Constitution & Amendments Unit 2 Flashcards
1st Amendment
Free speech, press, religion
2nd Amendment
right to bear arms
3rd Amendment
no quartering of soldiers
4th Amendment
no unreasonable search and seizures
5th Amendment
plead the 5th; can’t be tried for same crime twice
6th Amendment
speedy and public trial
7th Amendment
trial by jury
8th Amendment
no cruel/unusual punishments
9th Amendment
Constitution does not list all rights, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have them
10th Amendment
Powers not delegated to the federal gov are up to states
11th Amendment
states can only be sued in state courts
12th Amendment
Pres and VP run on same ticket rather than 1st place, 2nd place
13th Amendment
Abolished slavery
14th Amendment
citizenship to those born in U.S.
15th Amendment
black men can vote
16th Amendment
federal income tax
17th Amendment
senators elected by citizens
18th Amendment
prohibition
19th Amendment
women suffrage
20th Amendment
set new start dates for the terms of the Congress and the President, and clarifies how the deaths of Presidents before swearing-in would be handled.
21st Amendment
repealed prohibition
22nd Amendment
2, 4-year terms for presidents
23rd Amendment
D.C. has right to three electors
24th Amendment
no poll/voting tax
25th Amendment
clarifies even further the line of succession to the Presidency, and establishes rules for a President who becomes unable to perform his duties while in office. If Vice President leaves office, President nominates one, confirmed by house and senate.
26th Amendment
voting age is 18
27th Amendment
salary increase cannot take effect until after election
Age to be in HOR
25 yrs; citizen 7
Age to be a US Senator? (minimum)
30 yrs; citizen nine
Term for a House of Rep member?
2 yrs
Term for a US Senator?
6 yrs
Who is the President of the Senate?
Vice president of U.S.
When the President is impeached, who acts as the Jury?
the Senate
When does the Vice President Vote in the Senate?
to break a tie
All tax bills must originate in which House of Congress?
House of Representatives
How does a state receive its Electoral College membership?
house representatives of the state plus the 2 senators
How many Electoral College votes does SC currently have?
9
What federal office requires you to be a natural born citizen?
President
The constitution refers to courts under the Supreme court as what?
inferior
How long do federal judges hold office?
until death or retirement
Assuming all seats are filled, how many Supreme court justices are there?
9
How does a Supreme court justice obtain his or her position?
nominated by president, confirmed by senate
The executive branch consists of?
president and cabinet
The legislative branch consists of?
congress; house of reps and senate
The Judicial branch consists of?
supreme court
This branch creates law?
legislative
The branch has the power to pardon?
executive
This branch has the power to impeach?
legislative
This branch declares law unconstitutional?
judicial
In general you need to understand how a bill becomes a law. What how the process begins, what percentage of votes each house needs etc etc etc.
house of reps and senate need 50% + 1 simple majority
What needs to happen to override a Presidential veto?
both HOR and senate cast a 2/3rd vote
How many years is a census taken for population purposes?
10 yrs
A vacant house seat is filled by?
election
A vacant senate seat can be filled by?
governor can pick and fill the seat
What is impeachment?
being charged with a crime (federal official)
What percentage of the Senate is needed to evict during an impeachment trial?
2/3rds
What percentage of vote to expel a member of congress?
2/3rds
What is habeas corpus?
a writ for inquiring into the lawfulness of the restraint of a person who is imprisoned or detained in another’s custody.
What are ex post facto laws?
an act that was not illegal becomes illegal after it was committed
How old do you have to be to be President?
35; resident for 14 years; natural born citizen
How many total Electoral college votes are up for grabs?
538
How many do you need to win the White House?
270
What percentage of the House and Senate need to approve for a proposed amendment to move forward?
2/3rds
You need to be able to explain how the amendment process works and what the state legislatures involvement is.
An amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both Houses of Congress, or, if two-thirds of the States request one, by a convention called for that purpose. The amendment must then be ratified by three-fourths of the State legislatures, or three-fourths of conventions called in each State for ratification.
How many members of the house?
435
How many members of the Senate?
100
Preamble
purpose of Constitution
Article I
Legislative branch
Article II
Executive branch
Article III
Judicial branch
Article IV
Relations among states
Article V
Amending the Constitution
Article VI
National debts, Supremacy of the Fed gov’t, Oaths of office
Article VII
Ratifying the Constitution
