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TX Gov Exam 1 Vocab
Intro to government, US & Tx constitution, federalism
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Politics | the process by which it is decided who gets what, when they get it, where they get it, and how they get it. It allows for citizens to get something from government but it may create conflict since politicians only care about their voters. |
| Social contract | a transactional arrangement between the members of society and government in which citizens give up some rights in exchange of protection; the consent to be ruled. Importance: it shows that citizens accept their government. |
| Monarchy | rule by a single person based on divine right. Ex. England. I: it has a clear succession line, but not everyone may be part of it |
| Dictatorship | ule by a single person based on force. Ex. Cuba and Belarus I: efficient decision making but it ignores human rights |
| Oligarchy | rule by a small collective. Ex. Russia. Importance: only the few in government benefit in this countries |
| Anarchy | lack of government. Ex. Haiti I: promotes change but it is chaotic |
| Democracy | rule by the majority. I: allows citizens in the majority to have a say in it |
| Direct democracy | Political system in which most citizens make policy, as in a town meeting. Ex. Switzerland. I: difficult decision making |
| Republic/indirect/representative democracy | political system in which policy is made by officials elected by the people. Ex. U.S. I: easier decision making, citizens in the majority have a say in it but those in the minority group may be ignored |
| Constitution | document that is the fundamental law of a nation. defines the powers of government, specifies the offices to be filled, the authority that each branch should exercise and sets limits informs citizens about what the government may do and its limits |
| Majestic vagueness | document that we respect, uphold and follow but that it is not very clear. Importance: it allows judges to adapt the constitution to different situations and allows for the document to remain in effect |
| Legal constitutionalism | allows judges to interpret the constitution to reflect different values at different periods in history. Importance: the constitution can be adapted to different situations |
| Separation of powers | assignment of law-making (legislative), law-enforcing (executive), and law- interpreting (judiciary) functions to separate branches of government. Importance: limits government |
| Checks and balances | idea that each of the branches will check on each other so that no branch becomes stronger than the others. Importance: limits power |
| Bicameral legislature | legislative body of elected representatives that do not elect the President and that has two chambers (U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate). I: it limits power within the legislative but it makes it more difficult to pass laws |
| Original jurisdiction | the Supreme Court is the first court in the country to hear a case. I: it allows the court to hear the case first |
| Impeachment | the power to remove a person from the executive and the judiciary. I: allows Congress to check on the other two branches of government |
| Full faith and credit clause | what is legal in one state it has to be legal in the others. I: establishes uniformity of laws in the United States |
| Amendment | a change to the constitution. I: allows the constitution to be modified as needed |
| Supremacy clause | principle that the national (federal government) is always stronger than any state government. I: ensures that the national government will be respected by states |
| Federalism | system of government in which power is divided and shared between a national (federal, central), a state and a local government. I: allows for citizens to be closer to government |
| Federalist Paper 10 | warning and proposed solutions against factions |
| Federalist Paper 51 | addressing possible implementations of checks and balances in the national government |
| Dual Federalism/layer cake model | federalism where the powers and responsibilities of the national and state government are clearly defined. Importance: the national government’s decisions take precedence over the states. Citizens may also see a clear division of power |
| Cooperative Federalism/marble cake model | Federalism where the powers and responsibilities of the national and state government overlap. Ex. the Affordable Care Act “Obamacare” and the No Child Left behind act. Importance: it allows both national and state governments to contribute |
| Radical Republicans | Republicans in the U.S. Congress promoted African American suffrage, and an extended period of military occupation in the South following the civil war. I: reconstruction did not really improve the lives of African Americans in the state |
| E.J. Davis | Governor of Texas that had a lot of power, presided over a corrupt administration that eventually turned to the state police and militia to attempt to maintain its regime. I: his corrupt behavior led to the creation of the plural executive in Texas |
| The Grange | was a militant farmer’s movement’ political party of the late 19th century that fought to improve the conditions for farmers. Importance: this party had a significant influence in the writing of the Texas constitution of 1876 |
| Retrenchment and Reform | he belief that they wanted to go back to the way things were before reconstruction. Importance: it is a backward way of thinking and limits change |
| Compromise of 1876/1877 | awarded all 20 electoral votes to Hayes. In return, the Republicans agreed to withdraw federal troops from the South, ending Reconstruction. Importance: The Compromise effectively ended reconstruction and allowed for a railroad system to go to the South |
| Plural Executive | governor has to share the executive office with eight other people none of these people are appointed by the governor. Importance: the governor cannot appoint his own cabinet since these are elected and power is shared among these six to nine people |
| Power triangle | DFW (I-35), Houst (I-45), and SanAn I-10; the commercial center and most of the population, money, political and economic power, voters, and campaign contributions are in this area. I: Politicians pay attention to this area and live outside this area |
| Government | an organization that possesses legitimate means of coercion Importance: This structure allows for our country to function and protect us |
Created by:
1763
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