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Governing the USA > The Constitution > Flashcards

The Constitution Flashcards

1
Q

How many representatives sit in the House?

A

435

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2
Q

What is the term length in the House?

A

2 years

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3
Q

Who is the current speaker of the House?

A

Paul Ryan

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4
Q

How many Senators are there?

A

100

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5
Q

How many senators per state?

A

2

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6
Q

What is the term length in the Senate?

A

6 years

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7
Q

The Senate can be described as “the road to ____”

A

the presidency

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8
Q

Who is the senate majority leader?

A

Mitch McConnell

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9
Q

What is the term length for potus?

A

4 years

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10
Q

What did Article I of the Constitution provide?

A

“All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives”

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11
Q

What did Article II of the Constitution provide?

A

“The executive Power shall be vested in a president of the united states of america”

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12
Q

What did Article III of the Constitution provide?

A

The judicial power of the united states shall be vested in one Supreme Court and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish”

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13
Q

What did Article IV of the Constitution provide?

A

Federal-state and state-federal relationships

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14
Q

What did Article V of the Constitution provide?

A

Amendment procedures

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15
Q

What did Article VI of the Constitution provide?

A

Micellaneous provisions, including the ‘supremacy clause’

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16
Q

What did Article VII of the Constitution provide?

A

Ratification procedure

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17
Q

The US Constitution is codified, what is a codified constitution?

A

A constitution that consists of a full and authoritative set of rules and written down in a single text.

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18
Q

Define supremacy clause?

A

The portion of Article VI which states that the Constitution, as well as treaties and federal laws, ‘shall be the supreme law of the Land’

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19
Q

Define implied powers

A

Powers possessed by the federal government by inference from those powers delegated to it in the constitution

20
Q

What is the necessary and proper clause?

A

The final clause of Article I Section 8, which empowers Congress to make all laws ‘necessary and proper’ to carry out the federal government’s duties.

21
Q

What does the Tenth Amendment state about reserved powers?

A

‘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’

22
Q

What are the three key features of the Constitution?

A
  1. Codified
  2. A blend of specificity and vagueness
  3. Its provisions are entrenched
23
Q

Where is the amendment process laid out in the constitution?

A

Article V

24
Q

If an amendment is proposed in Congress, how many need to approve?

A

Two thirds of the House AND Senate

25
Q

The second method of proposing amendments is a national convention called by congress on recommendation of legislatures of __ of states

A

2/3

26
Q

A proposed amendment can be ratified by how many state legislatures?

A

3/4 (38 states)

27
Q

A proposed amendment can be ratified by a ratifying convention in __ of the states

A

3/4

28
Q

Which amendment process has been used 26 times?

A
  1. 2/3 of the house and senate
  2. 3/4 of the state legislatures
29
Q

Which amendment process has been used once?

A
  1. 2/3 of the house and senate
  2. ratifying convention in 3/4 of states
30
Q

Advantages of the amendment process

List 3

A
  1. Super majorities ensure against a small majority being able to impose it’s will on a large minority
  2. The lengthy and complicated process makes it less likely that the Constitution will be amended on a merely temporary issue
  3. It ensures that both the federal and state government must favour a proposal
31
Q

Disadvantages of the amendment process

List 3

A
  1. Makes it overly difficult for the Constitution to be amended, thereby perpetuating what some see as outdates provisions: eg electoral college
  2. Tyranny of the majority, 87% of Americans are not African American so they’re underrepresented
  3. The lengthy and complicated process nonetheless allowed the Prohibition amendment to be passed in 1918
32
Q

When was the bill of rights ratified

A

1791

33
Q

Why has the constitution been amended so rarely?

A
  1. The Founding Fathers created a deliberatly difficult process
  2. The Founding Fathers created a document that was, at least in parts, deliberatly unspecific and vague, so it can evolve without the need of a formal amendment
  3. Judicial review & interpretative amendments
  4. They’re cautious of amending the constitution, prohibition
34
Q

What three key principles is the Constitution?

A

Seperation of power

Checks and balances

Federalism

35
Q

What is the seperation of powers?

A

A theory of government whereby political power is distributed among the legislature, executive and the judiciary, each acting both independently and interdependently.

36
Q

Which french political philosopher influenced the Founding Fathers to introduce seperation of powers

A

Montesquieu, De L’Esprit des Loix (the spirit of the laws)

37
Q

Who proposed the idea of seperate institutions sharing powers? (The doctrine of shared powers)

A

Prof. Richard Neustadt

38
Q

How can you describe the relationship between the legislature and the executive? Who said this?

A

“like two halves of a bank note - each useless without the other” S.E. Finer

39
Q

How can the President check Congress?

A

Vetoing a bill after it has passed

40
Q

How can the President check federal courts? Give example.

A

Nominating judges and the power of pardon

eg. Obama nominated Kagan and Sotomayor (liberal)

41
Q

How can Congress check the President? (4 and 2 senate only)

A
  • amending/delaying/rejecting the president’s legislative proposals
  • overriding the president’s veto
  • the power of the purse
  • using the impeachment and trail powers

Sentate only

  • refusing the ratify the presidents treaties
  • refusing to approve potus appointments
42
Q

How can the Congress check the federal courts? (1 and 1 senate only)

A
  • proposing constitutional amendments to overturn a judicial decision

Senate only

  • refusing to approve a person nominated for SC
43
Q

How can the federal courts check Congress? Give example.

A

Declaring a law unconstitutional

eg. DOMA in US vs Windsor

44
Q

How can the federal courts check the president?

A

Declaring the president’s actions - or the actions of any of the presidents subordinates - unconstitutional

45
Q

Debate

Does the US Constitution still work?
Argue YES (3)
A
  1. Federalism has proved to be an excellent compromise between strong national and state government
  2. The text has proved very adaptable to changes in American society
  3. The demanding amendment process has usually prevented frequent and ill concieved proposals for amendment
46
Q

Debate

Does the US Constitution still work?
Argue NO (3)
A
  1. Amendment process is too difficult - fossilised
  2. Judicial review gives SC too much power
  3. Gives too much power to those who oppose change
47
Q
A

Governing the USA (1 decks)

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