Unit IConstitutional UnderpinningsOf United States Government

VocabularyChapters 1-3

Q1. The characteristic and deep-seated beliefs of a particular people

A1. Political culture

Q2. What is liberty?

A2. The principle that individuals should be free to act and think as they choose, provided they do not infringe unreasonably on the rights and freedoms of others

Q3. The notion that all individuals are equal in their moral worth, in their treatment under the law, and in their political voice

A3. Equality

Q4. The principle that the people are the ultimate source and proper beneficiary of governing authority; in practice, a government based on majority rule

A4. Self-government

Q5. What is Individualism?

A5. The idea that people should take the initiative, be self-sufficient, and accumulate the material advantages necessary for their well-being

Q6. The principle that Americans are one people and form an indivisible union

A6. Unity

Q7. The principle that individual and group differences should be respected and are a source of national strength

A7. Diversity

Q8. The process through which a society makes its governing decisions

A8. Politics

Q9. A voluntary agreement by individuals to form government, which is then obliged to act within the confines of the agreement

A9. Social contract

Q10. A form of government in which the people govern, either directly or through elected representatives.

A10. Democracy

Q11.A form of government in which control rests with a few persons

A11. Oligarchy

Q12. A form of government in which absolute control rests with a single person

A12. Autocracy

Q13. Constitutionalism

A13. The idea that there are definable limits on the rightful power of a government over its citizens

Q14. Socialism

A14. An economic system in which government owns and controls many of the major industries

Q15. An economic system in which government owns most or all major industries and also takes responsibility for overall management of the economy

A15. Communism

Q16. An economic system based on the idea that government should interfere with economic transactions as little as possible. Free enterprise and self-reliance are the collective and individual principles

A16. Capitalism

Q17. Power

A17. The ability of persons or institutions to control policy

Q18. A decision of government to pursue a course of action designed to produce an intended outcome

A18. Public policy

Q19. A form of government in which the leaders claim complete dominance of all individuals and institutions

A19. Totalitarian government

Q20. A form of government in which leaders, though they admit to no limits on their powers, are effectively limited by other centers of power in the society

A20. Authoritarian government

Q21. Authority

A21. The recognized right of an individual or institution to exercise power

Q22. The idea the majority prevails not only in elections but also in policy determination

A22. Majoritarianism

Q23. A theory of American politics that holds that society’s interests are substantially represented through the activities of groups

A23. Pluralism

Q24. The view that the United States essentially is run by a few individuals (composed of wealthy or well-connected individuals) who control public policy through both direct and indirect means

A24. Elitism

Q25. The tendency of large-scale organizations to develop into the bureaucratic form, with the effect that administrators make key policy decisions

A25. Bureaucratic rule

Q26. Political system

A26. The various components of American government. The parts are separate, but they connect with one another, affecting how each performs

Q27. A government that is subject to strict limits on its lawful uses of power, and hence on its ability to deprive people of their liberty

A27. Limited government

Q28. The principle that the people are the ultimate source and proper beneficiary of governing authority; in practice, a government based on majority rule

A28. Self-government

Q29. Those rights that persons theoretically possessed in the state of nature, prior to the formation of governments. These rights, including life, liberty, and property, are considered inherent. Since government is established by people, government has the responsibility to preserve these rights.

Q29. Inalienable (natural) rights

Q30. Virginia (large-state) Plan

A30. A constitutional proposal for a strong Congress with two chambers, both of which would be based on numerical (population) representation, thus granting more power to the larger states

Q31. New Jersey (small-state) Plan

A31. A constitutional proposal for a strengthen Congress but one in which each state would have a single vote, this granting a small state the same legislative power as a large state

Q32. The agreement at the constitutional convention to create a two-chamber Congress with the House of Representatives apportioned by population and the Senate apportioned equally by state (2 Senators per state)

A32. Great (Connecticut) Compromise

Q33. A term used to describe opponents of the Constitution during the debate over ratification

A33. Anti-Federalists

Q34. A term used to describe proponents of the Constitution during the debate over ratification

A34. Federalists

Q35. The fundamental law that defines how a government will legitimately operate

A35. constitution

Q36. The method of limiting the U.S. government by confining its scope of authority to those powers expressly granted in the Constitution

A36. Grants of power

Q37. A constitutional means of limiting government by listing those powers that government is expressly prohibited from using

A37. Denials of power

Q38. Requires each of the three branches of government – executive, legislative, and judicial – to be relatively independent of the others so that one cannot control the others

A38. Separation of powers

Q39. The elaborate system of divided spheres of authority provided by the U.S. Constitution as a means of controlling the power of government. The separation of powers among the branches of the national government, federalism, and the different methods of selecting national officers are all part of this system

A39. Checks and balances

Q40. Bill of Rights

A40. The first ten amendments to the Constitution. They include such basic liberties as freedom of religion, speech, and press and offer protections against arbitrary searches by the police and being held without talking to a lawyer

Q41. The power of courts to decide whether a governmental institution has acted within its constitutional powers and, if not, to declare its action null and void

A41. Judicial review

Q42. The potential of a majority to monopolize power for its own gain to the detriment of minority rights and interests

A42. tyranny of the majority

Q43. Historically, the form of government in which representative officials met to decide on policy issues. These representatives were expected to serve the public interest but were not subject to the people’s immediate control

A43. Republic

Q44. Representative Democracy

A44. A system in which the people participate in the decision-making process of government not directly but indirectly, through the election of officials to represent their interests

Q45. Elected representatives whose obligation is to act in accordance with their own consciences as to what policies are in the best interests of the public

A45. trustees

Q46. An unofficial term that refers to the electors who cast the states’ electoral votes

A46. Electoral College

Q47. Electoral votes

A47. The method of voting that is used to choose the U.S. president. Each state has the same number of electoral votes as it has members in Congress (House and Senate combined). By tradition, electoral voting is tied to a state’s popular voting. The candidate with the most popular votes in a state receives its electoral votes (in a few states, they use the most votes in a congressional district)

Q48. Elected representatives whose obligation is to act in accordance with the expressed wishes of the people they represent

A48. delegates

Q49. A form of election in which voters choose a party’s nominees for public office. In most states, eligibility to vote in a party’s primary election is limited to voters who are registered members of the party

A49. Primary election

Q50. A governmental system in which authority is divided between two sovereign levels of government: national and state/local

A50. federalism

Q51. Sovereignty

A51. The ultimate authority to govern within a certain geographical area

Q52. A governmental system in which sovereignty is vested entirely in subnational (state) governments

A52. confederacy

Q53. A governmental system in which the national government alone has sovereign (ultimate) authority

A53. unitary system

Q54. The seventeen powers granted to the national government under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. These powers include taxation and the regulation of commerce as well as the authority to provide for the national defense

A54. enumerated (expressed) powers

Q55. Article VI of the Constitution, which makes national law supreme over state law when the national government is acting within its constitutional limits

A55. Supremacy clause

Q56. The authority granted Congress in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution “to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper” for the implementation of its enumerated powers

A56. “necessary and proper” (elastic) clause

Q57. The federal government’s constitutional authority (through the “necessary and proper” clause) to take action that is not expressly authorized by the Constitution but that supports actions that are so authorized

A57. implied powers

Q58. Reserved powers

A58. The powers granted to the states under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution

Q59. A doctrine based on the idea that a precise separation of national power and state power is both possible and desirable (layer cake)

A59. dual federalism

Q60. Commerce clause

A60. The clause of the Constitution (

Article I, Section 8) that empowers the federal government to regulate commerce among the states and with other nations

Q61. The situation in which the national, state, and local levels work together to solve problems (marble cake)

A61. Cooperative federalism

Q62. A term that refers to the expenditure of federal funds on programs run in part through states and localities

A62. fiscal federalism

Q63. Federal cash payments to states and localities for programs they administer

A63. grants-in-aid

Q64. Federal grants to states and localities that can be used only for specific purposes. They come with strings attached, such as nondiscrimination provisions

A64. categorical grants

Q65. Federal grants that permit state and local officials to decide how the money will be spent within a general area, such as education or health

A65. block grants

Q66. The passing down of authority from the national government to the state and local governments

A66. devolution

Q67. Linkage institutions

A67. The channels or access points through which issues and people’s policy preferences get on the government policy agenda

Q68. The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actually involved in politics at any given point of time

A68. policy agenda

Q69. political issue

A69. An issue that arises when people disagree about a problem and a public policy choice

Q70. A fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. In a democracy, choosing among alternatives requires that the majority’s desire be respected

A70. majority rule

Q71. A principle of traditional democratic theory that guarantees rights to those who do not belong to majorities and allows that they might join majorities through persuasion and reasoned argument

A71. minority rights

Q72. hyperpluralism

A72. A theory of government and politics contending that groups are so strong that government is weakened. Hyperpluralism is an extreme, exaggerated, or perverted form of pluralism

Q73. The document approved by representatives of the American colonies in 1776 that stated their grievances against the British monarch and declared their independence

A73. Declaration of Independence

Q74. consent of the governed

A74. According to John Locke, the required basis for government. The Declaration of Independence reflects Locke’s view that governments derive their authority from the consent of the governed (people are the source of government power)

Q75. The first constitution of the United States, adopted by Congress in 1777 and enacted in 1781. It established a national legislature, the Continental Congress, but most authority rested with the state legislatures

A75. Articles of Confederation

Q76. A series of attacks on courthouses by a small band of farmers to block foreclosure proceedings

A76. Shays’ Rebellion

Q77. A collection of 85 articles written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison under the name “Publius” to defend the Constitution in detail. Collectively, these papers are second only to the U.S. Constitution in characterizing the framers’ intents

A77. Federalist Papers

Q78. A clause in Article IV, Section I, of the Constitutional requiring each state to recognize the official documents and civil judgments rendered by the courts of other states

A78. full faith and credit clause

Q79. A clause in Article IV, Section 2, of the Constitution according citizens of each state most of the privileges of citizens of other states

A79. privileges and immunities clause

Q80. Extradition

A80. A 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

Q81. Powers shared by the national and state governments

A81. concurrent powers

Q82. An order to produce an arrested person before a judge. Constitutional guarantee that cannot be suspended except during invasion or rebellion

A82. habeas corpus

Q83. A law that declares a person, without a trial, to be guilty of a crime

A83. bill of attainder

Q84. A law that makes an act criminal although the act was legal when it was committed

A84. ex post facto law

Q85. Federal programs that require action by states or localities but provide no or insufficient funds to pay for it

A85. unfunded mandates