What is meant by selective incorporation? Discuss the history of this process and its importance to the protection of individual rights.

What will be an ideal response?


Selective incorporation refers to the absorption of certain provisions of the Bill of Rights, including freedom of speech and the press, into the Fourteenth Amendment. These rights are thereby protected from infringement by the states. After the Civil War, the Fourteenth Amendment was debated in Congress. There was no indication its framers intended it to protect First Amendment rights, such as freedom of speech and the press, from state action. Seventy years later, the Supreme Court invoked the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause in a free speech case, which was followed by a series of cases that established the process of selective incorporation. In doing so, the Court declared certain rights to be a fundamental part of democratic society and, therefore, to be protected from state intervention. At first, the Court included only free expression rights in its interpretation. In the 1960s, selective incorporation was also used to protect fair trial rights.

Political Science

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The claim that "Politics is the quest for a just and moral public order" can be described as a

a. Machiavellian perspective b. Madisonian approach to politics c. anarchist philosophy d. Platonic viewpoint

Political Science

Politicians pay close attention to group differences in polling data because______.

A. any problems with or defects in the polling data can be seen in the group differences B. the polls tend to be more accurate at gauging Republican views C. they determine feasible coalition-building strategies D. pollsters frequently overlook the importance of demographic groups

Political Science

__________ are those that are assumed to exist so that the government can perform functions that are expressly delegated

a. Expressed powers b. Reserved powers c. Implied powers d. Concurrent powers e. Inherent powers

Political Science

What makes Britain a model of what Aristotle called a mixed regime?

a. It combines a queen and a prime minister. b. It is based on a constitution. c. It places legislative power in the hands of the House of Lords. d. It includes different branches of government that represent different classes. e. It gives parliament the power to oust the prime minister.

Political Science