Midterm Flashcards
Tradeoffs Perspective
Acknowledges that competing interests, whether elitist or pluralist, vie for government influence
government
describes the means by which society organizes itself and how it allocates authority in order to accomplish collective goals and provide benefits that the society as a whole needs
politics
the process of gaining and exercising control within a government for the purpose of setting and achieving particular goals- particularly the division of resources
democracy
political system in which people govern themselves
private goods
goods provided by private businesses
public goods
goods provided by the government free of charge
toll good
a good available to people who pay
common goods
free of charge but of limited supply
representative democracy
citizens elect representatives to make decisions on behalf of citizens
direct democracy
citizens directly participate in government
elite theory
elite citizens are really in charge of the government
pluralist theory
power rests with competing interests
civic engagement
voting, demonstrating, speaking out or other means- essential to a thriving and effective republic
social capital
the collective value of all social networks and the willingness of these networks to work together
Articles of the Confederation
- Strong governing states, weak central government
- The states agreed to cooperate at the national level in limited areas, such as defense
Why did the Articles of the Confederation fail?
- No executive
- Weak central government teehee
- Needed 9 of the 13 states to pass any law (a supermajority)
- Central government could not collect taxes (lots of debt from war, and unable to raise revenue)
- Could not amend document
- National government could not raise a standing army or na
The Great Compromise
- Bicameral legislation
- Representation in the House of Representatives are based on population
- Representation in the Senate consists of equal representates from each state
- Members of House are elected to two-year terms and are voted on by the people
- Members of the Senate are elected by state legislatures for six-year terms
Checks and Balances
- Presidents appoints judicial judges- Senate has to approve them
- President can grant pardons to someone unjustly punished by judicial/legislative branch
- President can veto legislation passed by Congress
- Congress can declare war (check on the president)
- Senate has to ratify treaties signed by the President
- Congress can impeach the president and decide to vote them out of office
- Court resides over impeachment trials
- Supreme Court can declare laws and actions by the president as unconstitutional
- Supreme Court is the nation’s final court of appeal
Judicial Review
- A power that flows naturally from the role of the courts
- “Is this law or action constitutional?”
Supremacy Clause
- In areas in which the state and federal government both have the power to act, this clause states that the federal law supercedes any state law
- Federal laws prevail over conflicting state laws, so every state law must be in guidance of the federal law
How does the government propose amendments?
- Congress may propose an amendment, which must pass with ⅔ approval in both House/Senate
- The states can call for a national convention, which must be held after approval of ⅔ states
Seventeeth Amendment
provides for the direct election of U.S. senators by voters
Nineteenth Amendment
provides women the right to vote
Twenty-Fourth Amendment
abolished poll taxes, a tax on voting used by many Southern states to disenfranchise African-American voters
Twenty-Sixth Amendment
lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 years
Federalism
A form of government in which different levels of government act relatively autonomously and have the power to act directly on people within their jurisdictions
Unitary Federalism
Authority is concentrated in central government
Federation Federalism
Authority is derived from the people and is divided between central and state governments
Confederation Federalism
authority concentrated in states
Dual Federalism
Programs and authority are clearly divided among the national, state, and local governments
Cooperative Federalism
Programs and authority are mixed among the national, state, and local governments (taxes, medicaid)
Necessary and Proper Clause
grants Congress extensive authority to act in the furtherance of enumerated powers
What Amendment enshrines reserved powers of the states?
10th Amendment
Examples of concurrent powers
Levy and collect taxes
Borrow money
Make and enforce laws
Establish courts
Charter banks and corporations
Take property for public purpose with just compensation (eminent domain)
civil liberties
limitations of government power that are designed to protect freedoms
civil rights
constitutional guarantees that the government will treat people equally, regardless of whether they belong to a protected class, such as race, gender, ethnic origin, and religion
equal protection clause
constitutionally protects equal protection- all persons shall be treated alike
discrimination
the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people (on basis of race, sex, gender)
discriminatory effect
results in different treatment for similar individuals
discriminatory purpose
enacted with intent to discriminate
Voting Rights Act of 1965
signed by Lyndon B. Johnson, aimed to eliminate racial discrimination in voting- prohibited literacy tests and other discriminatory practices
Random sample
limited number of people selected in such a way that they have an equal chance of being chosen
public opinion
a collection of popular views about something, perhaps a person, a local or national event, or a new ideas
representative sample
group whose demographic distribution is similar to that of the overall population
margin of area
A number that states how far the poll results may be from the actual opinion of the total population of citizens
media
defines a number of different communication formats from television to print- to the public is mass media
political socialization
the process of learning the norms and practices of a political system through others and societal institutions
Agents of political socialization
persons or entities who teach and influence others about politics through use of information
political ideology
attitudes and beliefs that help shape our opinions on political theory and policy form our political ideology
framing
the creation of a narrative or context for a story
episodic framing
occurs when a story focuses on isolated details or specifics, rather than looking at the whole issue
thematic framing
takes a broad look at an issue and skip the numbers or details
racial framing
occurs when a person or group is represented in a negative or assumptive light
priming
when media coverage predisposes the viewer or reader to a particular perspective on a subject or issue
why is media consolidation a problem?
larger companies can control what is reported
