Exam 1 Flashcards
1
Q
Government
A
formal institutions and procedures through which people are ruled
2
Q
Politics
A
Who get what and how?; a process for determining how power and resources are distributed in a society without recourse to violence
3
Q
What are the three types of political systems?
A
authoritarian government; anarchy; democracy
4
Q
Authoritarian Government
A
a system of rule in which the government recognizes no formal limits, but may be restrained by the power of other social institutions
5
Q
Anarchy
A
a system in which there is no government or laws; does not exist
6
Q
Democracy
A
a system of rule that permits citizens to play a significant part in the governmental process, usually the election of key public officials
7
Q
What are the types of political-economic systems?
A
laissez-faire capitalism; regulated capitalism; social democracy; socialism
8
Q
Laissez-Faire Capitalism
A
economics guided only by “free hand”
9
Q
Regulated Capitalism
A
private ownership, but some governmental intervention
10
Q
Social Democracy
A
mostly private ownership, but more extensive government control
11
Q
Socialism
A
complete government ownership and control
12
Q
What are the theories of Democracy?
A
elite; pluralist; participatory
13
Q
Elite
A
role of citizens is simply to choose leaders
14
Q
Pluralist
A
role of individual citizen participation is not as important as participation in groups which are active
15
Q
Participatory
A
citizens participate on behalf of themselves
16
Q
What did John Locke create and what did it state?
A
Social Contract Theory; inalienable rights predate government, citizens make the decision that government is necessary, citizens exchange rights for protections, government only has the power people ascribe to it
17
Q
What type of government is America?
A
constitutional democracy; rare and recently established
18
Q
What two important changes regarding government happened in the seventeenth century?
A
governments began to acknowledge formal limits on their power; government began to provide ordinary citizens with the vote as a formal voice in public affairs; mostly as a result of the Bourgeoisie
19
Q
Representative Democracy
A
a government system that gives individual citizens the regular opportunity to elect government officials to represent them in decision making (the American nation)
20
Q
Direct Democracy
A
a government system that allows individual citizens to vote directly on all laws and policies
21
Q
In America the national government is _______________, but many states and localities practice _______________ through the use of referendums or ballot initiatives
A
Representative democracy; direct democracy
22
Q
Political Culture
A
the broadly shared values, beliefs, and attitudes about how the government should function
23
Q
Examples of Resources
A
tax revenues, gov jobs, laws
24
Q
What are some of the tools of politics?
A
compromise and cooperation; discussion and debate; deal making; bargaining; etc
25
When is politics broken down?
when violence is used
26
Examples of American Politics
campaign trails; laws; deals; what happens in congress halls
27
Examples of American Government
constitution and institutions set up for the exercise of authority by American people over the people
28
Why can government exercise authority?
the people have consented to it/ recognized it as legitimate
29
Rules
can be thought of as the "how" in politics; directives that determine how resources are allocated and how collective action takes place; they determine how we try to get the things we want
30
Institutions
the "where" in politics; organizations where government power is exercised
31
Economics
concerned specifically with the production and distribution of societys wealth; material goods like toothpaste and housing or services like med-care and entertainment
32
(Pure) Capitalist Economy
economic system in which the market determines production, distribution, and price decisions; property is privately owned; relies on market/ supply and demand; government has no economic role; aka Laissez-Faire
33
Regulated Capitalism
United States; maintains capitalism and individual freedom but allows gov. to step in and regulate the economy to guarantee individual rights and procedural guarantee that the rules will work smoothly and fairly; when market crashes gov. comes in to help
34
Socialism
Soviet Union; economic system in which the state determines production, distribution, and price decisions and property is gov. owned; substantive guarantee not procedural guarantee
35
In socialism....
politics controls the distribution of all resources; state owns everything not individuals
36
Authoritarian System
ultimate power to the state rather than to the people to decide how they want to live their lives; people can not effectively claim rights against the state; people have no choice but to submit; ex) dictatorship, monarchy, fascism, oligrachy
37
Totalitarian
combines authoritarian gov. with a socialist economy; gov. controls every aspect of life
38
Anarchy
no government
39
Democracy
government is the people; gov. that vests power in the people; if individuals in a democracy feel their rights have been violated they have the right to ask the gov. to remedy the situation; based on popular sovereignty; there is no higher power than the people and the document establishing their authority
40
Citizens
in a democracy; possess certain rights or powers that the gov. can not limit; citizens also have obligations such as paying taxes, jury duty, and obeying the law
41
Social Contract
notion that society is based on an agreement between gov. and governed in which people give up some rights in exchange for the protection of others; citizens must consent to it
42
Republic
differs from democracy in that it employs representation and can work in a large state; we choose representatives instead of each person having direct say on laws and other things; decisions are made through representatives of the people
43
Immigrants
people who are citizens or subjects of another country who come here to live or work; immigrants are entitled to due process; can not be discriminated; can not vote
44
American Political Culture
our expectations focus on rules and process rather than results; fair rules but does not expect equal outcome; individualism (individuals, not gov. or society, are seen responsible for their own well being; democracy; equality; freedom
45
Democracy in America
representative democracy based on majority rule; fair way of making a decision
46
Freedom in America
freedom for the individual from restraint by the state
47
Equality in America
being treated the same; equal access to run the race but we dont expect to see them all win the same place
48
What are the two main ideologies in America?
Conservative and Liberals
49
Conservative
promote traditional social values, distrust of gov. action expect in matters of national security, resistance to change and maintain prescribed social order
50
Liberals
based on the potential process and change, trust in government, innovations as answers to social problems and expansion of visual rights and expressions
51
Benefits on being a Colonial Subject
settlement by British funded companies; protected by British Army and Navy; and secure market for agriculture products
52
How did the colonies see Britains taxes?
that the colonies were taxed without consent and infringed on their liberty; taxed without representation
53
Declaration of Independence
political document; created in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson; first part basically uses Locke's ideas except replaced "property" with "the pursuit of happiness"; rest of document states how colononists rights were violated and social contract broken
54
Constitution
rules that establish a government
55
Articles of Confederation
the first constitution of the US (1777); created an association of states with weak central government; without a strong central gov. they were unable to provide the economic and political stability
56
Confederation
a system in which each state would retain almost all of its own power to do what it wanted; aka each state is sovereign and central gov. only deals with collective business of the states; individual states provided rights to citizens
57
Popular Tyranny
unrestrained power of the people
58
Constitutional Convention
assembly of 55 delegates in the summer of 1787 to recast the Articles of Confederation; the result was the US constitution
59
Federalism
a political system in which power is divided between the central and regional units; gives central gov. its own source of power (constitution) and also gives independent power to the states
60
Federalist
sided with new constitution and ratification and federalism
61
Antifederalist
strong state and weak central gov. opinion
62
Virginia Plan
created by James Madison; representation should be based on population; favoured large states
63
New Jersey Plan
representation should be equal; favored small states
64
Great Compromise
kept a lot of Virginia Plan framework; provided two houses one based on population and the other each states gets the same amount
65
Three Fifth Compromise
temporarily dealt with the issue of slavery; each slave would count as 3/5 of a person (every 5 slaves would count as 3 people)
66
Legislative Branch
law making power; bicameral; house and senate; Article I of the constitution outlines this branch
67
Executive Branch
"executes" the law or sees that they are carried out; President selected by electoral college; Article II of the Constitution outlines this branch
68
Judicial Branch
Power to interpret the law and judge whether they have been broken; interpreter of the constitution; Article III establishes it
69
Judicial Review
allows the supreme court to rule that an act of congress or the executive branch is unconstitutional
70
Separation of Powers
legislative, executive, and judicial powers are not controlled/exercised by the same group of pople or person; so they do not abuse the power
71
Checks and Balances
allows each of the branches to police the others, checking any abuses and balancing the powers of gov.
72
How many votes were needed for ratification?
9 out of 13 states were needed
73
The Federalists Papers
a series of essays written in support of the constitution to build support for its ratification
74
The Bill of Rights
first 10 amendments of the constitution ; a listing of the protections against gov. infringement of individual rights gauranteed to citizens by the gov. itself; added as a compromise to ratify the constitution
75
What literature helped fuel the revolution?
Hobbes, Locke, and Montesquie
76
What was part of British's reasoning for the taxes?
due to continuing British protection of the colonies during and after the French and INdian war
77
What resulted in the Boston Tea Party?
The British Tea Act of 1773; which granted the East India Company the tea export monopoly
78
What happened at the First Continental Congress?
America considered independence from Britain
79
What did the Declaration of Independence say?
asserted that "unalienable rights" (including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness) could not be denied by the government and the attempted to identify and articulate the national unity principles
80
Annapolis Convention
Fall of 1776; met with delegates from all states and resolved that commissioners would be sent to Philadelphia to devise a constituional revision that would meet the needs of the union
81
Shay's Rebellion
farmers rebellion against Massachusetts to prevent foreclosure of their debt-ridden land; led Americans to push for the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention because the central gov. had been unable to act devisively in a time of crisis
82
What did the framers want the new government to do?
promote commerce, protect individual property, limit excessive democracy, promote widespread public support of the constitution and limit governmental power abuse
83
Examples of Checks and Balances
presidential veto, power of Senate to approve presidential appointments, and judicial review of congressional enactments
84
Senate
appointed by state legislatures (1913, 17th amendment changed this to direct voter election) for 6 year terms and staggered so that only one third of the senate changes in any given election
85
What are some expressed congressional powers?
collecting taxes, borrowing money, regulating commerce, declaring war, and maintaining an army and navy; all other powers belong to the states unless otherwise included in the elastic or necessary and proper clause
86
Executive Branch
article II of the constitution established a presidency; framers wanted an energetic executive to be capable of timely action to deal with public problems; also wanted the president to be somewhat independent from the people and other branches of gov
87
What are some of the powers granted to the President?
recognize other countries, negotiate treaties (but acceptance of treaties is required by a 2/3 approval from Senate), grant reprieves and pardons, convene congress in special sessions, and veto congressional enactments
88
Judicial Branch
Article III creates the Judicial branch; Justices have lifetime terms and are appointed by the President with approval of the senate
89
What are some of the Judicial powers?
no direct mention is made in the constitution of a power eventually assumed by the Supreme court; judicial review
90
What does Article IV do?
establishes reciprocity among states; states were prohibited from discriminating against the citizens of other states in favor of their own citizens; institutes national supremacy with the supremacy clause
91
Supremacy Clause
laws passed by the national government and all treaties are the supreme law of the land and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision
92
To amend the Constitution, what must happen?
must be approved by 2/3 of Congress and ratified by 3/4 of the states to be adopted
93
What article set forth the ratification rules?
Article VII
94
Who wrote the Federalist Papers?
Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay
95
What did Antifederalists say about representation?
representatives mist be a "true picture of the people" and favored more direct democracy which would not be possible to attain in such a large nation
96
What did Federalists say about representation?
felt that it was not necessary for representatives to be exactly like those represented; the advantage of a representative gov. over a direct democracy was to choose representatives with superior qualifications than those possessed by the people
97
What was the Antifederalists view of tyranny?
danger rested on the ability of the few to tyrannize the many
98
What was the Federalists view of tyranny?
recognized the danger in tyranny by the majority, the tendency of majorities to trample on the rights and interests of other citizens
99
What was the antifederalists view on gov.?
sought to enumerate the national power in relation to the states and the people
100
What was the Federalists view on gov.?
favored a national gov. with broad powers capable of protecting and providing for the welfare of the people and the states; Federalists were aware of possible power abuse by the gov. but felt that the constitution had enough internal checks and balances to deter abuse; this led the Federalists to reject the Bill of Rights, but they would ultimately agree to it in order to assure ratification
101
What are some of the solutions to the problem of how to protect individual liberty and still give the gov. the power it needs?
separated powers, internal checks and balances, federalism, and the Bill of Rights
102
Devolution
the transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal gov. to the states
103
Enumerated Powers of Congress
congressional powers specifically named in the constitution
104
Necessary and Proper Clause
constitutional authorization for congress to make any law required to carry out its power
105
Concurrent Powers
power that are shared by the federal and state gov
106
Dual Federalism
federal system where the national and state gov. are responsible for separate policy areas; they are self contained layers and carrying out functions independently
107
Cooperative Federalism
federal system where the national and state gov. share responsibilities for most domestic policy areas; they are interdependent and need the cooperation of the other to get things done
108
What does federalism mean/do?
forces the states to continually negotiate their relationships not only with the national gov. but also with each other; federalism leaves flexibility; means there is real power close to the citizens; federalism permits local prejudices to find their way into law
109
What supreme court ruling confirmed the supremacy of the national gov. over state gov.?
McCulloch v. Maryland
110
What did the civil war do for the future of US gov.?
a giant step towards a stronger national gov.
111
What did the New Deal do?
relationship between national and state became more cooperative as the gov. became employer, provider, and insurer; sharp contrast to Laissez-Faire
112
Categorical Grants
federal funds provided for a specific purpose and restricted by detailed instructions, regulations, and compliance standards ; preferred by congress/national gov
113
Block Grants
federal funds provided for a broad purpose and unrestricted by detailed requirements and regulations; preferred by state gov.
114
Unfunded Mandates
federal order mandating that states operate and pay for a program created at the national level
115
What are the two ways that rights conflict?
individual rights conflict (ex: school prayer) and individual rights vs. the good of society (ex: drug laws)
116
Incorporation
the supreme court action making the protections of the bill or rights applicable to the states
117
Selective Incorporation
the incorporation of rights on a case-by-case basis
118
14th Amendment
states must protect their citizens civil liberties; state can not deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process; cannot deny any person the equal protection of the law
119
Gitlow v. New York
1925; some rights are so fundamental that they deserve protection by the states as well as the federal gov.
120
Separationists vs. Accommodationists
Separationists: believe that a "wall" should be between church and state
Accomodationists: state should not separate from religion but rather should accomodate it without showing preference for one religion over the other
121
Sherbert v. Verner
1963; businesses did not have the right to discriminate or fire an employee due to religious beliefs ??????
122
What are the values of Freedom of Expression?
citizens can be informed about their gov. that is a free and independent source that is not corrupted by the gov. (informed citizenry); free speech can limit gov. corruption (we can check the gov. by investigating the gov. decisions and debate them; watchdog for the gov.); voice for the minority (censorship can allow the majority voice to be mainly heard); protection and/or preservation of the truth
123
What tests are involved with the restrictions on Sedition?
bad tendency test; clear and present danger test; and imminent lawless action test
124
Clear and Present Danger Test
rule used by the courts that allows language to be regulated only if it presents immediate and urgent danger
125
Imminent Lawless Action Test
rule used by the courts that restricts speech only if it is aimed at producing or it likely to produce imminent lawless action
126
Symbolic Speech
this has to do with an action that has a symbolic meaning or is an expression; ex) burning of the American flag; gov. has been more willing to restrict symbolic speech than actual speech; burning the flag is considered protected speech in the US
127
Freedom of Assembly
the right of the people to gather peacefully and to petition the gov.
128
Restricting of Obscenity/pornography
Miller test is used (rule that asks if the work depects or describes in a offensive way sexual conduct specifically defined by state law and whether the work lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value)
129
Fighting Words or Offensive Speech Protections
Threatening and provocative speech is protected unless it is likely to produce a clear and present danger of serious substantive evil that rises far above public inconvenience, annoyance or unrest; if it contains a political message it is protected
130
Prior Restraint
a restriction on the press before its message is actually published; this is never done unless it is a time of war or situation where it is necessary
131
Libel
the written defamation of character (verbal is called slander)
132
When is libel protected?
libel is protected as long as the publication did not act with actual malice which means they had an evil intent when publishing
133
Defense of the 2nd Amendment
hunting and other leisure activites are important part of american culture; gun ownership is necessary for self defense; citizens have the right to protect their family and property from a tyrannical gov.; not the gov. business to regulate gun use
134
Opposition of the 2nd Amendment
say that guns rights has nothing to do with the 2nd amendement because it is referring to state militia; countries with stricter gun control have less violence and fewer gun deaths; none of the american rights such as speech is absolute
135
Due Process of Law
the guarantee that laws will be fair and reasonable and that citizens suspected of breaking the law will be treated fairly
136
4th Amendment
protects against unreasonable searches and seizures and requires probable cause to obtain a warrant
137
Exclusionary Rule
the rule created by the supreme court that evidence illegally seized may not be used to obtain a conviction
138
5th Amendment
provides for a number of protections for individuals, among them that no person shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself; or self incrimination
139
Miranda Rights
ruled by the Warren Court in Miranda v. Arizona; police had to inform suspects of their rights to remain silent and to have a lawyer present during questioning to prevent them from self incriminating themselves; resulted in the rights that police must say to you
140
6th Amendment
the accused shall have the assistance of counsel for his defense
141
Gideon v. Wainwright
1963; this resulted in the state having to provide an attorney for all criminal cases (except if there is more than one round of appeal)
142
8th Amendment
protects against cruel and unusual punishment
143
Furman v. Georgia
1972; has to do with cruel and unusual punishment; court ruled that Georgia's and Texas's capital laws were unconstitutional; resulted in states redoing their laws and trying to meet the courts objections (but the justices were split and filed separate opinions)
144
McClesky v. Kemp
1987; has to do with cruel and unusual punishment; it brought up the race issue that black were more likely to receive a death penalty but the court was more conservative and did not rule in their favor
145
Is the right to privacy in the Bill of Rights
no; but the court said that the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 9th, amendment created a zone of privacy
146
Griswold v. Connecticut
1965; has to do with the right to privacy and reproductive rights; Connecticut had a law preventing the use of contraceptive devices or to distribute information about them; court ruled it the law was unconstiution due to the right to privacy
147
Roe v. Wade
1973; court ruled that the right to privacy did encompass the right to abortion; tried to balance womens right to privacy and the states interest in human life; divided it into three trimesters where the 1st has little state interest, 2nd has more state interest and 3rd has a lot of state interest
148
Lawrence v. Texas
2003; has to do with the right to privacy and gay rights; overturned Bowers v. Hardwick which said that the state had a legitimate reason in regulating homosexual behavior
149
Civil Rights
citizenship rights guaranteed to the people (primarily in the 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, and 26th amendments) and protected by the gov.; basically meaning that gov. must treat all citizens equally, apply laws fairly, and not discriminate unjustly against certain groups of people
150
Black Codes
a series of laws in the post-civil war south designed to restrict the rights of former slaves before the passage of the 14th and 15th amendments;
151
Jim Crow Laws
southern laws designed to circumvent the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments and to deny blacks rights on bases other than race; this basically meant to vote they started to require a poll tax most blacks were poor and could not afford it and there limited their vote but did not discrimate on the account of race
152
NAACP
national association for the advancement of color people; aimed to help individual blacks; to raise white societys awareness of the atrocities; and to change laws and court rulings that kept blacks from true equality
153
Brown v. Board of Education Cases
NAACP lawyers emphasized the intangible aspects of education and how it made black students feel to be made to go to seperate schools; cited sociolgical evidence and said that it made black children feel inferior; Warren court ruled that seperate schools could never be equal because it was segregation itself that made it unequal and thus segregation in education was unconstitutional
154
Rosa Parks
she was arrested for not moving seats on the a bus; as a result there was a boycott against the Montgomery bus system and eventually the supreme court ruled that montgomerys law was unconstitutional and seperate bus accomodations were not equal; also demonstrated how peaceful protests were affective
155
Affirmative Action
a policy of creating opportunities for members of certain groups as a substantive remedy for past discrimination; if a company did not have black employees they must actively recruit and hire blacks
156
De Jure Discrimination
discrimination that arises from or is supported by the law; south
157
De Facto Discrimination
discrimination that is not the result of law but rather tradition and habit; north
