exam 2 study Flashcards
block grants
Federal grants-in-aid that permit state and local officials to decide how the money will be spent within a general area, such as education or health
categorical grants
Federal grants-in-aid to states and localities that can be used only for designated projects
commerce clause
The authority granted Congress in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution “to regulate commerce” among the states.
confederacy
A governmental system in which sovereignty is vested entirely in subnational (state) governments. (See also federalism; unitary system.)
cooperative federalism
The situation in which the national, state, and local levels work together to solve problems.
devolution
The passing down of authority from the national government to the state and local governments.
dual federalism
A doctrine based on the idea that a precise separation of national power and state power is both possible and desirable.
enumerated (expressed) powers
The 17 powers granted to the national government under Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution.
includes: taxation and the regulation of commerce, as well as the authority to provide for the national defense.
federalism
A governmental system in which authority is divided between two sovereign levels of government: national and regional.
fiscal federalism
The expenditure of federal funds on programs run, in part, through states and localities.
grants-in-aid
Federal cash payments to states and localities for programs they administer.
implied powers
The federal government’s constitutional authority (through the “necessary and proper” clause) to take action that is not expressly authorized by the Constitution but that supports actions that are so authorized.
Powers that are not explicitly stated in the Constitution but are necessary and proper for the govt. to carry out its enumerated powers.
nationalization
The process by which authority in the American federal system has shifted gradually from the states to the national government.
“necessary and proper” clause
The authority granted Congress in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution “to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper” for the carrying out of its enumerated powers.
New Federalism
Term used by Republican presidents Nixon and Reagan to express the idea that federal programs, regulations, and spending in policy areas traditionally reserved for the states should be reduced.
reserved powers
The powers granted to the states under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.
sovereignty
The supreme (or ultimate) authority to govern within a certain geographic area.
supremacy clause
Article VI of the Constitution, which makes national law supreme over state law when the national government is acting within its constitutional limits.
unitary system
A governmental system in which the national government alone has sovereign (or ultimate) authority.
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution.
They include rights such as freedom of speech and religion and due process protections (for example, the right to a jury trial) for persons accused of crimes.
civil liberties
The fundamental individual rights of a free society, such as freedom of speech and the right to a jury trial, which in the United States are protected by the Bill of Rights.
clear-and-present-danger test
A test devised by the Supreme Court in 1919 to define the limits of free speech in the context of national security.
According to the test, government cannot abridge political expression unless it presents a clear and present danger to the nation’s security.
due process clause
The clause of the Constitution (included in the Fourteenth Amendment) that has been used by the judiciary to apply Bill of Rights protections to the actions of state governments.
The part of the Constitution that guarantees individuals fair treatment under the law.
establishment clause
The First Amendment provision stating that government may not favor one religion over another or favor religion over no religion and prohibiting Congress from passing laws respecting the establishment of religion.
exclusionary rule
The legal principle that government is prohibited from using in trials evidence that was obtained by unconstitutional means (for example, illegal search and seizure).
freedom of expression
Americans’ freedom to communicate their views,
the foundation of which is the First Amendment rights of freedom of conscience, speech, press, assembly, and petition.
free-exercise clause
A First Amendment provision that prohibits the government from interfering with the practice of religion.
imminent lawless action
A legal test that says government cannot lawfully suppress advocacy that promotes lawless action unless such advocacy is aimed at producing, and is likely to produce, imminent lawless action.
Lemon test
A three-part test to determine whether a law relating to religion is valid under the religious establishment clause.
To be valid, a law must have
1. a secure purpose
2. serve neither to advance nor inhibit religion
3. avoid excessive government entanglement with religion.
libel
The publication of false material that damages a person’s reputation.
prior restraint
Government prohibition of speech or publication before the fact, which is presumed by the courts to be unconstitutional unless the justification for it is overwhelming.
procedural due process
The constitutional requirement that government must follow proper legal procedures before a person can be legitimately punished for an alleged offense.
right of privacy
A right implied by the freedoms in the Bill of Rights that grants individuals a degree of personal privacy upon which government cannot lawfully intrude.
The right gives individuals a level of free choice in areas such as reproduction and intimate relations.
selective incorporation
The process by which certain rights (for example, freedom of speech) contained in the Bill of Rights become applicable through the Fourteenth Amendment (due process clause) to actions by the state governments.
“selective” = case by case basis
court decides which rights are fundamental and must be enforced at the state level
slander
Spoken falsehoods that damage a person’s reputation.
symbolic speech
Action (for example, the waving or burning of a flag) for the purpose of expressing a political opinion.
affirmative action
Programs designed to ensure that women, minorities, and other traditionally disadvantaged groups have full and equal opportunities in employment, education, and other areas of life.
de facto discrimination
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, and the like that results from social, economic, and cultural biases and conditions.
de jure discrimination
Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, and the like that results from a law.
equal-protection clause
A clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids any state to deny equal protection of the laws to any individual within its jurisdiction.
equal rights (civil rights)
The right of every person to equal protection under the laws and equal access to society’s opportunities and public facilities.
reasonable-basis test
A test applied by courts to laws that treat individuals unequally. Such a law may be deemed constitutional if its purpose is held to be “reasonably” related to a legitimate government interest.
strict-scrutiny test
A test applied by courts to laws that attempt a racial or ethnic classification.
In effect, the strict-scrutiny test eliminates race or ethnicity as legal classification when it places minority-group members at a disadvantage.
suspect classifications
Legal classifications, such as race and national origin, that have invidious discrimination as their purpose and therefore are unconstitutional.
why is cooperative federalism also known as marble cake federalism?
because the different parts of the govt. are working together and that is similar in aspect to a marble cake rather than each layer being separate from each other
why is dual federalism also known as layer cake federalism?
different levels of the cake are separate like the different levels of government
what are the responsibilities of the legislative branch?
- make laws
- approve budgets and govt. spending
- declare war
- confirm presidential appointments
- con impeach and remove the president or judges
Black Codes
Try to define the place that blacks had in society in the South after the Civil War
Tried to find their legal status
ex: non-whites could not own firearms, real estate, work certain jobs, etc.
Jim Crow Laws
series of state and local laws primarily in the south that enforced racial segregation and discrimination from the late 19th century until the civil rights movement in the 1960’s
Grandfather Clause
said that if your grandfather voted, then you can vote (excluded the blacks)
Civil War Amendments (and what are they)
- 13th amendment: released the slaves and outlaw slavery
- 14th amendment: makes black americans citizens of the US (due process and equal protection clauses are found here)
- 15th amendment: gave blacks the right for black americans to vote
Plessy v. Ferguson
- Plessy (1/8th black) sat in a white railroad car and was arrested for doing so
- Plessy argued that the law violated the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause
- established the “separate but equal” doctrine (as long as the facilities are equal, they can be separate)
Brown v Board of Education
- black child was denied entrance to a white school
- she passed the white school on her way to the black school every day which was an additional mile walk
- invoked the 14th amendment’s equal protection clause, declaring that segregation of public schools was unconstitutional
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Based on Congress’s power to regulate commerce, the legislation entitles all persons to equal access to public accommodations
also bars discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in the workplace
Roe V. Wade
- established that women had the right to an abortion
- the court held that the right of privacy is broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision on whether or not to terminate her pregnancy
- overruled by Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022
McCulloch v. Maryland
- Maryland levied taxes on the national bank’s operations
- McCulloch was in charge of the national bank and refused to pay the Tax
- court ruled in favor of national authority
- believed that the federal govt. had the implied power to create a national bank (necessary and improper clause)
- they concluded that valid national law supersedes conflicting state law
- the national govt. had the power to create a back and protect the bank from states attempt to weaken it
doctrine of nullification
- John C. Calhoun declared that the united states was founded upon a compact between states rather than individuals
- declared that a state has the constitutional right to nullify a national law
Emancipation Proclamation
- freed the slaves in the states that are in rebellion against the US (not border states and not states fighting with the union)
- signed by Lincoln in 1863
Provisions of the first amendment
freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition
Miranda Rule
made it so that police were required to read out their rights to suspects
Intermediate Scrutiny
assumed unconstitutional unless law serves a compelling purpose
Balancing Test
- legal principle used by courts to weigh competing interests and determine which prevail
- courts evaluate on a case by case basis
- ex: individual rights vs govt. interests in determining the constitutionality of laws or actions
what are the responsibilities of the executive branch? (5)
- enforce laws
- lead military as commander in chief
- conduct foreign policy and negotiate treaties
- appoint federal officials
- can veto laws passed by congress
what are the responsibilities of the judicial branch?
- interpret laws and determines their constitutionality
- resolve disputes between state and federal governments
- protect individual rights and ensures laws are applied fairly
- can overturn laws or executive actions deemed unconstitutional
Provisions of the second amendment
protects the right to bear arms
Provisions of the third amendment
prohibits the forced quartering of soldiers in private homes during peacetime
Provisions of the fourth amendment
protects against unreasonable search and seizure
Provisions of the fifth amendment
provides protections for those accused of crimes (due process, double jeopardy, right to remain silent, eminent domain)
Provisions of the sixth amendment
guarantees rights in criminal trials (right to a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury, confront witnesses, legal counsel, be informed of changes)
Provisions of the seventh amendment
provides for jury trials in civil cases where the dispute exceeds a certain monetary value
Provisions of the eighth amendment
prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishment
Provisions of the ninth amendment
states that the rights of the people are not limited to those listed in the constitution
Provisions of the tenth amendment
reserves powers not given to the federal govt. to the states or the people
