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AP Gov > Chapter 1 > Flashcards

Chapter 1 Flashcards

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U.S. Government Basics flashcards AP® U.S. Government flashcards
1
Q

Government

A

the system for implementing decisions made through the political process

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2
Q

3 key ideas

A
  • politics is conflictual
  • political process matters
  • politics is everywhere
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3
Q

What does the government do?

A

Provides order and promotes general welfare

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4
Q

factions

A

groups of like-minded people that try to influence the government

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5
Q

rule by one (in service of others)

A

Monarchy

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6
Q

rule by one (in service of self)

A

tyranny

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7
Q

rule by the few (in service of others)

A

aristocracy

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8
Q

separation of powers

A

division of government power across judicial, executive, and legislative branches

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9
Q

rule by the few (in service of self)

A

Oligarchy

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10
Q

rule by the many (in service of others)

A

polity

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11
Q

rule by many (in service of self)

A

democracy

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12
Q

formal limits on power

A

Constitutional

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13
Q

checks and balances

A

System where each branch has some power over the other two
(President can veto legislation passed by Congress; Congress can impeach the president; Supreme Court decides if Congressional laws are constitutional)

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14
Q

informal limits on power

A

Authoritarian

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15
Q

no limits on power

A

totalitarian

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16
Q

federalism

A

division of power across local, state , and national levels of government

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17
Q

public goods

A

services or actions that become available to everyone after they are given to one person
(Govt needed to provide them because free market will under provide)

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18
Q

collective action problems

A

situations where members of the group benefit by working together to produce an outcome, but each individual is better off refusing and reaping the benefits from those that do the work
(more general)

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19
Q

free rider problem

A

incentive to benefit from others’ work without contributing

more specific

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20
Q

Aristotle’s 3 government types

A

monarchy(rule by one)
aristocracy(rule by few)
polity(rule by many)

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21
Q

Polity can be divided into

A

Presidential systems, Parliamentary systems, Federal system, Unitary system, and Confederation

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22
Q

Elite democracy

A

government decision making is influenced by small elite groups (wealthy)
democratic government where some citizens have disproportionate influence over government policy

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23
Q

Republic/Pluralist/Representative democracy

A

citizens and factions have competing interests heard out and resolve issues through electing officials

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24
Q

Direct/Participatory democracy

A

government decision making is controlled by voting citizens

citizens are directly involved in choices about government policy through some sort of referenda

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25
Q

Basis of government

pyramid

A

Power, authority, legitimacy, sovereignty

26
Q

Power

A

the ability to get someone to do something, whether they want to or not

27
Q

Weber’s quote

A

“Government is the community that has a monopoly on legitimate violence in an area”

28
Q

Authority

A

the right to use power

29
Q

legitimacy

A

how authority is standardized among a society

30
Q

sovereignty

A

the ability of a legitimate government to control what happens in its borders

31
Q

politics

A

the process that determines what government does

32
Q

“stealth democracy”

A

nondemocratic practices (running government like a business or taking action without political debate)
comes from dislike for conflict
spiral of silence

33
Q

James Madison’s quote

A

“As long as the reason of man continues fallible, and he is at liberty to exercise it, different opinions will be formed”

34
Q

John Dingell’s quote

A

“I’ll let you write the substance, you let me write the procedure, and I’ll screw you every time”

35
Q

Pericles quote

A

“Just because you do not take an interest in politics does not mean that politics will not take an interest in you”

36
Q

Sources of conflict in American politics

A

Economic interests
Cultural values
Racial, gender, and ethnic differences
Ideology

37
Q

Free market

A

Economic system based on businesses competing without government interference
(central to national identity)

38
Q

Economic individualism

A

autonomy of individuals to manage their own financial decisions without government interference
(central to national identity)

39
Q

redistributive tax policies

A

politics that use taxation to try to achieve social equality (tax the rich- favored by the Democrats)

40
Q

Democrats favor:

A

redistributive tax policies, regulated industry, and fewer restrictions on individuals’ personal behavior

41
Q

Republicans favor:

A

lower taxes, less spending on social policies, free market, and the regulation of individual behaviors

42
Q

culture wars

A

political conflict in the U.S. between “red-state” Americans (strong religious beliefs), and “blue-state” Americans (more secular)

43
Q

melting pot image

A

native languages and customs should be left behind (assimilation)

44
Q

multiculturalists

A

“tossed salad” view of assimilation, strength in diversity, less restrictive immigrant laws, and they opposed assimilation policies

45
Q

Ideology

A

cohesive set of ideas and beliefs used to organize and evaluate the political world

46
Q

Conservative

A

1 side of the ideological system
Supports lower taxes, free market, and a more limited government
(tends to be Republicans)

47
Q

Liberal

A

1 side of the ideological system
supports stronger government programs and more market regulation
(tends to be Democrats)

48
Q

Libertarians`

A

prefer very limited government and tend to be conservative on welfare policy, environmental policy, and public support for education, but liberal on personal liberty like free speech, abortion, and drug legalization

49
Q

Plurality voting

A

candidate with the most votes wins

50
Q

Central themes of America’s political culture

A

Democracy, liberty, and equality

51
Q

representative government

A

democratic government where citizens choose from candidates in an election and winners are given the power to determine government policy until the next election

52
Q

pluralist power

A

democratic government where each citizen an equal amount of influence over government policy

53
Q

theocracy

A

religious figures can veto the governments policy choices

54
Q

American ethos

A

embrace conflict as a natural consequence of the differences between people and create a system that gives people political freedom to express views based on those differences

55
Q

liberty

A

political freedom like the freedom of speech, press, assembly, and religion.
(these and other legal and due process rights protecting individuals from government control are outlined in the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution

56
Q

Madison believes

A

suppressing conflict by limiting freedom is “worse than the disease”
any political system with political freedom will have conflict

57
Q

equality

bad definition

A

in American politics, it means equality before the law, political equality (1 person, 1 vote), and equality of opportunity, but not material equality (equal income or wealth)

58
Q

Equality of opportunity

A

most widely embraced notion of equality, but is defined differently from person to person

59
Q

Gini coefficient

A

Economic model used to indicate the distribution of a nation’s wealth

60
Q

Great Gatsby Curve

A

Nations with more inequality see less variability/mobility from generation to generation

61
Q

elite democracy

A

gov decision making is heavily influenced by small elite groups(especially the wealthy or those in unelected positions of power

AP Gov (5 decks)

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