Gov20 Midterm 1 Flashcards
Constitutional Convention
The 1787 meeting that led to the formation of the U.S. Constitution
Federalism
system dividing powers between national and state governments
Dual Federalism vs. Cooperative Federalism
Phases of federalism where power is either clearly separated or shared.
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
Expanded federal power through the necessary and proper clause
Civil Rights Movement
The struggle for African American equality, including landmark events like the March on Washington
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
Declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional.
13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments
Abolished slavery, granted citizenship and equal protection, and secured voting rights.
Bill of Rights
First ten amendments to the US Constitution guaranteeing civil liberties. Necessary for the anti-federalists
Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Established the exclusionary rule for evidence obtained illegally
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
Required informing suspects of their rights before interrogation
Bicameral Legislature
Congress is divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Committee System
Essential for the detailed review and passage of legislation in Congress
Executive Orders
Directives issued by the president that carry the force of law without congressional approval
Veto Power
The president’s ability to reject bills passed by Congress
Commander-in-Chief
The president’s role as leader of the military
Prisoner’s dilemma and Free Rider
a situation where two parties, separated and unable to communicate, must each choose between cooperating with the other or not. The highest reward for each party occurs when both parties choose to cooperate. Gov address the Free rider problem by forcing compliance (lack of coercion can enable free riding)
Free riding; Individuals benefiting from collective action without contributing
Tragedy of the commons
a shared resource is overused or destroyed by individuals acting in their own self-interest (without controls, goods will be exhausted)
Articles of Confederation
Reasons they failed:
Weak Congress (ex no tax power)
Three year term limit (anti-elitism)
Little ability to defend nations (coordination and free rider problems)
Unanimity require for many important decisions (coordination problems)
The Great Compromise
Virginia vs new Jersey Plan: solved issue of big vs small states
- Senate: each state has equal representation (2 per state)
- House of Representatives: representation based on population
Checks and balances
way of constraining and sharing power
Branches
- veto, “take care” clause, elected by electoral college, appointments to judiciary approved by Congress
Powers are divided among the three branches (Executive, Legislative, Judiciary) to prevent any single branch from dominating.
Amendment
27 amendments today… process:
Amendment: either proposed by ⅔ of the House and Senate OR ⅔ of the states at the Convention, then must be ratified by either ¾ of the states legislatures OR ¾ of the states at Convention
10th Amendment
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people”
How government forces states to comply
Force states to comply with Necessary and Proper Clause and Supremacy Clause (also carrots and sticks):
Carrots: congress can provide $ to encourage states to carry out programs; they can also threaten to remove money if failed to comply (block grants: funded without specific instructions/regulations; categorical grants: funded with specific instructions/regulations)
Civil Liberties
limits on government interference in personal freedoms (Freedom of/to Speech, Religion, Assemble, Bear Arms, the Press, Right to Privacy, to Due Process, a Fair Trial, etc)
Civil Rights
right to vote, equal protection under the law, right to marry, education, fair trial, disability rights
First Amendment - free speech limitations
Dangerous messages (incite lawlessness, true threats) ~ Brandenburg v Ohio (1969) “Brandenburg Test” with “imminent danger” two conditions: speaker must have intent to incite others, illegal action must be likely to occur
Fraud
Speech that violates intellectual property rights
Commercial Speech
Disturbing speech (obscenity) ~ Community Standards applied from Rother v US (1957)
1857: Dred Scott v Sandford
Scott sued for his family’s freedom in a free state, but court ruled that Black people were not citizens and could not sue in federal court
1863: Emancipation Proclamation
by Lincoln, declared slaves free
1896: Plessy v Ferguson
“separate but equal” doctrine allowed state sponsored segregation
1920: Passage of 19th amendment
Right for women to vote
1954: Brown v Board of Education
ruling that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregated schools are otherwise equal in quality
1964: Civil Rights Act
banned employment discrimination; required most businesses serving the public to be integrated; cut off federal funding to states that discriminated in administering federal programs
1965: Voting Rights Act
required preclearance of changes in election practices, mostly in the South; empowered federal officials to register voters; abolished literacy tests and poll taxes
highlights:
- Reiterated and clarified 15th amendment protections
- Outlawed literacy tests
- Appointed federal examiners to oversee enforcement of VRA and register qualified citizens to vote in certain jurisdictions
- Required covered jurisdictions to obtain “preclearance” from either the District Court for the District of Columbia or the U.S. Attorney General for any new voting practices and procedures
2013: Shelby v Holder
held that it is unconstitutional to use the coverage formula in Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act to determine which jurisdictions are subject to the preclearance requirement of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, Shelby County v. Holder, 133 S. Ct.
The Supreme Court decision allowed states to implement voting changes without federal approval, swung open the door for states to enact restrictive voting laws
Congress: size, functions, issues they face, committees, and two reasons for this structure
535 elected officials in Congress
Some functions given to Congress: Legislation, Oversight, Appropriations/Budgeting (‘power of the purse’), Declare War, Ratify treaties, Approve judicial/cabinet nominations, Impeachment, Regulate interstate commerce, Raise army, Currency
Bicameral (Senate and House of Reps)
issues faced:
Need for information - Solution: committee system
Coordination problems - Solution: party leaders
Agreements and resolving conflicts - Solution: rules and norms to resolve conflict + party leaders and coalitions
Collective Action - Solution: committee system + electoral rewards
Transaction Costs - Solution: rules to reduce transaction costs (e.g. seniority rule)
Time pressures
Committees:
Standing - bills, hearings, investigations
Select or special - special investigations
Joint - mainly info
Conference - resolve differences in the House and Senate bills (majority party has majority seats in committees ~ except Ethics committee has 5 and 5)
Why this structure:
Distributive Theory: allows members to participate in committees most important to their districts (e.g. farming district in agriculture committee) and exchange favors with other members better benefits to district + logrolling
Informational Theory: hard to become an expert in everything, easiest to engage in division of labor with members who can become experts and share knowledge with rest of Congress → better policies
Main goals of policymakers
getting re-elected: Advertising, Credit-claiming, Position-taking
Filibuster and Cloture
continue to debate as long as possible, requires 60 senators to end debate (cloture)
Gridlock
Gridlock is the political stalemate that occurs when the government is unable to act or pass laws because rival parties control different parts of the executive branch and the legislature. When there are more bills waiting to be voted on than being considered, gridlock occurs.
Gridlock in the U.S. government generally happens when parties work against each other to block legislation until their demands are met.
A primary cause of gridlock is the filibuster, where a senator or group of senators use the concept of unlimited debate to stall the vote on a bill.
Rule 22 allows the Senate to invoke cloture—the only means to end a filibuster—which calls for a supermajority of 60 senators.
Federalist Papers
Federalist Papers: Key documents, such as Federalist 10 and 51, that argued in favor of the Constitution and its structure
Civil Liberties vs Civil Rights
Civil Liberties vs. Civil Rights: Civil liberties protect individuals from government interference, while civil rights ensure equal treatment under the law.
Selective Incorporation
Selective Incorporation: The process through which the Bill of Rights has been applied to the states via the 14th Amendment
Amendments that expanded voting rights
15th: cannot be denied based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude
19th: gave women the right to vote
24th: It abolished and forbids the federal and state governments from imposing taxes on voters during federal elections
26th: established the minimum voting age at 18 years old
Presidency: powers
Enumerated powers:
Veto (Congress can override with ⅔ majority) → negative power
“Take Care” clause → execute laws (ambiguous)
Appointments to judiciary (Congress must approve) → personnel/patronage
Commander-in-chief (Congress is the one declaring war) → act in time of war
Elected by Electoral College
Today:
Unify the country in times of crises
Policymaker
Television/Social Media
Bully Pulpit
Lead a BIG bureaucracy
Presidency: influence policy
Influence policy making:
- Traditional: lobby Congress to push preferred policies
- Going Public: public announcements to sell his programs directly to public
State of the Union
“Fireside” chats with FDR
Press Conferences
Social media
- Setting the budget: sets priorities – though congress ultimately decides
Executive order: “defined as a declaration by the president or a governor which has the force of law, usually based on existing statutory powers.”
Response to Congressional gridlock or used to fast track campaign promises
Different from normal legislation: limited to scope of POTUS powers, temporary (can be repealed later), can be challenged in courts
Divided government
Why would congress allow POTUS to push policy unilaterally
Gridlock
First mover advantage
Blame avoidance
Coordination problems
Principal-agent problem
