Chapter 3 Flashcards
Confederal System
A system consisting of a league of independent states, in which the central government created by the league has only limited powers over the states.
Unitary System
A centralized government system in which ultimate governmental authority rests in the hands of the national, or central, government.
Enumerated Powers
Powers specifically granted to the national government by the Constitution. The first seventeen clauses of Article I, Section 8, specify most of the enumerated, or expressed, powers of the national government.
Elastic Clause, or Necessary and Proper Clause
The clause in Article I, Section 8, that grants Congress the power to do whatever is necessary to execute its specifically delegated powers.
Police Power
The authority to legislate for the protection of the health, morals, safety, and welfare of the people. In the United States, most police power is reserved to the states.
Concurrent Powers
Powers held jointly by the national and state governments.
Supremacy Clause
The constitutional provision that makes the Constitution and federal laws superior to all conflicting state and local laws.
Commerce Clause
The section of the Constitution in which Congress is given the power to regulate trade among the states and with foreign countries.
Dual Federalism
A model of federalism that looks on national and state governments as co-equal sovereign powers. Neither the state government nor the national government should interfere in the other’s sphere.
