Government Defined

Question 1

have authority and control over others

Answer 1

Elected officials

Question 2

Governments consist of three main components:

Answer 2

Peoples, Power, Policies

Question 3

interpret the laws and settle disputes between members of society

Answer 3

Judicial

Question 4

carry out, enforce, and administer the law

Answer 4

Executive

Question 5

decision made by government in pursuit of a particular goal; can take the form of a law, a government program, or a set of government actions

Answer 5

Policy

Question 6

power to make laws

Answer 6

Legislative

Question 7

carry out the day-to-day business of government

Answer 7

Public servants

Question 8

made up of the formal institutions and processes through which decisions are made for a group of people

Answer 8

Government

Question 9

a political unit with the power to make and enforce laws over a group of people living within a clearly defined territory

Answer 9

state

Question 10

all states are characterized as having 4 traits

Answer 10

population, territory, government, and sovereignty

Question 11

Our government serves 5 functions:

Answer 11

Provide for public good, ensure national security, resolve conflict, provide services, and maintain order

Question 12

How does a state limit the sovereign power of the government?

Answer 12

The constiution

Question 13

The supreme power to act within its territory and control its external affairs; includes independence other states as well as their freedom to establish a form of government

Answer 13

sovereignty

Question 14

the world’s chief body of international cooperation

Answer 14

UN

Question 15

there are three main theories of rule:

Answer 15

divine right, natural law and natural rights, and the social contract

Question 16

based on a system of rules derived from the natural world; said to provide a just and rational order to all things in the world

Answer 16

natural law

Question 17

Holds that the first government formed as a result of people agreeing among themselves to submit authority of a state

Answer 17

Social contract theory

Question 18

any form of government in which a single individual controls most governing decisions

Answer 18

autocracy

Question 19

Ruled by a monarch, usually a king or a queen, who belongs to a royal family
Power is inherited
Absolute monarchs have unlimited power

Answer 19

Monarchy

Question 20

Based on the idea that there are limits to the rightful power of a government over its citizens
Power of the monarch is limited by law; the real power lies in another branch of government
May coexist with other forms of government such as representative democracy

Answer 20

constitutional monarchy

Question 21

Small group of people make most government decisions for their own benefit
Membership in the ruling group may be based on wealth, family, or military power

Answer 21

Ogliarchy/ aristocracy

Question 22

Rulers claim to represent and be directed by a set of religious ideas
Laws are rooted in a particular religion or religious doctrine
Government power is unlimited

Answer 22

Theocracy

Question 23

Rule by the people

Answer 23

democracy

Question 24

Government by the people; citizens are the ultimate source of government authority
Citizens come together to discuss and pass laws and select leaders
Works best in small communities

Answer 24

direct democracy

Question 25

Indirect form of democracy; citizens elect representatives to make government decisions on their behalf Representatives elected for set terms

Answer 25

representative democracy

Question 26

sovereignty, or ultimate authority, rests in a single, national government

Answer 26

unitary system

Question 27

divides power over people and territory between a national government and smaller, regional levels of governments

Answer 27

federal system

Question 28

The US federal system consists of two levels of governments

Answer 28

an overarching national government and 50 state governments

Question 29

What does democracy mean?

Answer 29

Rule by the people

Question 30

distinguished by having a president that is elected by the people for a limited term of office

Answer 30

Presidential system

Question 31

Who can only declare war in a presidential system?

Answer 31

Congress

Question 32

the executive branch and legislative branches of government are combined

Answer 32

Parliamentary system

Question 33

An elected legislature called ___ elects the prime minister

Answer 33

parliament

Question 34

is a statement of vote which states that a person in a superior position - be it government, managerial, etc. - is no longer deemed fit to hold that position

Answer 34

Vote of no confidence

Question 35

also refers to a person’s freedom to exercise the rights guaranteed to all U.S. citizens under the Constitution

Answer 35

Liberty

Question 36

is the principle that all people possess a fundamental, moral worth that entitles them to fair treatment under the law and equal opportunity in all aspects of life—political, social, and economics

Answer 36

Equality

Question 37

Americans have held fast to the ideal of _____, or the belief that ordinary people could aspire to rule themselves and do so as political equals

Answer 37

self-government

Question 38

A basic principle of democracy is that decisions are made by ______

Answer 38

majority rule

Question 39

The ____ does and can become the majority! _____rights are the political rights held by groups who make up less than half of the population

Answer 39

minority

Question 40

Another key principle of American democracy is _________, the ability of two opposing groups to give up some of their demands and come to an agreement

Answer 40

Compromise

Question 41

allows for people and business to make their own economic choices about how to best produce, distribute, and exchange goods and services with limited interference from government

Answer 41

Free enterprise