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Political Science > 2: The Constitution > Flashcards

2: The Constitution Flashcards

1
Q

What term denotes an economic theory designed to increase a nation’s wealth through the development of commercial industry and a favorable balance of trade?

A

mercantilism

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2
Q

What pamphlet galvanized the American public against reconciliation with Great Britain?

A

Common Sense

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3
Q

Many of the ideas expressed in the Declaration of Independence were based on _____.

A

social contract theory

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4
Q

In 1772, at the suggestion of Samuel Adams, colonists created _____ to keep each other abreast of developments with the British.

A

Committees of Correspondence

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5
Q

Which of the following is a correct description of Locke’s social contract theory and the Declaration of Independence?

A

Both hold that governments exist based on the consent of the governed.

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6
Q

The Articles of Confederation created what type of government?

A

confederation

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7
Q

Which was not included in the Articles of Confederation?

A

The power of the national government to raise taxes

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8
Q

What was the first constitution of the United States called?

A

the Articles of Confederation

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9
Q

Why do historians refer to the period from 1781 to 1789 as the Critical Period?

A

The newly independent national government was struggling to survive.

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10
Q

In which state did Shays’ Rebellion occur?

A

Massachusetts

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11
Q

What document establishes the structure, functions, and limitations of a government?

A

a constitution

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12
Q

Who thought that the Constitution was “an economic document drawn with superb skill by men whose property interests were immediately at stake”?

A

Charles Beard

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13
Q

What did the New Jersey Plan argue for?

A

a stronger version of the Articles of Confederation

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14
Q

What was the main task of the Committee on Unfinished Portions?

A

ironing out disagreements concerning the office of chief executive

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15
Q

Which constitutional provision suggests that the Framers did not have complete trust in the ability of ordinary citizens to select their leaders?

A

the Electoral College

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16
Q

What is the source of the government’s power under the Constitution?

A

the people

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17
Q

The powers of the national government specifically granted to Congress in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution are known as what kind of powers?

A

enumerated

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18
Q

Which Article of the Constitution created the presidency?

A

2

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19
Q

In creating a national government with a system of checks and balances, the Framers sought to_____.

A

limit the ability of any branch of the national government to become too powerful

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20
Q

The separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial branches is designed so as to ensure that ___________.

A

the branches are constitutionally equal and independent

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21
Q

The Anti-Federalists felt that the proposed national government _____.

A

would be too powerful

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21
Q

What did those who favored the newly proposed, stronger national government choose to call themselves?

A

Federalists

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22
Q

Which state was among the first to ratify the Constitution?

A

Delaware

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23
Q

Which of the following is an example of an Anti-Federalist view?

A

The United States should have strong state governments and a weak national government.

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24
Q

Why were The Federalist Papers written?

A

to spell out the benefits of the Constitution and the reasons for its structure

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25
Q

Which political institution or actor cannot play a formal role in the Amendment process?

A

Governors

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26
Q

Which political institution can most easily bring about informal change to the Constitution?

A

the Supreme Court

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27
Q

Which of the following is an example of cultural change altering the Constitution?

A

federal courts interpreting the Constitution to prohibit many forms of discrimination

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28
Q

Which of the following is a hypothetical example of the amendment process as laid out in Article V of the Constitution?

A

A proposed amendment to balance federal budgets is accepted by two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress and then by legislatures in three-fourths of the states.

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29
Q

To raise money to pay for the French and Indian War and the expenses of administering the colonies, what did Parliament enact?

A

the Sugar Act

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30
Q

What was the purpose of the First Continental Congress?

A

to iron out the differences between the colonists and the king

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31
Q

What did the Declaration of Independence do?

A

It set out the reasons for separation of the colonies from Great Britain.

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32
Q

What was the greatest weakness of the Articles of Confederation?

A

its failure to provide for a strong central government

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33
Q

Which of these events provided a dramatic example of the weaknesses inherent in the Articles of Confederation?

A

Shays’ Rebellion

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34
Q

Why do some consider the supremacy clause to be the linchpin of the entire federal system?

A

The supremacy clause is what gives the national government enforceable power over the states.

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35
Q

By which method can an amendment to the Constitution be ratified?

A

a vote in specially called conventions in three-fourths of the states

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36
Q

An amendment to the Constitution can be proposed by _____.

A

a vote of two- thirds of the members of both houses of Congress

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37
Q

The fact that an adoption that takes place in Nevada is also recognized in Florida is an example of ______.

A

the full faith and credit clause

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38
Q

When the Continental Congress approved the Articles of Confederation as the country’s first system of government, it did not create an executive branch to administer national laws because at that time the Framers feared that _____.

A

a president could become a tyrant

39
Q

Which of the following best summarizes the Southern position in the debate that resulted in the Three-Fifths Compromise?

A

Slaves could not vote, but the South wanted them included in the population count.

40
Q

Which of the following is an informal process for amending the Constitution?

A

changes in judicial interpretation of the Constitution

41
Q

How did the Framers design the Constitution so that it could adapt over time?

A

The language in the Constitution was left intentionally vague so that it could remain flexible.

42
Q

Why did the Anti-Federalists push for the inclusion of a bill of rights in the Constitution?

A

They felt that the Constitution lacked sufficient protections against the possibility that the new government could abuse its power.

43
Q

Which of the following is an example of how the legislative branch checks the executive branch?

A

the presidential impeachment

44
Q

Which of the following phrases best describes the Articles of Confederation?

A

a loose league of friendship between independent states and the national government

45
Q

Agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention stipulating that three-fifths of the total slave population of each state was to be for purposes of determining population for representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

A

Three-Fifths Compromise

46
Q

The system established by the Constitution through which the president is chosen by electors from each state, which has as many electoral votes as it has members of Congress.

A

Electoral College

47
Q

Section of Article IV of the Constitution that ensures judicial decrees and contracts made in one state will be binding and enforceable in any other state.

A

full faith and credit clause

48
Q

Cousin of President John Adams and an early leader against the British and loyalist oppressors; he played a key role in developing the Committees of Correspondence and was active in Massachusetts and colonial politics.

A

Samuel Adams

49
Q

Those who favored strong state governments and a weak national government; opposed ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

A

Anti-Federalists

50
Q

Specifies how amendments can be added to the Constitution.

A

Article V

51
Q

Meeting held in Philadelphia from September 5 to October 26, 1774, in which fifty-six delegates (from every colony except Georgia) adopted a resolution in opposition to the Coercive Acts.

A

First Continental Congress

52
Q

A framework for the Constitution proposed by a group of small states; it called for a one-house legislature with one vote for each state, a Congress with the ability to raise revenue, and a Supreme Court appointed for life.

A

New Jersey Plan

53
Q

A brilliant inventor and senior statesman at the Constitutional Convention who urged colonial unity as early as 1754, twenty-two years before the Declaration of Independence.

A

Benjamin Franklin

54
Q

Establishes a Supreme Court and defines its jurisdiction.

A

Article III

55
Q

Document drafted largely by Thomas Jefferson in 1776 that proclaimed the right of the American colonies to separate from Great Britain.

A

Declaration of Independence

56
Q

A member of the Founding generation who was the first Chief Justice of the United States. A diplomat and co-author of The Federalist Papers.

A

John Jay

57
Q

Those who favored a stronger national government and supported the proposed U.S. Constitution; later became the first U.S. political party.

A

Federalists

58
Q

Commonly shared attitudes, behaviors, and core values about how government should operate.

A

political culture

59
Q

A document establishing the structure, functions, and limitations of a government.

A

constitution

60
Q

The first sites of armed conflict between revolutionaries and British soldiers, remembered for the “shot heard ‘round the world” in 1775.

A

Lexington and Concord

61
Q

An economic theory designed to increase a nation’s wealth through the development of commercial industry and a favorable balance of trade.

A

mercantilism

62
Q

The meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 that was first intended to revise the Articles of Confederation but produced an entirely new document, the U.S. Constitution.

A

Constitutional Convention

63
Q

Contains the supremacy clause, which asserts the basic primacy of the Constitution and national law over state laws and constitutions. See also“supremacy clause.”

A

Article VI

64
Q

The influential writer of Common Sense, a pamphlet that advocated for independence from Great Britain.

A

Thomas Paine

65
Q

A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that challenged the authority of the British government to govern the colonies.

A

Common Sense

66
Q

The compact between the thirteen original colonies that created a loose league of friendship, with the national government drawing its powers from the states.

A

Articles of Confederation

67
Q

Vests all legislative powers in the Congress and establishes a bicameral legislature, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives; it also sets out the qualifications for holding office in each house, the terms of office, the methods of selection of representatives and senators, and the system of apportionment among the states to determine membership in the House of Representatives.

A

Article I

68
Q

Vests the executive power, that is, the authority to execute the laws of the nation, in a president of the United States; section 1 sets the president’s term of office at four years and explains the Electoral College and states the qualifications for office and describes a mechanism to replace the president in case of death, disability, or removal from office.

A

Article II

69
Q

The chaotic period from 1781 to 1789 after the American Revolution during which the former colonies were governed under the Articles of Confederation.

A

Critical Period

70
Q

Loosely organized groups of patriotic American colonists who were early revolutionaries.

A

Sons and Daughters of Liberty

71
Q

A way of dividing the power of government among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, each staffed separately, with equality and independence of each branch ensured by the Constitution.

A

separation of powers

72
Q

An African American and first American to die in what became known as the Boston Massacre in 1770.

A

Crispus Attucks

73
Q

A proposed framework for the Constitution favoring large states. It called for a bicameral legislature, which would appoint executive and judicial officers.

A

Virginia Plan

74
Q

A key Framer often called the “Father of the Constitution” for his role in conceptualizing the federal government. Co-authored The Federalist Papers; served as secretary of state; served as the fourth U.S. president from 1809 to 1817.

A

James Madison

75
Q

Meeting that convened in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, at which it was decided that an army should be raised and George Washington of Virginia was named commander in chief.

A

Second Continental Congress

76
Q

A series of eighty-five political essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in support of ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

A

The Federalist Papers

77
Q

Widely considered the “Father of the Nation,” he was the commander of the revolutionary armies; served as the presiding officer of the Constitutional Convention; and as the United States’ first president from 1789 to 1797.

A

George Washington

78
Q

A gathering of nine colonial representatives in 1765 in New York City where a detailed list of Crown violations was drafted; first official meeting of the colonies and the first official step toward creating a unified nation.

A

Stamp Act Congress

79
Q

Principle drafter of the Declaration of Independence; second vice president of the United States; third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. Co-founder of the Democratic-Republican Party created to oppose Federalists.

A

Thomas Jefferson

80
Q

The American phase of what was called the Seven Years War, fought from 1754 to 1763 between Britain and France with Indian allies.

A

French and Indian War

81
Q

The Western hemisphere of Earth, also called The Americas, which was unknown to Europeans before 1492.

A

New World

82
Q

The final paragraph of Article I, section 8, of the Constitution, which gives Congress the authority to pass all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out the enumerated powers specified in the Constitution; also called the elastic clause.

A

necessary and proper clause

83
Q

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which largely guarantee specific rights and liberties.

A

Bill of Rights

84
Q

The final decision of the Constitutional Convention to create a two-house legislature, with the lower house elected by the people and powers divided between the two houses; also made national law supreme.

A

Great Compromise

85
Q

Agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention stipulating that three-fifths of the total slave population of each state was to be for purposes of determining population for representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

A

Three-Fifths Compromise

86
Q

The belief that governments exist based on the consent of the governed.

A

social contract theory

87
Q

The French baron and political theorist who first articulated the concept of separation of powers with checks and balances.

A

Montesquieu

88
Q

The distribution of constitutional authority between state governments and the national government, with different powers and functions exercised by both.

A

federalism

89
Q

The powers of the national government derived from the enumerated powers and the necessary and proper clause.

A

implied powers

90
Q

A key Framer who envisioned a powerful central government, co-authored The Federalist Papers, and served as the first secretary of the treasury.

A

Alexander Hamilton

91
Q

Portion of Article VI of the Constitution mandating that national law is supreme over (that is, supersedes) all other laws passed by the states or by any other subdivision of government.

A

supremacy clause

92
Q

Powers that belong to the president because they can be inferred from the Constitution.

A

inherent powers

93
Q

A rebellion in which an army of 1,500 disgruntled and angry farmers led by Daniel Shays marched to Springfield, Massachusetts, and forcibly restrained the state court from foreclosing mortgages on their farms.

A

Shays’s Rebellion

94
Q

A constitutionally mandated structure that gives each of the three branches of government some degree of oversight and control over the actions of the others.

A

checks and balances

95
Q

The powers of the national government specifically granted to Congress in Article I, section 8 of the Constitution.

A

enumerated powers

96
Q

Mandates that states honor the laws and judicial proceedings of other states. Article IV also includes the mechanisms for admitting new states to the union. See also “full faith and credit clause.”

A

Article IV

Political Science (9 decks)

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