Midterm 3

Question 1

Race-to-the-bottom

Answer 1

A dynamic in which states compete to attract business by lowering taxes and regulations, often to workers’ detriment

Question 2

immigration federalism

Answer 2

The gradual movement of states into the immigration policy domain traditionally handled by the federal government

Question 3

venue shopping

Answer 3

A strategy in which interest groups select the level and branch of government they calculate will be most receptive to their policy goals

Question 4

block grant

Answer 4

A type of grant that comes with less stringent federal administrative conditions and provide recipients more latitude over how to spend grant funds

Question 5

categorical grant

Answer 5

federal transfer formulated to limit recipients’ discretion in the use of funds and subject them to strict administrative criteria

Question 6

creeping categorization

Answer 6

A process in which the national government attaches new administrative requirements to block grants or supplants them with new categorical grants

Question 7

unfunded mandates

Answer 7

Federal laws and regulations that impose obligations on state and local governments without fully compensating them for the costs of implementation

Question 8

cooperative federalism

Answer 8

a style of federalism in which both levels of government coordinate their actions to solve national problems, leading to the blending of layers as in a marble cake

Question 9

dual federalism

Answer 9

style of federalism in which the states and national government exercise exclusive authority in distinctly delineated spheres of jurisdiction, creating a layer-cake view of federalism

Question 10

general revenue sharing

Answer 10

a type of federal grant that places minimal restrictions on how state and local governments spend the money

Question 11

new federalism

Answer 11

a style of federalism premised on the idea that the decentralization of policies enhances administrative efficiency, reduces overall public spending, and improves outcomes

Question 12

nullification

Answer 12

doctrine promoted by John Calhoun of South Carolina in the 1830s, asserting that if a state deems a federal law unconstitutional, it can nullify it within its borders

Question 13

bill of attainder

Answer 13

legislative action declaring someone guilty without a trial; prohibited under the Constitution

Question 14

concurrent powers

Answer 14

ared state and federal powers that range from taxing, borrowing, and making and enforcing laws to establishing court systems

Question 15

devolution

Answer 15

process in which powers from the central government in a unitary system are delegated to subnational units

Question 16

elastic clause

Answer 16

e last clause of Article I, Section 8, which enables the national government “to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying” out all its constitutional responsibilities

Question 17

ex post facto law

Answer 17

law that criminalizes an act retroactively; prohibited under the Constitution

Question 18

full faith and credit clause

Answer 18

The obligation under article 4 of the U.S constitution for each state to recognize the public acts, records and judical proceedings of every other state.

Question 19

privileges and immunities clause

Answer 19

A constitutional clause which is designed to prevent states from discriminating against out of state citizens on matters of fundamental or essential rights and activities

Question 20

unitary system

Answer 20

A government that gives all key powers to the national or central government

Question 21

writ of habeas corpus

Answer 21

A proceeding in which a defendant brings a writ to compel a judicial determination of whether he is lawfully being held in custody