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AP Gov
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Supremacy Clause | Federal law is supreme over state law (Specifically the US Constitution, Treaties & Federal Laws are supreme over state laws and state constitutions.) |
| The Necessary & Proper Clause | Allows for implied powers by expanding the power of Congress beyond it's enumerated/expressed ones, to also include other powers that are related to expressed/enumerated powers and might assist Congress in carrying out the expressed/enumerated ones. |
| Commerce Clause | Congress can regulate trade between nations, between states and among Indian tribes |
| Due Process Clause (14th Amendment) | State governments must observe fair procedures when they deny a person life, liberty, or property. (clause used to incorporate many of the Bill of Rights protections to the States) |
| Due Process Clause (5th Amendment) | The national government must observe fair procedures when it denies a person life, liberty, or property |
| Elastic Clause | Congress can exercise powers not specifically stated in the Constitution if those powers are "necessary and proper" for carrying out its expressed powers that are specifically stated |
| Free Exercise Clause | Congress cannot pass laws that ban freedom of worship (this applies to belief and to practice up to a point) |
| Ex Post Facto Clause | Congress cannot pass a law that punishes a person retroactively i.e. after the fact. In other words, a person cannot be punished for something he/she did that was not a crime when committed |
| Reserved Power Clause | Any power that is not granted to the national government, or denied to the states, automatically reverts to the states (the 10th Amendment!!!!) |
| Full Faith and Credit Clause | A state must recognize the validity of the public acts, records and court decisions of other states. For example, a state must recognize as valid the birth certificate issued by another state |
| Bill of Attainder Clause | Congress cannot pass a law that singles out a person or group for punishment without trial |
| Establishment Clause | Congress cannot establish an "official" religion (nor push or promote religion, or elevate one religion over another) creating, in effect, the separation of church and state (1st Amendment) |
| Suspension Clause / Habeas Corpus Clause | The writ of habeas corpus (an order requiring the person holding a prisoner to demonstrate a legal basis for continuing to hold the prisoner) shall not be suspended, except in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it. |
| Search and Seizure Clause | The authorities do not have a general power to search and arrest individuals at any time, at any place and in any manner, rather they can only do so according to specified procedures that must be "reasonable" |
| Takings Clause (Eminent Domain) | Gov can take private property for a public purpose, but it must provide fair compensation to the owners of that property (located in the 5th Amendment, it restricts the government's power of eminent domain) |
| Marbury v. Madison (1803) | Established judicial review (the right to judge the constitutionality of laws)-under John Marshall, the 4th Chief Justice (a Federalist who worked to increase the powers of the federal government over states) |
| McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) | The Court upheld the power of the nat gov and denied the right of a state to tax the fed bank using the Const's supremacy clause. The Court's broad interpretation of the necessary and proper clause allowed for later rulings upholding expansive fed powers |
| Brown v. Board of Education (1954) | The Supreme Court overruled Plessy v. Ferguson and declared that racially segregated facilities are inherently unequal and ordered all public schools desegregated. |
| Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) | Extends to the defendant the right of counsel in all state and federal criminal trials regardless of their ability to pay. |
| Tinker v DesMoines Independent School District (1969) | SCOTUS ruled that students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." |
| United States v. Lopez (1995) | The national government's (specifically Congress) power under the commerce clause does not permit it to regulate matters not directly related to interstate commerce (in this case, banning firearms in a school zone) |
| New York Times v. US (1971) | The Court held that the government's urging of "security" did not trump the newspapers' freedom of press as guaranteed by the 1st Amend. The Court held that for prior restraint, the gov needs to prove that the news would cause immediate danger to the US |
| Baker v. Carr (1961) | Established "one man one vote". The ruling created guidelines for drawing congressional districts and guaranteed a more equitable system of representation to the citizens of each state. |
| Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) | Compelling Amish students to attend school past the eighth grade violates the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment. |
| Schenck v. United States (1919) | The freedom of speech protection afforded in the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment could be restricted if the words spoken or printed represented to society a "clear and present danger." |
| McDonald v. Chicago (2010) | The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms," applies to state and local governments as well as to the federal government.. |
| Shaw v. Reno (1993) | Redistricting must be conscious of race and ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965. If a reapportionment plan creates a district only to separate voters based on race, then an Equal Protection challenge against that plan is valid. |
| Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) | Individuals, corporations, and unions can donate unlimited amounts of money to groups that make independent political expenditures to campaigns. Based on the 1st Amendment Freedom of Speech Clause. |
| Brutus 1 | A foundational document that says a large republic is inferior to small, locally-controlled states within a confederacy |
| Shays' Rebellion | Rebellion in 1786 / 1787 that showed the weakness of the early federal government in maintaining order |
| Connecticut Compromise | System outlined by the Constitution that established two houses of Congress: the House of Representatives, in which representation is based on a state's share of the U.S. population, and the Senate, in which each state has two representatives. |
| Exclusionary Rule | A rule that provides that otherwise admissible evidence cannot be used in a criminal trial if it was the result of illegal police conduct. |
| Equal Protection Clause | Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids any state to deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. |
| Selective Incorporation Doctrine | Judicial doctrine that applies the Bill of Rights (one right at a time) to state and local governments by incorporating them into the concept of liberty in the 14th Amendment's Due Process Clause (which is binding on the states). |
| Engel v. Vitale (1962) | Prohibited state-sponsored recitation of prayer in public schools by virtue of 1st Amendment's establishment clause and the 14th Amendment's due process clause. |
| Roe v. Wade (1973) | Certain state criminal abortion laws violate the Due Process clause of the 14th Amendment, which protects against state action the (implied) right to privacy in the Bill of Rights. |
| 4th Amendment | The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause |
| 5th Amendment | Grand Jury indictment, no double jeopardy, no self-incrimination, takings clause |
| 6th Amendment | Speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury; be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation;to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense. |
| 7th Amendment | In civil suits, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved |
| 8th Amendment | Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. |
| 9th Amendment | The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people. |
| 10th Amendment | The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. |
| 14th Amendment | Declares that all persons born in the U.S. are citizens and are guaranteed due process and equal protection of the laws. |
| 24th Amendment | Eliminated the poll tax as a prerequisite to vote in national elections. |
| Civil Rights Act of 1964 | This act made racial, religious, and sex discrimination by employers illegal and gave the government the power to enforce all laws governing civil rights, including desegregation of schools and public places. |
| Voting Rights Act of 1965 | A law designed to help end formal and informal barriers to African-American suffrage |
| Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 | A law that requires employers and public facilities to make "reasonable accommodations" for people with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against these individuals in employment. |
| Title IX of Education Act of 1972 | Prohibited gender discrimination in federally funded education programs |
| Cloture | debate on the topic at hand must end, and a vote is taken immediately. (against filibuster) |
| Pork Barrel Legislation | The practice of legislators obtaining funds through legislation that favors their home districts. |
| Logrolling | the practice of exchanging favors, especially in politics by reciprocal voting for each other's proposed legislation. |
| Trustee | A representative who votes based on what he or she thinks is best for his or her constituency |
| Delegate | A representative who votes according to the preferences of his or her constituency |
| Signing Statments | a statement issued by a president upon the signing of a bill into law by which the president indicates his or her interpretation of the law. |
| Executive Privilege | power of the president to protect the privacy interests of the executive branch. |
| Independent Regulatory Agencies | Issue regulations, enforce penalties for violations of their regulations. The heads of these agencies are appointed by the president and require Senate approval. Key examples include: FTC, FDA, FCC, OSHA, EPA, CPSC, FEC. |
| Government Corporations | Non-profit companies owned by the federal government. Key examples: Amtrak and USPS. |
| Independent Executive Agencies | Federal agencies that aren't large or important enough to get department status. Directors appointed by President w/ advice & consent of Senate. Ex. NASA, CIA, EPA. |
| Stare Decisis | In court rulings, a reliance on past decisions or precedents to formulate decisions in new cases. |
| Judicial Activism | the practice in the judiciary of protecting or expanding individual rights through decisions that depart from established precedent or are independent of or in opposition to supposed constitutional or legislative intent. |
| Judicial Restraint | Theory of judicial interpretation that encourages judges to limit the exercise of their own power. It asserts that judges should hesitate to strike down laws unless they are obviously unconstitutional. |
| Judicial Review | The power of a court to determine the constitutionality of a governmental action. |
| Federalist 78 | A founding document which defends the power of judicial review. Argues that the federal courts have the duty to determine whether acts of Congress are constitutional, and to follow the Constitution when there is inconsistency |
| Iron Triangle | A close mutually beneficial relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group |
| Conference Committees | Congressional committees formed when the Senate and the House pass a particular bill in different forms. Party leadership appoints members from each house to iron out the differences and bring back a single bill |
| Faithfully Executed Clause | Constitutional provision that the President should take care that the laws are carried out conscientiously. |
| Extradition Clause | An accused person who flees to another state must be returned to the state in which he/she allegedly committed the crime. |
| Privileges and Immunities Clause | Constitutional guarante that the citizens of each state are afforded the same rights as citizens of all other states. |
| War Powers Clause | Vests in the Congress the exclusive power to declare war |
| Article I, II, and III of the const | Establish the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches respectively |
| Federalist 70 | A founding document of the United States, authored by Alexander Hamilton. Defends that it is easier and more effective to have a singular executive rather than a plural one. |
| 22nd Amendment (1951) | Limits the president to two terms or 10 years. |
| 25th Amendment (1967) | Establishes the Presidential succession and the protocol in the event of presidential disability. |
| 12th Amendment | The presidential and vice-presidential nominees would run on the same party ticket. |
| Amicus Curiae Brief | Literally, a "friend of the court" brief, filed by an individual or organization to present arguments in addition to those presented by the immediate parties to a case. |
| Scientific Polling | Tool developed in the twentieth century for systematically investigating the opinions of ordinary people, based on random samples. |
| Public Opinion Polls | Interviews or surveys with samples of citizens that are used to estimate the feelings and beliefs of the entire population. |
| Benchmark Polls | Initial poll on a candidate and issues on which campaign strategy is based and against which later polls are compared. |
| Tracking Polls | Continuous surveys that enable a campaign or news organization to chart a candidate's daily rise or fall in support. |
| Entrance Polls | Public opinion surveys taken before voters cast their ballots. |
| Push Polls | Polls taken for the purpose of providing information on an opponent that would lead respondents to vote against that candidate. |
| Exit Polls | Polls conducted as voters leave selected polling places on Election Day. |
| Formal Qualifications for President | 35 years old, lived in country 14 years, natural born U.S. citizen |
| Formal Qualifications for Senator | 30 years old, U.S. citizen for 9 years, Resident of the state you represent. |
| Formal Qualifications for a member of the House | 25 years old, 7 years a U.S. Citizen, Resident of the State you Represent. |
| Formal Qualification for SCOTUS | Good behavior. |
| Article IV of the Constitution | Outlines the relationship between the various states, as well as the relationship between each state and the US federal gov. It also empowers Congress to admit new states and administer the territories and other federal lands. |
| Article V of the Constitution | Describes the process for amending the Constitution. |
| Article VI of the Constitution | Establishes the laws and treaties of the US as the supreme law of the land, forbids a religious test as a requirement for holding a governmental position, and holds the US under the Const responsible for debts under the Articles of Confed. |
| Article VII of the Constitution | Ratification of the Constitution |
| Dual Federalism | A system of government in which both the states and the national government remain supreme within their own spheres, each responsible for some policies. |
| Cooperative Federalism | A system of government in which powers and policy assignments are shared between states and the national government. They may also share costs, administration, and even blame for programs that work poorly. |
| Fiscal Federalism | The pattern of spending, taxing, and providing grants in the federal system; it is the cornerstone of the national government's relations with state and local governments. |
| Federalist 10 | An essay composed by James Madison which argues that liberty is safest in a large republic because of the existence of many factions. Such diversity makes tyranny by the majority more difficult since ruling coalitions will always be unstable. |
| Federalist 51 | An essay composed by James Madison which argues that separation of powers within the national government is the best way to prevent the concentration of power in the hands of one person or a single group. |
| Devolution | The transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal government back to the states. |
| Writ of Certiorari | Order by the Supreme Court directing a lower court to send up the records of a case for review. |
| Procedural Due Process | Issue with how the law is executed |
| Substantive Due Process | Issue with the law itself |
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