their voters and even if it was known it is beyond the power of the citizenry to interfere in most cases. The Constitution imposes limitations and prohibitions and there are also general guidelines and principle of law that should be followed, however they do not seem enough of a deterrent to reduce or eradicate the illegitimate, illegal, manipulative, selfish...
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...is to protecting human health and the environment by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress. According to EPA website, Born in the wake of elevated concern about environmental pollution, EPA was established on December 2, 1970 to consolidate in one agency a variety of federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. This agency, US Environment Protection Agency is run by its Administrator. The current Administrator is Lisa P. Jackson. The President appoints an administrator for U.S. Environment Protection Agency and Congress can approve or decline the person. The US Environmental Protection Agency is an independent agency. The agency has approximately 17,000 full-time employees and engages many more people on a contractual basis. The purpose of U.S. Army of Corps of Engineer is to provide vital public engineering services in peace and war to strengthen the nation's security, energize the economy, and reduce risks from disasters. According to US Army of Corp Engineers website, the history of United States Army Corps of Engineers can be traced back to June 16, 1775, when the Continental Congress organized an army with a chief engineer and two assistants. Colonel Richard Gridley became General George Washington's first chief engineer; however, it was not until 1779 that Congress created a separate Corps of Engineers. Army engineers, including several French officers, were instrumental in some...
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...Advanced Auditing Shams Kamal Assignment 1 Professor Whisenant MEMORANDUM September 14, 2011 TO: Johnny Whisenant FROM: Shams Kamal SUBJECT: Summary of John C. Coates article, “The goals and the promises of Sarbanes-Oxley Act”. On July 25, 2002 the date when stock market indices were making a new history against over publicized corporate scandals, bankruptcy and accounting misstatements, the new legislation “The Public Committee Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002” widely known as Sarbanes Oxley Act was passed by the congress in response to investment company abuses. On the article, “The goals and the promises of Sarbanes-Oxley Act”; John C. Coates, professor of Harvard law & economics school analyzed the pre and post Sarbanes Oxley era and the pros and cons of the SOX legislation. In addition, he recommended that by reconstituting governance and accountability of PCAOB, implication of Sarbanes Oxley can be more effective to safeguard net long term socioeconomic market gain. While discussing about the enforcement in pre Sarbanes Oxley era, Coates pointed out the previous laws and regulations lacked effective implementation of corporate governance. With the threat of systematic corporate misstatements, frauds and rise in significant class action suits, in the pre SOX era investors’ confidence were dramatically declining. As in such scenarios in last decade, Coats...
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...When creating Congress, the Founding Fathers of the United States set out the powers and limits of the House of Representatives and the Senate, making it a bi-cameral system with power shared between the two houses. The Senates role in this bi-cameral system of Congress is to: ratify Presidential appointments and foreign treaties and tries the impeachment of a President. Filibusters also happen in the Senate. The President has the right to nominate individuals into positions throughout the government. From judges, administrative positions and secretaries in a range of agencies. Article two, Section two of the US Constitution gave the Senate the right to give consent to every nomination, as well as suggesting other nominees for those positions and the final vote to accept or decline the nomination. A nominee only needs a simple majority of votes for the position. An example of the Senate confirming an appointment would be the replacement of Supreme Court Justice, John Paul Sanders in 2010. Sanders was replaced by Elena Kagen. The vote was 63 to 37, 58 being Democrats and 5 being Republicans. The Senate alone has the right to give consent and advise to the President for all National Treaties.; once signed by the President, a treaty has to go to the Senate (the Senate Committee of Foreign Relations). The Senate will then assess the benefits of the treaty to the US and then come to a vote. 67 votes or two thirds of the 100 Senators are needed for the President to then...
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...issues: polarization and plutocracy. Polarization is the political terminology for when members of Congress often vote almost exclusively alongside the party that they identify as, and plutocracy is "the responsiveness of the political system primarily to the concerns of wealthy powerful interests" (Mettler 5). These two factors were overcome by President Obama during his efforts to reform the student loan system, but drastically failed to curb the growth of the private-for-profit...
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...just as they can be altered to increase individual expenditure. For instance, FS-2006-2 - Publication 4492 has created tax breaks for Katrina, Rita, and Wilma victims. Those who have been affected may now exclude from income certain cancellations of debt and extends, from two years to five years, the replacement period for converted properties. At this point a logical question to ask is who governs taxation, and how are benefits and penalties decided? Modern taxation extends all the way back to Section I of both Articles 8 and 9 in the constitution, and has been heavily influenced by America's sixteenth amendment to the constitution. Amendment sixteen gave Congress the power to tax any entity regardless of census or enumeration. At first glance, Amendment sixteen appears to grant supreme Paper 3 power to Congress to tax; however, that it not the exact case. The amendment did not expand the federal government's existing taxing power but rather removed any requirement for apportionment of income taxes (meaning tax on profit or gain from any source) among the states on the basis of population. In 1955,...
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...is defined as a decline in a country’s GDP (gross domestic product) or when the economic growth in negative, two or more consecutive quarters. The state of the economy during the most recent recession was the worst since the Great Depression. In 2008-2009, the economy decreased within five quarters, including four quarters consecutively. Two quarters showed a decrease more than 5% and Q2 in 2008 dropped 8.9%. This was the lowest drop in a recession since the Great Depression. In Q3 2009, the recent recession ended, because of economic stimulus spending. The recent recession was the longest since the Depression, lasting 18 months. The recession officially started in late 2007 to mid-2009. The Economic Security Index determined the impact of the recession by developing a measurement tool based on government economic data. The tool showed that due to the decline in income, increase in medical spending or both, Americans experienced a financial loss of 25 percent or greater. Southern states showed the worst economic losses from 2008-2010. Researchers found various reasons linked to these states hardship such as, poverty rates, the amount college graduates and unemployment rates. During the last recession, the national unemployment rate was at 5.0 percent making it the lowest in 2.5 years. From December 2007- June 2009, employment decline was the greatest of any recession of recent decades. In most cases, industries producing goods experienced the largest decline in employment during...
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...explain how the central bank manages the nation’s monetary system and outline the stated direction of recent monetary policy. The latest action by the Federal Reserve to confirm this direction will be explained. This paper will explain the effects of monetary policies on the economy’s production and employment. Purpose and Function of Money The purpose or function of money is to make an artificial value as a medium used to receive compensation for a service or good. Money makes trade easier between people, businesses and countries. If there was no money, than how would wages be paid to people who produce goods? And how would goods or services be paid for by these people to support them? Typically the value of money can be set by government forces, gold, or market conditions. Management of a Nation’s Monetary System The central bank manages the nation's monetary system by either increasing or decreasing the monetary supply which can increase or slow down inflation, affect interest rates and control the rate in which goods and services increase in relation to one another. The central bank’s main job is to make sure the national currency and monetary supply remain stable. “The Federal Reserve is considered an independent central bank. It is independent since its decisions do not have to be ratified by the President or Congress “(Satterthwaite, 2010). The Federal Reserve is still accountable to Congress for every decision that they make. Direction of...
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...basically means losing your health insurance too. Sure you can buy your own, but that can get expensive and there are often holes in the policy than with employer provided health insurance. Under a universal system, you don’t have to worry. Imagine you had to pay each month for access to use the police. If you lost your job and couldn’t afford the police bill and called 911, you wouldn’t get service. That sure sounds awful. The most fundamental underlying basis of universal health care is the fact that in the system, you don’t have to worry about not being covered. The United States spends more on health care as a percentage of GDP than any other developed nation. Countries that have some kind of universal coverage generally spend less. This is because the costs of a universal system are less than private. Drugs can be purchased in greater bulk, prices for services can be negotiated at a lower rate due to the larger pool, and a large singular system would reduce the overhead involved in processing insurance and medical services. Furthermore we already have laws in the US that require emergency rooms to see patients even if they don’t have any insurance. This costs the hospital money which they pass on to consumers and insurance companies. Under a universal health care system those that normally go without insurance would now be required to pay into it in the form of taxes. The distributed cost would bring down the personal expenses of those that already pay for insurance....
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...was a dealigning election? There was increased ticket splitting, and a rise in true independents. 3. What are four key factors discussed in class that have contributed to the weakening of U.S. political parties? Primary elections, the evolution of television as a direct link with voters, the decline of the patronage system, and parties have lost control over party platforms and conventions. 4. What does the median voter theorem explain about a two party system? The median voter is a voter who chooses a party to vote for after reviewing the party’s views and objectives they set out to accomplish. 5. Briefly define Gerrymandering: It is intended to establish a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating district boundaries for voting purposes. Chapter Nine 6. Briefly define Free Rider and explain why overfishing is a Collective Action problem: Free Riding is when the people who benefit from resources, goods, or services do not pay for them. The Collective Action problem occurs when property rights are not clearly defined and imposed. 7. Briefly explain the main differences between pluralist and elite theories of the U.S. interest group system. The pluralist theories suggest liberal pluralism v. biased pluralism, there are many flaws in pluralist theory, and there is no gurantee that what interest groups want is what the majority wants. Elite theorists consist of active-working members of the upper class and high-level employees in profit...
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...Peasant struggles in British India Can be classified into following groups: Before 1857’s Mutiny | * East India: Sanyasi Revolt, Chuar and Ho Rising, Kol Rising, Santhal Rising, Pagal Panthis and Faraizis Revolt * West India: Bhil, Ramosis * South India: Poligars | After 1857’s Mutiny | * Indigo Movement (1859-60) * Pabna Agrarian Unrest (1873-76), * Deccan riots (1874-75), * No-Revenue Movement Assam, Maharashtra, and Punjab: (towards the end of 19th century) * Champaran Indigo Satyagraha (1917) | In the 20s and 30s | 2nd Moplah, Awadh Kisan Sabha, Eka movement, Bardoli etc. | During and After WW2 | * Congress Ministries in provinces such as Bihar, UP and Bombay (will be discussed separately in third article) * Faizpur Congress session (1936) * All India Kisan Congress * Tebhaga Movement in Bengal * Telangana Outbreak in Hyderabad * Varlis Revolt in Western Indi | Peasant Revolts before 1857 Sanyasi Revolt, 1772 * British government restricted people from visiting holy places. Sansyasi got angry * Joined by farmers, evicted landlords, disbanded soldiers * Focal point: Rangpur to Dhaka * Leader: Manju Shah Fakir * Sanyasis defeated a company of sepoys and killed the commander. They overran some districts, virtually running a parallel government. * This rebellion continued till the end of the 18th century. * Governor General Warren Hastings launched a military campaign against Sansyasis. * From 1800,...
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