Government Flashcards
What is the purpose of government?
Laid out in the Declaration of Independence
To protect the rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
What is constitutional governmnet?
A government where the rulers are limited by a constitution
Government of unlimited power is an autocratic or dictatorial government
What are 5 important characteristics of consitutional governmnet?
- Lists basic rights of citizens to life, liberty and property
- Establishes responsibilities of government to protect those rights
- Places limits of how people in government use their powers
- Establishes the principle of private domain
- Can only be changed with wide spread consent of citizens and according to certain set procedures
What is national government?
A government that manages an entire country
* The organization having central political authority in a nation; the representative unit of political organization
What is higher law?
The superiority of one set of laws over another
* The Constitution is a higher law than any federal or state law
In natural rights philosophy, natural law and divine law are a higher law than laws made by humans
what is a monarchy?
A head of state (king, queen, emperor) possessing supreme or ultimate power
What is diplomacy?
The practice of caring on formal relationships with governments of other countries
What is legislative supremacy?
A system of government in which the legislative branch has unlimited power
What is a political party?
Any organization that seeks to achieve political power by electing members to public office so that their political philosophies can be reflected in public policies
