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US Constitution study guide: Difference between revisions
→Section 4.
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The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State. | The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State. | ||
=== Section 4.=== | === Section 4. [Guarantees of Republican governance, protection against invasion & domestic violence] === | ||
==={{#tip-text: Section 4. | | === {{#tip-text: Section 4. overview| Guarantees to the states}} === | ||
}} | |||
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican | |||
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a '''{{#tip-text: Republican form of government|Republican form | |||
* = representative democracy | |||
* this clause has rarely been invoked, but was important to the Reconstruction following the Civil War as a guarantee that Southern states re-entering the Union would be required to have republican forms of government | |||
* the Courts have otherwise held that this clause is a "political" and not a legal issue, although it has never been tested in terms of, say, a governor declaring a dictatorship in a state}}''', and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on '''{{#tip-text:Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence|Protect against domestic violence | |||
* the idea is that the Federal government has an obligation to respond to a state's request for help restoring order | |||
* but the federal government can only intervene at the request of a state | |||
* Shay's Rebellion was an important catalyst in the convening of the Constitutional Convention, as the federal government under the Articles of Confederation had no powers to intervene (the rebellion was put down by the state of Massachusetts) | |||
* during the political turmoil of 2020, President Trump offered to help states suppress riots across the country, especially in Oregon, but, per the domestic violence clause, he needed the states to request that assistance and so without that request was unable to send federal forces outside of those who directly protected federal property (courthouses, etc.)}}'''. | |||
=={{#tip-text: Article V|}} == | =={{#tip-text: Article V|}} == | ||