Unit 1 - Foundations of American Democracy Flashcards

1
Q

federalism

A

the sharing of power between the national government and the states

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2
Q

checks and balances

A

a design of government in which each branch has powers that can check the other branches and prevent them from making policy

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3
Q

separation of power

A

a design of government that distributes powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch too powerful on its own

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4
Q

nullification

A

states have the right to nullify (invalidate) any federal laws which they deem unconstitutional with respect to the U.S. Constitution

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5
Q

implied powers

A

authority of the federal government that goes beyond its expressed powers (powers not specifically granted to the national government but considered necessary to carry out the enumerated powers)

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6
Q

expressed powers

A

authority specifically granted to a branch of the government in the Constitution

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7
Q

reserved powers

A

powers not given to the national government, which are retained by the states and the people

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8
Q

concurrent powers

A

powers granted to both states and the federal government in the Constitution

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9
Q

federal system

A

a system where power is divided between the national and state government

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10
Q

unitary system

A

a system where the central government has all of the power over subnational governments

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11
Q

confederate system

A

a system where the subnational governments have most of the powers

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12
Q

articles of confederation

A

a governing document that created a union of thirteen sovereign states in which the states, not the union, were supreme

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13
Q

federalist

A

supporter of the proposed Constitution; favors strong national government

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14
Q

anti-federalist

A

a person opposed to the proposed Constitution; favors stronger state government

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15
Q

The Federalist Papers

A

a series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay and published between 1787 and 1788 that lay out the theory behind the Constitution

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16
Q

supremacy clause

A

constitutional provision declaring that the Constitution and all national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land (above state laws)

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17
Q

virginia plan

A

a plan of government calling for a three-branch government with bicameral legislature, where more populous states would have more representation in Congress (representation by population)

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18
Q

new jersey plan

A

a plan of government that provided for a unicameral legislature with equal votes for each state (same representation)

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19
Q

the great compromise

A

combined virginia and new jersey plan; bicameral legislatrue with a house of rep apportioned proportionately to population and a senate apportioned equally

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20
Q

three-fifths compromise

A

a slave would count as three-fifths of a person in calculating a state’s reresentation

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21
Q

article I

A

legislative branch

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22
Q

article II

A

executive branch

23
Q

article III

A

judicial branch

24
Q

article IV

A

relations among states

25
Q

article V

A

provisions for amendments

26
Q

article VI

A

public debuts, supremacy of national law, oaths

27
Q

article VII

A

ratification

28
Q

full faith and credit clause

A

constitutional clause requiring states to recognize the public acts, records, and civil court proceedings from another state

29
Q

necessary and proper clause

A

grant Congress the powers necessary to carry out its enumerated powers

30
Q

Shay’s rebellion

A

a popular uprising against the government of massachusetts about the debt crisis among the citizens and the state government’s increased efforts to collect taxes

31
Q

bill of rights

A

list of fundamental rights and freedoms that individuals posses

32
Q

dual federalism

A

a form of american federalism in which the states and the nation operate independently in their own areas of public policy

33
Q

cooperative federalism

A

a form of american federalism in which the states and the national government work together to shape public policy

34
Q

new federalism

A

political philosophy of devolution; transfer of certain powers from the federal government back to the states

35
Q

categorical grants

A

grants-in-aid provided to states with specific provisions on their use; grants given to state and local governments that may be spent only for narrowly defined purpose

36
Q

block grants

A

grants-in-aid that gives state officials more authority in the disbursement of federal funds (con : money may be used inefficiency)

37
Q

unfunded mandates

A

federal requirement that states must follow without being provided with funding

38
Q

programmatic requests

A

requests for congress to fund an authorized federal program at a specific level

39
Q

16th amendment

A

Congress have power to lay and collect taxes on income (impose federal income tax)

40
Q

17th amendment

A

the senate is composed of 2 senates from each state
(6 year per term and each senator = 1 vote)

41
Q

political ideology

A

an individual’s coherent set of beliefs about government and politics

42
Q

political spectrum

A

system to characterize and classify diff political positions in relation to one another
(left vs right)

43
Q

ex post facto law

A

a law punishing people for acts that were not crimes at the time they were committed

44
Q

bill of attainder

A

when the legislature declares someone guilty without a trial

45
Q

writs of habeas corpus

A

the right of people detained by the government to know the charges against them

46
Q

equal protection clause

A

a clause of the 14th amendment that requires the states to treat al citizens alike with regard to application of the law

47
Q

Marbury v Madison

A

holding : court agreed that marbury did have right to have commission be delivered
rationale : judiciary act of 1789 conflicted with the constitution, congress cannot modify constitution –> judiciary act is unconstitutional
impact : established judicial review, checks and balance system

48
Q

McCulloch v. Maryland

A

holding : congress have power to establish bank, state cannot tax the bank
rationale : court interpreted “necessary” as “appropriate and legitimate”, constitution is supreme = states cannot not control it
impact : increased federal power (esp supreme court)

49
Q

US v. Lopez

A

holding : gun-free school zones act was unconstitutional
rationale : possession of gun does not affect interstate economy enough for it to be regulated by federal government
impact : reaffirmed idea that local government also have control over issues, limiting federal government powers

50
Q

federalist 10

A

madison argues that dangers of faction can be mitigated by a large republic and republican government

51
Q

brutus no.1

A

anti-federalist paper arguing that the country was too large to be govern as a republic and that the Constitution gave too much power to the national government

52
Q

federalist 51

A

madison argues that separation of powers and federalism will prevent tyranny

53
Q

federalist 78

A

hamilton argues that federal judiciary would be unlikely to infringe upon rights and liberties but wold serve as a check on the other two branches