Chapter 1 The Spirirt of American Politics

Question 1

Republic

Answer 1

A government in which citizens rule indirectly and make government decisions through their elected representatives

Question 2

Political Machines

Answer 2

Corrupt parties that ran many city and state governments in the nineteenth century

Question 3

Electoral college

Answer 3

The system established by the Constitution to elect the president; each state has a group of electors (equal in size to that of its congressional delegation in the House and Senate); the public in each state votes for electors who then vote for the president

Question 4

Checks and Balances

Answer 4

The principle that each branch of government has the authority to block the other branches, making it more difficult for any one branch or individual to exercise too much power. This system makes passing legislation far more difficult in the United States than in most other democracies

Question 5

Presidential Czar

Answer 5

An informal name for an official appointed by the president, usually to lead a special project like the White House’s “war on drugs”

Question 6

Institutions

Answer 6

The organizations, norms, and rules that structure government and public action

Question 7

Rational Choice Theory

Answer 7

An approach to political behavior that views individuals as rational, decisive actors who know their political interests and seek to act on them