Government Flashcards
Natural Rights
Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness
Taxation without representation
This means that people are getting taxed without having representation in government to fight against it
Early Problems from the Articles of Federation
No universal currency
No federal judiciary
Lack of unity of states
No way to tax
Weakness in foreign policy
Conflicts between states
Can’t suppress the internal rebellion
Basic Role of Any Government
To maintain order
New Jersey Plan
This was the plan that the smaller states proposed for the new Constitution. They wanted every state to have equal representation in government.
Virginia Plan
This was the plan that the larger states proposed for the new Constitution. They wanted representation in government to be based on population.
The Great Compromise
This was the combination of the New Jersey and Virginia Plans. This would be a bicameral legislature with a house, based on population, and a senate, with equal representation for states.
Bicameral Legislature
This is a Legislature that has 2 separate parts to it that need to work together to create a law
Responsibilities of Legislative Branch
Make Laws
Declare War
Ratify Treaties
Responsibilities of Executive Branch
Execute Laws
Set Foreign Policy Agenda
Responsibilities of Judicial Branch
Interprets Constitution to remove any unconstitutional laws
Shay’s Rebellion
a grassroots popular uprising against the government of Massachusetts that led to calls for reform, or replacement, of the Articles of Confederation
intolerable acts
a series of laws passed by Great Britain in response to the Boston Tea Party
communist government
citizens provide for the society of equals
constitutional government
system that places limits on the ability of the government to restrict individual rights in a constituting document that is recognized as the highest law of the land
direct democracy
all citizens meet to debate government matters and vote first hand
representative democracy
citizens vote for representatives to vote on certain matters
articles of confederation and perpetual union
a constituting document calling for the creation of a union of 13 sovereign states in which the states, not the union, were supreme
constitutional convention
a meeting held in Philadelphia in 1787 where state delegates met to fix the Articles of Confederation that would result in the drafting of the US Consitution
separation of powers
a design of government that distributes powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch too powerful
amendment
a Constitutional provision for a process by which changes may be made to the Constitution
3/5 Compromise
an agreement reached by delegates at the Constitutional Convention that ensured that slaves would count as 3/5 of a person for their state’s representation
logroll
a trading of votes, between the slave states and the Northeastern commercial states
federalists
name taken by supporters of the proposed Constitution who called for a strong national government
antifederalists
the name taken by those opposed to the proposed Constitution, who favored stronger state governments
tyranny
the suppression of the rights of a people by those holding power
federalist papers
a series of 85 essays primarily written by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton and John Jay between 1787 and 1789 that lay out the theory behind the Constitution
faction
a group of self-interested people who use the government to get what they want, trampling the rights of others in the process
tyranny of the majority
when a large number of citizens use the power of their majority to trample on the rights of a smaller group
tyranny of the minority
when a small number of citizens tramples on the rights of the larger population
federalism
a structure of governance that places the people’s authority in two or more levels of government
unitary system
structure of governance that places the people’s sovereignty in a national government, with sub-governments deriving their authority from it
confederal system
structure of governance in which the sub-units retain the majority of the granted authority
federal system
structure of governance that divides a people’s sovereignty between two or more levels of government
supremacy clause
a part of the Constitution that establishes it and the laws of the nation passed under its authority as the highest laws of the nation
necessary and proper clause
a part of the United States Constitution that grants the federal government the authority to pass laws required to carry out its enumerated powers. Also called the elastic clause
commerce clause
a part of the Constitution that grants Congress the authority to regulate business and commercial activity
ennumerated powers
powers explicitly granted to the government via the Constitution
implied powers
powers not textually granted to a government, but considered valid in order to carry out the enumerated powers
reserved powers
powers reserved to American states if not textually granted to the federal government
police powers
a category of reserved powers that includes the protection of people’s health, safety, and welfare
concurrent powers
powers granted to both states and federal government in the United States Constitution
Dual Federalism
a view of American federalism in which the states and the nation operate independently in their own areas of public policy
Cooperative Federalism
a vision of American federalism in which the states and the national government work together to shape public policy
The Great Depression
a period defined by the most significant economic crisis in American history
The New Deal
a set of policies passed during the administration of President Roosevelt in order to combat the Great Depression
states rights
the idea that American states have the authority to self-govern, even when in conflict with national laws
What do rules help prevent against
chaos
