Chapter 2: Constitution & It's Origins Key Terms

Question 1

Anti-Federalists

Answer 1

those who did not support ratification of the Constitution

Question 2

Articles of Confederation

Answer 2

the first basis for the new nation’s government; adopted in 1781; created an alliance of sovereign states held together by a weak central government

Question 3

bicameral legislature

Answer 3

a legislature with two houses, such as the U.S. Congress

Question 4

Bill of Rights

Answer 4

the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution; most were designed to protect fundamental rights and liberties

Question 5

checks and balances

Answer 5

a system that allows one branch of government to limit the exercise of power by another branch; requires the different parts of government to work together

Question 6

confederation

Answer 6

a highly decentralized form of government; sovereign states form a union for purposes such as mutual defense

Question 7

Declaration of Independence

Answer 7

a document written in 1776 in which the American colonists proclaimed their independence from Great Britain and listed their grievances against the British king

Question 8

enumerated powers

Answer 8

the powers given explicitly to the federal government by the Constitution (Article I, Section 8); power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, raise and support armies, declare war, coin money, and conduct foreign affairs

Question 9

federal system

Answer 9

a form of government in which power is divided between state governments and a national government

Question 10

Federalists

Answer 10

those who supported ratification of the Constitution

Question 11

Great Compromise

Answer 11

a compromise between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan that created a two-house Congress; representation based on population in the House of Representatives and equal representation of states in the Senate

Question 12

natural rights

Answer 12

the right to life, liberty, and property; believed to be given by God; no government may take away

Question 13

New Jersey Plan

Answer 13

a plan that called for a one-house national legislature; each state would receive one vote

Question 14

republic

Answer 14

a form of government in which political power rests in the hands of the people, not a monarch, and is exercised by elected representatives

Question 15

reserved powers

Answer 15

any powers not prohibited by the Constitution or delegated to the national government; powers reserved to the states and denied to the federal government

Question 16

separation of powers

Answer 16

the sharing of powers among three separate branches of government

Question 17

social contract

Answer 17

an agreement between people and government in which citizens consent to be governed so long as the government protects their natural rights

Question 18

supremacy clause

Answer 18

the statement in Article VI of the Constitution that federal law is superior to laws passed by state legislatures

Question 19

The Federalist Papers

Answer 19

a collection of eighty-five essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in support of ratification of the Constitution

Question 20

Three-Fifths Compromise

Answer 20

a compromise between northern and southern states that called for counting of all a state’s free population and 60 percent of its enslaved population for both federal taxation and representation in Congress

Question 21

unicameral legislature

Answer 21

a legislature with only one house, like the Confederation Congress or the legislature proposed by the New Jersey Plan

Question 22

veto

Answer 22

the power of the president to reject a law proposed by Congress

Question 23

Virginia Plan

Answer 23

a plan for a two-house legislature; representatives would be elected to the lower house based on each state’s population; representatives for the upper house would be chosen by the lower house

Question 24

pocket veto

Answer 24

The president receives the bill at the end of a legislative session, but refuses to sign the bill, and in effect kills the bill.

Question 25

two-thirds override

Answer 25

If the president vetoes a bill, each house of Congress can act separately to reverse the veto through a requirement of having a two-thirds super majority vote in each house.

Question 26

advice and consent

Answer 26

formal approval

Question 27

impeachment

Answer 27

an accusation, an indictment of wrongdoing

Question 28

Federalism

Answer 28

the balance of power among a central, national authority and state or regional authorities - assures a limited government.

Question 29

commerce clause

Answer 29

empowers the Congress to “regulate commerce with other nations, and among the several states.”

Question 30

Electoral College

Answer 30

States decide how their electors would be chosen. Each state would have the same number of electors that they had representatives in Congress, and the people would vote for the electors. Having electors choose the president represents one way in which the elite model of democracy helps shape government.

Question 31

elite democracy

Answer 31

elected representatives made decisions and act as trustees for the people who elected them. It recognizes an inequality in the spread of power among the populace and that the elites (people with resources and influence) dominate.

Question 32

extradition

Answer 32

when states are expected to return fugitives to states where they had committed crimes and runaway slaves to states they had fled.

Question 33

full faith and credit clause

Answer 33

requires states to be open about their laws and encourages states to respect one another’s laws.

Question 34

Grand Committee

Answer 34

Representation had been the frustration of the Americans since they began seeking independence. The more populated states believed they deserved a stronger voice in making national decisions, while the small states sough to retain equal footing. The matter was deferred to a committee made up of one delegate from each of the states represented at the convention. George Mason, William Paterson, Benjamin Franklin, and Roger Sherman were among the committee. This eventually lead to the development of the Great Compromise.