Unit 1 Ch 1 - The Sudy of American Government Flashcards
Unitary
A state governed by a single national governemnt. The central government is superior to all subunits. The most prevalent system in the world. The majority of United Nations member countries operate under this.
Confederation
The subunits are superior to and control the central government. An alliance of political territories around a common cause or movement. Ex: after the southern states seceeded, they became a confederation, having no national government but being a coalition of self-governing states.
Federation
A nation of united soverign states. Power and political authority are divied and shared between the federal and state governments. The central government and subunits have equal power. The United States is a federation.
The Origins of State
There are four potential origins of a nation or state: nuclear, in which a state developes outward from a line of familial descent; divine right, in which a nation is borne or its continuation is authorized by the will of a diety, by whom a ruler is appointed; force, in which an aggressor coerces a group into the formation or expansion of a nation; and social contract, in which a group of people enter into contract with a government, claim citizenship, and awarded certain rights and powers.
Popular Sovereignty
The concept that the people of a state hold the ultimate power by the right of their vote.
Oligarthy
Form of government in which the wealthy upper class, primarily a minority, retain most of the influence and power.
Junta
Form of government in which a military or politcal group seize power forcefully after a coup d etate.
Direct Democracy
Type of democracy in which the citizens of a state vote directly on policy and legislative action. It was what occured in ancient Greece and colonial New England; however, it would have been implausible to found a country of such breadth and population as the United States with this participatory politcal ambition.
Representative Democracy
The scaffolding of the United States political scene. Form of governance in which citizens vote to award their share of power to elected representatives who write and pass laws on their behalf.
Class View
The political view that the government of a state is disproportionately controlled, dominated, by capitalists.
Power Elite View
The political view that government is dominated by a few wealthy, elite leaders who work outside of the government yet have influence on policy.
Bureaucratic View
The political view that government is primarily run, and therefore controlled, by appointed bureaucrats.
Pluralist View
The political view that power is distributed more or less fairly within a pluralistic society among competing factional interests which shape public policy.
Creedal View
The political view that morally impassioned leaders who hold the sway of the people claim the most influence and the power that follows.
Alexis de Tocqueville
A French political theorist who journeyed to America to observe the workings of its democracy. He was impressed by the nature of representation, but warned against the dangers of indivualism, which could inhibit the sense of a national identity.
