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Unit 1-GOPO
UNIT ONE QUESTIONS
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Government | A way in which rules and laws are set and made for a nation or society. |
| Collective Goods | Natural Resources. |
| Politics | The way in which our society chooses our leaders. Politics produces official decisions for public problems. |
| Political Participation | Activities that allow citizens can influence political leaders and the policies they pursue. Such as voting, petitioning, protesting, and civil disobedience. |
| Single-Issue Groups | Groups that focus solely on one issue, and refuse to see it in a different light. |
| Policymaking System | The system by which policy is created, and impacts citizens, issues and concerns. |
| Linkage Institutions | The way that citizens' concerns become issues and visible on the policy agenda. |
| Policy Agenda | Problems that greatly attract public officials and other people in politics' attention, at a certain point in time. |
| Political Issue | A problem that is caused by people disagreeing, and how to fix it. |
| Policymaking Institutions | Things such as Congress, Presidency, and the courts made by the Constitution to make policy. |
| Public Policy | A response and decision that a government makes in order to fix a political issue. |
| Policy Impacts | Effects a policy has on citizens and problems. Reactions are observed to see how well a policy met its goal and at what sort of cost. |
| Democracy | A system of choosing policymakers/leaders and organizing a government so that laws represent the people's preferences. |
| Majority Rule | Weighing the wishes of the majority in making decisions and choosing policies. |
| Minority Rights | Protecting rights and freedoms of the minority in making decisions and choosing policies. |
| Representation | The relationship between leaders and followers. |
| Pluralism | A belief of American democracy saying that the policymaking system is open to the participation of every group with shared interests, with no one group dominating. Pluralists will tend to believe that with pluralism, public interest will prevail. |
| Elitism | A belief of American democracy that the upper-class has the power of the governmental organization. |
| Hyper Pluralism | Theory that groups are so strong that government, who gives in to many different groups is weakened. |
| Policy Gridlock | Something that happens when interests conflict and no coalition is strong enough to make the majority and make policy, so in result, nothing ever gets done. |
| Gross Domestic Product | The total value of goods and services made in a year in a single nation. |
| What percent of money that went into American's wallets was from government payments? (jobless benefits, food stamps, etc.) | 20% |
| What year was Obama elected? | 2008 |
| What was 2008 nicknamed as? | the Year of the Youth Vote |
| What does apathy mean? | uninterested, you don't care. |
| Why do you think older people are expected to vote more often? | They receive more benefits of politics. |
| How much more often were 65 year-olds right than younger people? | Older people reported to be right more than twice as often. |
| Why do you think that younger people tended to vote more for Obama in 2008? | Obama offered change, and younger citizens tend to have a higher passion for change. |
| If you participate more in politics what is likely to happen? | You're more likely to receive benefits from political campaigns. |
| What is one of the only events that younger citizens have been able to follow a major event? | 9/11 |
| In what year did young people state that they enjoy keeping up with the news? | 2010 |
| What is a con of technology helping citizens in expressing opinions on politics? | It can cause people to miss the event. |
| What question does the preamble answer? | "What should the government do?" |
| How much does the US spend a year on national defense? | 650 Billion dollars |
| What does tranquility mean? | Peace |
| What is the only way that the government can make money? | Taxes |
| What does socializing the young mean? | To teach the young citizens how to be a good person and citizen, and to love their country. |
| What fraction of dollars earned by Americans go to the national, state, and local taxes? | 1/3 |
| Why do you think that in 1972 younger people got more interested in politics? | At the time the war with Vietnam was going on, and younger citizens wanted to prevent war, and make a change. |
| What fraction of citizens claimed that they rarely followed public affairs in 2000? | Over two-thirds |
| What is one of the causes of young people's apathy? | Today's young adults have grown up in a society in which news about Political events has been very much more avoidable than in earlier years |
| How many elected officials are there in the US? | about 500,000. |
| Who determines the age at which you can get your driver's license? | State and ferederal governments. |
| What is one of the reasons the voter turnout among people above 65 years of age has gone up instead of declining? | Greater access to medical care. |
| Why do many elderly voters feel they have so much at stake in every election? | Because so much of the federal budget is devoted to programs such as Medicare and Social security. |
| Election turnouts between presidential and mid-term elections are notorious for this: | Sharp drop-offs in participation |
| The 2008 voter turnout rose to its highest level since 1972 because of what? | A participation by minority youth |
| What are some things that have contributed to today's youth avoiding participation in politics? | More TV channel options, internet, etc. |
| the institution that make public policy decisions for a society are known as what? | government |
| How many institutions are in our government? | 4 |
| Name the 4 institutions | Congress, President, the Courts, Administrative Agencies |
| How is one way the government helps protected its nation sovereignty? | By maintaining armed forces |
| how many state + local governments are there? | thousands |
| True or false - policies effecting you are constantly being made | True |
| what aspect of political life is one of the most important? | the power of debate |
| true or false - americans take great pride in calling their government democratic? | true |
| what event caused the defense budget to substantially increase? | 9/11 |
| Name 3 areas governments spend money to provide public goods and services | schools, libraries, hospitals |
| what are the 2 types of services offered by a government to its citizens? | collective goods |
| Who famously defined politics as "Who gets waht, when and how?" | Harold D Lasswell |
| What determines whom we select as governmental leaders and what policies they pursue? | politics |
| What aspect of politics does the media focus on? | the "who" |
| what are ways in which voters get what they want? | voting, lobbying, supporting |
| they ways in which people get involved in politics make up what? | Political participation |
| True or False- Many people judge the health of a government by how widespread participation is | True |
| True or False- America has one of the lowest voter turnout rations in the world | True |
| How can low voter turnout effect our government? | It affects who holds political power. |
| Can politics be considered a vacation or career? | Yes |
| What are single issue groups? | Groups concerned with one issue that they cast votes on the basis of that issue only. |
| What is an example of a single issue group? | Abortion activists, gay rights activists, etc. |
| True or False - Voting is the only form of political participation. | False |
| How does the government respond to the priorities of its people? | Through the policymaking process |
| What is the policymaking system? | The process where policy comes into being. |
| True or False - People's interests and problems can influence political issues. | True |
| What does the policymaking system begin with? | people |
| What are ways people can participate in making policies? | Joining political parties, forming interest groups. |
| What is an interest group? | Organized groups of people with a common interest. |
| What are linkage institutions? | Parties, elections, interest groups, the media |
| How do Americans' preferences get transmitted to policymakers? | Through linkage institutions. |
| How does the media shape policy? | By investigating social problems and informing people about them. |
| How do parties and interest groups shape policy? | By insuring their members' concerns receive attention. |
| How do elections shape policy? | By providing citizens with the chance to make their opinions heard. |
| What is a policy agenda? | the issues that attract the attention of public officials and others in politics. |
| True or False - An internet chatgroup is one way today's policymakers get their issues in the forefront. | True |
| True or False - A government's policy agenda changes regularly. | True |
| What is a political issue? | The result of people disagreeing about a problem or the policy needed to fix it. |
| Do people always agree on what the government should do? | NO |
| What are the 3 policymaking institutions established by the Constitution? | Congress, the President, the Courts. |
| What is sometimes considered the Fourth policy making institutions? | Power of bureaucracy |
| What are policy impacts? | The effects a policy has on people and society's problems. |
| Is the recent increase of interest group activity seen as a positive development or a negative one? | A positive |
| What are lobbyists? | Interest groups representatives in Washington. |
| What are some methods used by lobbyists? | Mass mailings, media advertising, hard sell techniques. |
| What technological invention do some people think has caused a decrease in group based participation? | the Television |
| ________ contends that our society is divided along class lines. | Elitism |
| What is the basis of elitist power? | Wealth |
| What percent of the world's population hold 1/3 of its wealth? | 1% |
| What is at the center of all the theories of elite dominance? | Big Business |
| What was Occupy Wall Street? | A movement in 2011 to protest the rising disparity of wealth in our country. |
| What was the solgan for Occupy Wall Street? | We are the 99th |
| According to elitists, who really holds the power? | Corporate |
| What is the third theory of democracy? | Hyperpluralism |
| True or False - Hyper pluralism is pluralism gone sour. | True |
| True or False - limited participation in government challenges the foundation of democracy | True |
| How much money is estimated to be spent in a congressional election? | One million dollars |
| What is a PAC | Political Action Committee |
| What is policy gridlock? | When diverse political interests block the way for others? |
| What is the political culture? | The overall set of values widely shared within American Society |
| Freedom of _____ and _____ are fundamental to the American way of life. | Speech and Religion |
| What is egalitarianism? | The idea of an equal opportunity for everyone to participate in the democratic process. |
| How much was the economic stimulus package proposed by President Obama in 2009? | 787 Billion |
| Did most republicans oppose the stimulus bill of 2009? | Yes |
| True or False - The republicans saw the Stimulus Bill of 2009 as the era of the return of the Big Government | True |
| Opponents of the stimulus bill argued that increases in the federal government would result in less what? | Freedom and Prosperity |
| True or False - Those who support an active role for the government believe intervention is sometimes the only way to achieve important goals. | True |
| What is gross domestic product? | the sum total of the value of all the goods and services produced in a year in a nation. |
| What fraction of the U.S gross domestic product is spent each year by our government? | 1/3 |
| Hoe many employees does our federal government have? | 24 million |
| What is spent annually by the government? | 37 Trillion |
| How many civilians are employed by the government? | 28 Million |
| How many military personnel are employed by the federal government? | 1.4 Million |
| How much land in the US is owned by the federal government? | 1/3 of the nation |
| True or false - The federal government occupies over 7.2 billion square feet of office space | True |
| What takes up about 1/6 of the federal budget? | National defense |
| Social security consumes more than ____ of the federal budget. | One-fifth. |
| Medicare consumes ___ of the federal budget. | One-tenth. |
| True or false - The federal government operated at a budget deficit every year from 1969-1997. | True |
| Each fiscal year, from 2009-2012, the annual deficit exceeded ______ dollars. | One million |
| What is the current national debt? | 17 trillion |
| As government expands, what contracts? | Liberty. |
| Why did Britain raise taxes on the colonists after the French and Indian war? | Because they had to pay for protection of the colonies and the new territory they had gained from their victory in the war. |
| What did the King and the Parliament generally focus on governing in the colonies? | the Foreign policy and trade. |
| Thomas Paine published what in January 1776? | Common Sense |
| The Declaration Committee consisted of who? | Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman an Robert Livingston. |
| On what day did Congress adopt the Declaration of Independence? | July 4th, 1776 |
| Who was the primary author of the Declaration? | Thomas Jefferson |
| What took up a large amount of the Declaration's paragraphs? | 27 ways that King George abused the colonies. |
| What country assisted us in winning the Revolution? | France |
| What philosopher published The Second Treatise of Government and heavily influenced the colonists? | John Locke |
| What three rights are known as 'natural rights'? | Life, Liberty and Property |
| What did Locke believe was the "sole purpose of government"? | to protect natural rights |
| What Is "consent of the government"? | the idea that the government needs the people's permission before choosing a ruler. |
| What did Locke say people should have the right to do if the government no longer has their consent? | the Right to Revolt |
| What revolution was the only one not to result in a dictator? | the American Revolution. |
| True or False --, the American army outnumbered the British by thousands. | False |
| What year did America win the revolution? | 1783 |
| True or False -- The Revolution caused the colonists' lives to change drastically. | False |
| What did many states do to protect rights? | They abolished religious requirements for holding office and liberalized requirements for voting. |
| Where did the Articles of Confederation put the power? | Into the states. |
| How was the Articles beneficial to our government? | It helped us learn from our mistakes and know how to improve and what not to do. |
| How did Congress make money? | They sold off western lands because they didn't have any power to tax the states. |
| When did the Articles of Confederation go into effect? | 1781 |
| What was the base of the Articles of Confederation? | A weak central Government |
| True or False -- The Articles gave Congress lots of power. | False |
| Who had more power with the Articles? | Artisans and Farmers. |
| What does Confederation mean? | Loose Friendship |
| What type of movement was the American Revolution. | A conservative movement. |
| After the Revolution what type of people were less in charge? | Wealthy |
| True or False -- Local government had almost no power. | True. |
| At the time, what type of nation was American becoming? | A very democratic, modern and liberal. |
| What were most of the problems about after the Rev? | Economic Issues |
| True or False -- the paper money they had was nearly worthless. | True |
| When did Shay's Rebellion occur? | 1786 |
| Why did they have Shay's Rebellion? | To prevent judges from foreclosing on farms. |
| What did the event of the Shay's Rebellion tell the government? | That it was very weak. |
| Why couldn't Congress stop Shay and his followers? | They had no power to start a militia. |
| Who said "Give me liberty or give me death!"? | Patrick Henry |
| True or False -- the US is a direct democracy. | FALSE |
| What type of men wrote the Constitution? | They were white free males |
| Who wrote the Leviathan and when was it published? | It was written by Thomas Hobbes and published in 1651. |
| Hobbes believed life without government would be what? | solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. |
| What did Hobbes believe human nature was? | Selfish |
| What are factions? | Groups/Political party |
| Why was there a fear of factions? | They feared one faction would eventually tyrannize the other. |
| What's the secret of good government? | a Balanced government. |
| What 4 questions did the delegates agree on? | Human nature, the causes political conflict, the objects of gov and the nature of a republican government. |
| What were the main issues they wanted to resolve? | Issues of equality, economy and individual rights. |
| What were the delegates doing in order to write the Consitution? | ignoring orders. |
| What state refused to send delegates? | Rhode Island. |
| What did the delegates originally meet to do? | Revise the Articles of Confederation. |
| What did the Leviathan represent? | Symbolism. |
| Why were checks and balances created? | To keep factions down. |
| What did the Framers agree on what the government should be? | limited |
| When was the Constitution written and when was it ratified? | it written in 1787 and ratified in 1788 |
| How many delegates were there to 'revise' the Articles? | 55. |
| In the Leviathan, who was represented as the headless beast? | the people. |
| What french aristocrat influenced the Framers in the idea of separate branches of government. | Baron Montesquieu |
| What is the Connecticut Compromise also known as? | the Great Compromise |
| What kind of representation did the New Jersey plan include? | equal representation for all the states. |
| What kind of representation did the Virginia Plan call for? | Representation based on population. |
| True or False -- Smaller states have more representation. | True |
| In 1787 what state was the only one where slavery was illegal? | Massachusetts. |
| Who actually elects the President? | the Electoral college. |
| When did Congress outlaw slave importation? | 1808 |
| What fraction of a person was a slave counted as in population? | 3/5 |
| What did the Founders often do with equality issues? | left it to the states. |
| True or false -- states erected tariffs (taxes) on products from other states. | true |
| True or False -- The Founders all agreed on a strong central government. | True |
| What kind of states were there under the Articles of Confederation? | Chaotic states. |
| What did Congress want to improve? | economy and government |
| What right were the Founders concerned about protecting? | Property rights. |
| What did the Founders make sure of the Constitution put forward? | The economic powers of Congress. |
| True or False -- The Constitution gave Congress the abilities to protect property. | True! |
| What did the government guarantee the states with the Constitution? | a Republican form of government . |
| What does appropriate mean? | to Give |
| How much money were we in debt with the Articles? | 54 million dollars |
| What does habeas corpus mean? | It means that if you put someone in jail you have to tell them why. |
| What protections does the Constitution actually offer? | writ of habeas corpus, bills of attainder, and ex post facto laws, etc |
| Were the delegates happy with their document? | Yes |
| True or False -- the Constitution says little about personal freedoms. | True |
| What did they fear the majority would eventually do? | Tyrannize the minority. |
| What did Madison say would be hard to handle? | the Majority. |
| What did Madison say would be easy to handle? | the Minority. |
| Who said, "If men were angels, no government would be necessary." | James Madison |
| What did the Framers fear the poor would do? | Take their property. |
| Who did Madison purpose that they place as much of the government as possible beyond the direct control of? | The majority |
| Who was the key figure in writing the Constitution? | James Madison |
| How long are judges' terms? | Life tenure. |
| True or False -- The House of Representatives was in the direct votes of the majority. | True |
| Who would elect most of the government officials? | the small minority. |
| the _______ of ______ kept branches from overpowering each other. | Separation of Powers. |
| What is Judicial Review? | Supreme Court can declare other branches as unconstitutional. |
| True or False -- Under the Constitution power is divided unto the three institutions. | True |
| True or False -- if a faction seized one branch it could damage the whole system. | False! |
| Where did most of the government activity take place? | the states. |
| If a group wanted to change something who would they need to agree and be on their side? | the Majority. |
| Who said, "A Republic.. if you can keep it." When asked about the kind of government the delegates had produced? | Benjamin Franklin. |
| True or False -- They didn't want the people making ALL of the decisions. | True |
| What does Status Quo mean? | the way things are. |
| Why did Franklin say that the system was not easy to maintain? | It needed careful nurturing, and lacks efficiency. |
| Are the Federalists for or against the Constitution? | For! |
| Are the Anti-Federalists for or against the constitution? | Against! |
| What had to happen before the Constitution could go into effect? | the states had to ratify it. |
| How many states had to approve the document? | 9 |
| What did the Anti-Federalist think the new government was? | an enemy of freedom. |
| When did the Bill of Rights take effect? | 1791 |
| What did the Anti-Federalists do against the Constitution? | they Attacked the works of it. |
| True or False -- they feared the new Constitution would weaken the states. | True. |
| Did the Constitution weaken the states after all? | Yes |
| True or False -- They wanted the money to be worth more. | True |
| Did the Federalists have the majority? | No |
| Were the people skeptical of the constitution? | yes |
| True or False -- there were lots of rights included in the Constitution. | False |
| What compromise did they have to make to get the Constitution ratified? | they had to promise a Bill of Rights. |
| When did Washington take office? | April 30th, 1789 |
| What state approved first? | Delaware. |
| What was the first national capital? | New York City. |
| True or False -- Benjamin Franklin agreed with all of the Constitution. | False |
| What did the Anti-Federalists object that the Cons. was? | Class-based |
| What were the first 10 amendments to the cons. | the Bill of Rights. |
| Why was the Cons. considered a living document? | Because it can be changed, so it can grow and adapt as society does. |
| What two ways can the Cons. be changed? | formal amendments and informal processes. |
| What was a formal amendment? | a proposal and ratification. |
| What sort of approval must an amendment receive in order to be official? | 2/3 of both houses, and 3/4 of the states. |
| Is the process to make an amendment easy? | No |
| What amendment are we modernly having trouble to get all the states to agree? | the ERA. |
| How did they attempt to make the Constitution more democratic and egalitarian? | they expanded liberty and equality. |
| About how often is there an amendment made? | 1 every 13 years. |
| What are some recent examples of Amendment proposals? | burning the American flag, abortion, prayer in public schools, ERA, etc. |
| Why have the recent Amendments not been approved? | Because the liberals want change, and they are not the majority. |
| What is the Cons.' nickname? | the Supreme Law of The Land. |
| When was the Party system developed? | 1800 |
| What changed the electoral college? | political parties. |
| True or False -- the President has much more power than ever. | true. |
| True or False -- the electoral college prevents an elector from voting for any candidate. | True. |
| When did the Patriot Act go into effect? | After 9/11 |
| How many amendments does the Cons. have? | 27 |
| What helped the nation survive? | Flexibility. |
| What did the Cons. tell the Congress to do? | Consult as it sees fit. |
| True or False -- the Legislative created the Judicial. | True. |
| True or False -- Though many people seem to believe it, the Constitution is not democratic. | True |
| What does Oligarchy mean? | ruled by few |
| What kind of government do we have? | republic |
| True or False -- John Jay stated, "The people who own the country ought to govern it. | true |
| When was the Voting Rights Act put into effect? | 1970 |
| True or False -- The range of action for the gov. is quite wide. | True |
| True or False -- it is easy for the government to act. | False |
| What is it called when the President, Congress and the courts all pull in different directions on policy? | No policy at all, or policy gridlock |
| True or False -- the Founders were afraid of democracy. | True! |
| What did the Framer's claim the Constitution was to be a government of? | The rich, well-born and able. |
| What system of government do most countries have? | Unitary. |
| What kind of government is a Confederate? | Strong state and weak central gov. |
| What system of government are we? | Federal |
| the power is ______ with federal government. | shared/divided |
| Where is all the power in unitarianism? | in the Central gov. |
| What did the Framers choose federalism? | Because they wanted to balance order and freedom. |
| What's another name for Expressed powers? | Enumerated powers. |
| What are enumerated powers? | Powers specifically given to the federal gov. by the Cons. |
| What are Implied powers? | Powers that are not expressly stated in the Cons. |
| What is the Elastic Clause? | it grants Congress the power to pass all laws necessary and proper for carrying out the enumerated list of powers. |
| What does the Elastic Clause do to the Legislative? | makes it stronger. |
| What are inherent powers? | powers that the gov. needs to do things right. |
| Where are the Reserved powers held? | by the states. |
| What are some examples of Reserved Powers? | licensing doctors, establishing public schools, establishing local govs. |
| True or False -- Reserved powers are powers the federal government cannot have. | True! |
| What are concurrent powers? | Powers that both national and state governments have. |
| What are Prohibited powers? | powers that neither the nation or state governments can have. |
| True or False -- in almost every court case, the national government always wins. | True. |
| what does Cardinal mean? | important. |
| What is the Commerce Clause? | gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes. |
| What is Dual Federalism? | A system of government in which the national and state governments remain supreme within their own spheres. |
| What is another name for Dual Federalism? | Layer Cake |
| What is cooperative federalism? | a system of government in which the national and state governments work together to complete projects. |
| What is cooperative federalism often called? | marble cake. |
| What is fiscal federalism? | how money works in federalism. |
| What are the two types of federal grants? | categorical and block |
| What is a categorical grant? | A grant that is made for specific purposes. ex: to use on highways, wastewater treatment plants. |
| What is a block grant? | it's made for a broadly defined purpose. they give the states broad discretion in how the money will be spent. ex: money given to the states for homeland security and community development. |
| What does mandate mean? | a rule telling states with they must do tothe comply with federal guidelines. |
| What is an unfunded mandate? | requires sate and local governments to provide services without providing money to do it. |
| What is an example of an unfunded mandate? | the ADA (American Disability Act), they told the states to make sure every local/state building or a commerce building had to be handicap accessible. However, they didn't provide any resources or money. |
| What is Devolution? | it refers to a movement to transfer responsibilities of governing from the federal government to state and local government. |
| When did they start to give power back to the states? | the 1980s |
| What are some pros of Federalism? | It promotes diverse policies that encourage experimentation ad creative ideas, it keeps one faction or interest group from dominating government or policies, and it keeps the government local and promotes political participation. |
| What are some cons of Federalism? | It's less equal, it enables local interests to delay or even thwart majority support for a policy, and it creates confusion because the different levels of gov. make it difficult for citizens to know what diff. govs. are doing. |
| What was the Court Case, Brown. v. Board of Education about? | It was about segregation in schools. the Board won because the Court unanimously held that school segregation was unconstitutional. |
| What is the least common kind of grant? | block. |
| Why would senators give money to the states? | To give them more power because they can control how it is distributed, and also to get people to vote for them. |
| True or False -- Dual Federalism and Cooperative Federalism are opposites. | tru |
| Why is Dual Federalism nicknamed "layer cake"? | Because the state and national governments are more separate and they don't go together. |
| Why is Cooperative Federalism nick-named "marble cake"? | Because the state and national govs. go together and they need each other to complete a project. |
| democracy | Government by the people, both directly and indirectly, with free and frequent elections. |
| direct democracy | Government in which citizens vote on laws and select officials directly. |
| representative democracy aka republic | Government in which people elect those who govern and pass laws; also called a republic |
| popular consent | Idea that government must derive its powers from the consent of the people it governs. |
| majority rule | Governance according to the expressed preferences of the majority |
| majority | The candidate or party that wins more than half the votes cast in an election |
| ideology | A consistent pattern of beliefs about political values and the role of government |
| Articles of Confederation | The first governing document of the confederated states drafted in 1777, ratified in 1781, and replaced by the present Constitution in 1789 |
| Shays' Rebellion | Rebellion led by Daniel Shays of farmers in western Massachusetts in 1786-1787, protesting mortgage foreclosures. It highlighted the need for a strong national government just as the call for the Constitutional Convention went out |
| bicameralism | Principle of a two-house legislature |
| Virginia Plan | Initial proposal at the Constitutional Convention made by the Virginia delegation for a strong central government with a bicameral legislature dominated by the big states |
| New Jersey Plan | Proposal at the Constitutional Convention made by William Paterson of New Jersey for a central government with a single-house legislature in which each state would be represented equally. |
| Connecticut Compromise | Compromise for a bicameral legislature with a lower house in which representation would be based on population and an upper house in which each state would have two senators (also known as the Great Compromise) |
| three-fifths compromise | Compromise between northern and southern states at the Constitutional Convention that three-fifths of the slave population would be counted for determining taxation and representation in the House of Representatives |
| Federalists | Supporters of ratification of the Constitution and of a strong central government |
| Antifederalists | Opponents of ratification of the Constitution and a strong central government, generally |
| The Federalist Papers | Essays promoting ratification of the Constitution, published anonymously by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison in 1787 and 1778 |
| natural law | God's or nature's law that defines right from wrong and is higher than human law |
| separation of powers | Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive branch applying and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law |
| checks and balances | Constitutional grant of powers that enables each of the three branches of government to check some acts of the others and therefore ensure that no one branch can dominate |
| divided government | Governance divided between the parties, especially when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress |
| judicial review | The power of the court to refuse to enforce a law or a government regulation that in the opinion of the judges conflicts with the U.S. Constitution or, in a state court, the state constitution |
| impeachment | Formal accusation by the lower house of legislature against a public official, the first step in removal from office. (The trial of an official, not the removal of an official) |
| executive order | Directive issued by a president or governor that has the force of law |
| devolution | The effort to slow the growth of the federal government by returning many functions to the states |
| federalism | Constitutional arrangement in which power is distributed between a central government and subdivisional governments, called states in the United States. The national and subdivisional governments both exercise authority over individuals. |
| unitary system | Constitutional arrangement that concentrates power in a central government |
| confederation | Constitutional agreement in which sovereign nations or states, by compact, create a central government but carefully limit its power and do not give it direct authority over individuals |
| expressed powers | Powers the Constitution specifically grants to one of the branches of the national government |
| implied powers | Powers inferred from the expressed powers that allow Congress to carry out its functions. |
| necessary and proper clause | Clause setting forth the implied powers of Congress. It states that, Congress, in addition to its expressed powers has the right to all laws necessary and proper to carry out all powers the Constitution vests in the national government |
| inherent power | Powers of the national government in foreign affairs that the Supreme Court has declared not to depend on constitutional grants but rather grow out of the very existence of the national government |
| commerce clause | Clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state over other nations |
| federal mandate | Requirement the federal government imposes as a condition for receiving federal funds |
| concurrent powers | Powers that the Constitution gives to both the national and state governments, such as the power to levy taxes |
| full faith and credit clause | Clause in the Constitution (Article 4, Section 1) requiring each state to recognize the civil judgments rendered by the courts of the other states and to accept their public records and acts as valid |
| extradition | Legal process whereby an alleged criminal offender is surrendered by the officials of one state to officials of the state in which the crime is alleged to have been committed |
| national supremacy | Constitutional doctrine that whenever conflict occurs between the constitutionally authorized actions of the national government and those of a state or local government, the actions of the federal government |
| states rights | Powers expressly or implicitly reserved to the states |
| cooperative federalism | national, state, and local government interact cooperatively and collectively to solve common problems, rather than making policies separately but more or less equally or clashing over a policy in a system dominated by the national government |
| Federalist 10 | Madison's response to controlling factions through the creation of a large republic |
| power | Ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person's intentions |
| authority | Right to use power. "Formal" means that the right to exercise power is vested in government office |
| legitimacy | Political authority given by law or by written constitution |
| pluralist | Competition shapes public policy. Therefore, what government does is affected to varying degrees not only by competing groups of elites inside or outside government, but by mass public media as well |
| Declaration of Independence | Addressed the British violations of political liberties that were said to be unalienable |
| John Locke | English philosopher that believed all men cherish and seek to protect their life, liberty and property |
| republic | A government in which a system of representation operates through competitive elections |
| Bill of Rights | First 10 Amendments in the Constitution in which basic rights are guaranteed. Was added to the Constitution before ratification in order to appease the Antifederalists |
| writ of habeas corpus | Must bring an accused person in custody before a judge to show sufficient cause for the detention |
| bill of attainder | A law that declares a person, without a trial, to be guilty of a crime |
| ex post facto law | A law that makes criminal an act that was legal when it was committed |
| block grants | Money from the national government for programs in certain general areas that the states can use at their discretion within broad guidelines set by Congress |
| elastic clause | Congress shall have the power to "make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers." |
| Federalist 45 | The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite |
| McCulloch v. Maryland | Expanded the powers of Congress and confirmed the supremacy of the federal government in the exercise of those powers. Allowed the U.S. to establish a bank and disallowed the taxing of that bank by the states |
| nullification | The right to declare a federal law unconstitutional by a state. No longer allowed after the Civil War |
| dual federalism | The national government is supreme, but the state governments are equally supreme and thus are separate, i.e. interstate commerce v. intrastate commerce |
| categorical grants | Federal money for specific purposes. A more specific type of grants in aid, i.e. build a specific airport. Usually requires some sort of "matching" funds |
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1415mckaylablair