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Politics paper 3 > 1. US constitution and federalism > Flashcards

1. US constitution and federalism Flashcards

1
Q

When was the Constitution ratified?

A

Between 1781 and 1790

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2
Q

What do the first 4 articles deal with?

A

Key institutions of government in the US: President, Congress, Supreme Court, states

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3
Q

What does the ‘supremacy clause’ state and where is it found?

A

Found in article 6, established the Constitution as the highest law in the land

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4
Q

How many amendments?

A

27

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5
Q

What is the Bill of Rights?

A

The first ten amendments of the Constitution, passed in 1791

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6
Q

What is the aim of the Bill of Rights?

A

A method of protecting the rights of the individual against government power and also protecting the power of the states

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7
Q

What is the 1st amendment?

A

Freedom of expression and religion

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8
Q

What is the 2nd amendment?

A

Right to bear arms

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9
Q

What is the 10th amendment?

A

Right of the states to have reserved powers

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10
Q

What is the 13th amendment?

A

End slavery

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11
Q

What is the 19th amendment?

A

Gives women the vote

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11
Q

What is the 19th amendment?

A

Gives women the vote

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12
Q

What is the 22nd amendment?

A

Limits the president to two terms in office

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13
Q

What is the 25th amendment?

A

Allows VP to assume office of president temporarily (brought about following assassination of JFK in 1963)

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14
Q

What does the codification of the constitution mean x3?

A
  • Authoritative – higher level than ordinary law
  • Entrenched – hard to amend or abolish
  • Judiciable – other laws can be judged against it using the judiciary
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15
Q

What is an enumerated power?

A

Powers explicitly stated in the Constitution

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16
Q

What is an implied power?

A

A power that is not expressly written down in the Constitution but is needed to perform an enumerated power

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17
Q

Name some enumerated powers held by Congress:

A
  • Declaration of war
  • Collection of taxes
  • Raise income tax (16th amendment)
  • Borrowing money on behalf of the country
  • Establishing currency
  • Maintenance of an army and navy
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18
Q

Name some enumerated powers held by the president:

A
  • Heads the executive
  • Nominates cabinet members, judiciary
  • Grants pardons
  • Vetoes legislation
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19
Q

Name an enumerated power held by the Courts:

A
  • Rules on cases
20
Q

Name some implied powers held by Congress:

A
  • The necessary and proper clause

- Interstates commerce clause

21
Q

Name an implied powers held by the President:

A
  • Commander in chief of the armed forces
22
Q

Name an implied power held by the Courts:

A
  • Power of judicial review
23
Q

What is the necessary and proper clause?

A

Also known as the ‘elastic clause’, article 1 section 8 states that Congress has the power ‘to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper’ – allows congress to stretch its power

24
What are some concerns associated with the Constitution?
- The Constitution could fail to regulate political practice ie vagueness of the constitution undermines its authority - Supreme Court could become too powerful ie vagueness of Constitution allows judges own interpretations on cases using own ideologies - Significant conflict ie lack of clarity leads to disputes between liberals and conservatives over federalism, gay rights etc
25
What are the two stages of the amendment process?
Proposal and then ratification
26
Who can propose?
States or Congress (two-thirds vote of each house = most common)
27
Who can ratify?
Only states – either three-quarters of state legislatures (most common) or three-quarters of the state convention
28
Example of proposal passed by Congress that didn’t receive sufficient state support:
The Equal Rights amendment – would have provided equality of rights on account of sex
29
Example of proposal voted on in Congress that did not receive a two-thirds majority in both chambers:
The Flag Protection amendment – would have made it illegal to desecrate the flag – always failed in Senate despite being passed in House 6 times
30
How many operating amendments have there been in the past 200 years?
15 ( first ten passed at same time as constitution and 18th and 21st cancel each other out)
31
Disadvantages of the formal amendment process:
- Difficult to remove out of date ideas – 200 years old and US society has changed dramatically eg electoral college was introduced so that irrational voting couldn’t occur through election of an electorate but now is highly undemocratic + states given too much power - Difficult to incorporate new ideas – entrenched nature makes it nearly impossible eg huge consensus for gender equality but Equal Rights Amendment failed - Process is undemocratic – goes against a majoritarian democracy eg to block an amendment only 13 states have to oppose and could be smallest states - Gives the SC excessive power – 9 unelected judges who are biased have final say on key issues = imperial judiciary
32
Advantages of the formal amendment process:
- Protects key principles of the political process – SOPs essential - Protects states and upholds federalism – ensured through 10th amendment and the amendment process, attempts to remove electoral college are unsuccessful - Prevents the abuse of power – stops an individual changing constitution rule for own benefit = key aim of FF - Prevents ill-thought amendments – involves several institutions and cross-party support which prevents short-term irrational thinking which could be quickly outdated
33
What are the 5 key principles of the US constitution?
``` Federalism Separation of powers Checks and balances Bipartisanship Limited government ```
34
Federalism: describe it
The way in which power is divided between federal government and the states so that citizens are ruled by two governments
35
Federalism: why has federal government increased hugely in recent years?
In response to economic crisis, increased demands for civil rights protection and greater provision of social policy
36
SOPs: what does it mean?
Refers to the complete division of system of government into three branches: the executive (president), the legislature (Congress) and the judiciary (Supreme Court)
37
SOPs: why have it?
Based on a desire to share power to prevent one institution from dominating the political system
38
Checks and balances: what does it mean?
Each branch of government has exclusive power, limiting the ability of other branches to operate in an unrestrained manner
39
Checks and balances: what can executive do?
- President appoints justices (judiciary) - President can grant pardons (judiciary) - Veto bills (legislature) - Recommend legislation (Congress)
40
Checks and balances: what can legislature do?
- Override presidential veto (executive) - Control appropriations (executive) - Ratify treaties (executive) - Declare war (executive) - Refuse presidential appointments (executive) - Impeach the president (executive) - Refuse judicial appointments (judiciary) - Impeach judges (judiciary) - Can propose amendments to overrule SC decisions (judiciary)
41
Checks and balances: what can judiciary do?
- Rule presidential action unconstitutional (executive) | - Interpret law and can rule unconstitutional (legislature)
42
Bipartisanship: what is it?
Attempts within the structure of the US Congress to ensure the two main parties work together to fulfil congressional functions
43
Bipartisanship: why is compromise inevitable?
The constitution does not mention the parties so its inevitable compromise must be made
44
Bipartisanship: when is it prominent?
When divided government occurs, the parties must work together to pass policy
45
Bipartisanship: what did John Adams (Founding Father) say regarding parties?
“It is the greatest political evil under our constitution”
46
Limited government: what is it?
The role of government is limited by checks and balances, and a separation of powers
47
Limited government: what does the Bill of Rights prevent?
Prevents the federal government from restricting the rights of the individual or the rights of states
48
Limited government: what amendments limit government?
1st amendment – freedom of expression 4th amendment – freedom from unreasonable searches 10th amendment reserving power for states and individuals

Politics paper 3 (7 decks)

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