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POSC 100 C: United States Government (All Lessons) > Chapter 3: The Constitution > Flashcards

Chapter 3: The Constitution Flashcards

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1
Q

Constitution functions to:

A

1) Establish government authority
2) Establish governmental bodies and grants them powers and limits their power
3) Determine how member are to be chosen
4) Establish the rules by which decision are made

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2
Q

Congress was

A

A single house, with each state having 2 to 7 members but only 1 vote

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3
Q

Congress created

A

Appointed executives, judges, and military officers

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4
Q

Congress had

A

The power to make war and peace, conduct foreign affairs, and borrow and print money

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5
Q

But Congress could not.

A

Collect taxes and enforce laws directly. It relied on the states to provide money and enforce its laws

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6
Q

The U.S was a

A

Confederation of nations

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7
Q

The national government was thought of as an alliance of

A

Independent state, not as a government “Of the people”

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8
Q

Natural Rights to Liberty

A

The purpose of government is to protect individual liberty and property.

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9
Q

They believed in a natural law that endowed each person with certain inalienable rights-the rights to

A

Life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness

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10
Q

Social Contract Theory

A

The legitimacy of government must be based on the consent of the ground

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11
Q

Republicanism

A

Government by representatives of the people rather than directly by the people themselves

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12
Q

The people voted for the members of the House of Representatives, but the president, the Senate, and the Supreme Court would be selected by

A

In the judgement of the founders, more qualified to judge their ability

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13
Q

Limited government

A

They believed in a written constitution to limit the government’s power and limit its power thru separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism

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14
Q

Nationalism

A

A strong and independent national (federal) government with the power to govern directly rather than through state governments

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15
Q

Virginia Plan

A

Two house legislature, the lower house being chosen by the people of the states, with representation according to population and an upper house to be chosen by the lower house

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16
Q

Virginia Plan proposed a parliamentary form of government in which

A

Congress chose the principal executive officers of the government and federal judges

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17
Q

The New Jersey Plan

A

A single-chamber Congress, in which each state, regardless of its population, would each have one vote

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18
Q

Separate executive and judicial branches of government gave

A

Congress the power to levy taxes, regulate commerce

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19
Q

Declared the Constitution and federal laws to be

A

Supreme over state constitutions and laws

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20
Q

The Great Compromise

A

Two chambers Congress: in the upper chamber, the Senate, each state would have two members; in the lower chamber, the House of Representatives, each state would be represented by population

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21
Q

Members of the House would be directly elected by

A

Each state’s citizens

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22
Q

Members of the Senate would be selected by

A

Their state’s legislature

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23
Q

Voter qualification

A

The founders approved a constitution w/o any expressed property qualifications for voting and holding office, except those that the states might themselves impose

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24
Q

At the time, every state had property qualifications for

A

Voting and women were not allowed to vote or hold office

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25
Q

Resolving the economic issues

A

Levying taxes, spending and regulating interstate commerce

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26
Q

The Constitution gave

A

Congress the power to tax, to spend, and to regulate interstate commerce

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27
Q

State prohibition

A

The constitution

28
Q

Prohibited states from

A

1) Imposing tariffs on goods shipped across state lines
2) Issuing their own paper money
3) Making treaties with other countries

29
Q

The Constitution gives Congress the power to

A

Declare war, raise and support military forces, to create a militia

30
Q

Although the militia’s role is chiefly for

A

Domestic security, it can be called into national service, either abroad or in the U.S, by the president

31
Q

The Constitution makes the president and the commander-in-chief of the military give

A

The power to make treaties and appoint ambassadors however both powers are limited because they require 2/3rd approval of the Senate to take effect

32
Q

National Supremacy Clause of Article VI makes the

A

Constitution, all federal laws, and treaties are the supreme law of the land, and if there is a conflict between any of these and state law, the state will fail

33
Q

All national legal authority

A

Supersedes state laws

34
Q

Federalism

A

The constitution divides power between the national government and the state governments

35
Q

States influence national politics due to

A

The apportionment of congressional seats among the states and in the allocation of electoral votes for president

36
Q

A republic

A

The Constitution created a Republican government

37
Q

The Constitution created four bodies of government yet allowed direct elections by the people of

A

Only one of these is the House of Representatives

38
Q

The Constitution does not provide for

A

A referenda (Proposed laws or constitutional amendments submitted by the voters for their direct approval or rejection)

39
Q

The constitutional division of powers among the three branches of the national government

A

Legislative, executive, and judicial

40
Q

Separation of powers is created by

A

Articles I, II, and III of the Constitution

41
Q

Separation of power was created to place

A

Internal controls on the national government’s power

42
Q

Executive branch

A

Execute (implement) the laws

43
Q

Legislative branch

A

Write and pass the law Article 1, Sect 7. USC “Every Bill shall pass House of Representative and the Senate before the law then present i to president

44
Q

Judicial branch

A

Interpret the laws and actions of government official

45
Q

Constitutional provisions

A

Giving each branch of the national government certain checks over the action of other branches

46
Q

Checks and Balances ensure each branch must

A

Depend on another branch to achieve its goals

47
Q

Ratification

A

Power of a legislature to approve or reject decisions made by other bodies

48
Q

Ratification of the Constitution required approval from

A

Nine of the states through special ratifying convention in the states

49
Q

The Bill of Rights

A

Written guarantees of basic individual liberties, the first ten amendments to the U.S constitution

50
Q

The Bill of Rights resulted from a

A

Compromise between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalist

51
Q

The Bill of Rights was originally intended to

A

Limit the national government’s power

52
Q

The Fourteen Amendment extends the Bill of Rights to the

A

State government

53
Q

The Constitution has changed through formal amendments and informally by

A

Judicial interpretation, presidential and congressional action, and general custom and practice

54
Q

Proposing a Constitutional Amendment

A

1) By a 2/3 rds of vote of the House and the Senate (most common way)
2) By passage in a national convention called by Congress at the request of 2/3 rd of the state legislature (never used)

55
Q

Ratification by the passage of

A

3/4 ths of the state legislature (most common way)

56
Q

Ratification by vote in

A

Convention called to ratify the amendment in 3/4 ths of the states (Used once to pass the 21st amendment which repealed the 18th Amendment which created Prohibition)

57
Q

Through the power of judicial review

A

The power of the federal courts to declare laws of Congress and actions of the president unconstitutional

58
Q

The federal courts, and especially the Supreme Court, change the

A

Constitution by their interpretation of its language

59
Q

The power of judicial review is

A

Not expressly stated in the Constitution but was created by the Supreme Court in Marbury v. Madison

60
Q

Judicial interpretation gives specific meaning to

A

Constitutional phrases

61
Q

It allows the federal courts to act as a

A

De facto legislative branch

62
Q

Presidents have argued the phrase “executive power” in

A

Article II includes more than the specific powers mentioned

63
Q

The Constitution changes over time as a result of

A

Generally accepted customs and practice

64
Q

The Electoral College was originally designed to

A

Exercise its own independent judgment in electing a president

65
Q

Through political practice, each elector now votes for

A

His party’s candidate if he won the popular vote in that elector’s state

POSC 100 C: United States Government (All Lessons) (16 decks)

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