The Constitutional Underpinnings Flashcards
Thomas Hobbes
Author of Leviathan (1660)
Argued that if humans were left to their own devices, chaos and violence would ensue.
Also argued that the best way to protect life was to give total power to an absolute monarch
John Locke
Author of Second Treatise on Civil Government (1690)
Argued that liberty and property needed to be respected (Natural Rights) by the government.
Charles de Montesquieu
French philosopher, wrote The Spirit of the Laws (1748)
Advocated separation of powers into three branches of government
Jean Jacques Rousseau
Argued that the only good government was one that was freely formed by the consent of the people (formed by a social contract among the people)
Articles of Confederation
Predecessor to the Constitution (had many flaws):
- could not draft soldiers
- was completely dependent on states for revenue
- national government could not tax citizens
- could not pay off Revolutionary war debt
- could not control interstate commerce
- no Supreme Court to interpret the law
- no executive to enforce the law
- no national currency
- no control of taxes between states
- needed unanimity to amend
- needed approval from 9/13 of states to pass legislation
Northwest Ordinance
A method by which states could enter the Union
Federalism
States and National Government share governing responsibilities
Shay’s Rebellion
Six-month rebellion in which 1,000 armed farmers attacked a federal arsenal in protest to farm foreclosure (Exposed the weakness of the Articles of Confederation)
Constitution
Set of guidelines and laws for the national government to follow
Constitutional Convention
Convention in which the United States’ Constitution was drafted
Virginia Plan
Recipe for a strong government with representation in the legislature to be represented through apportionment of representatives for each state by population
New Jersey Plan
Recipe for a weak government with equal representation in the legislature (set amount of representatives for each state)
Great (Or Connecticut) Compromise
Merged the plans together and created a bicameral legislature with one based on apportionment by population (House of Representatives) and the other based on equal representation (Senate)
Bicameral Legislature
Two-House Legislature
Three-Fifths Compromise
Counted each slave as 3/5 of a person when seats in the House were being reapportioned to the states (Repealed by the 14th Amendment)
Federalists
Those who supported the Constitution (Because they wrote it)
Anti-Federalists
Opposed the Constitution (Mostly because it took powers from the states and gave it to the central government)
Federalist Papers
Essays and Articles collected that were written by Federalists (Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, James Madison) to support and spread the word of the Constitution (Again, they supported it because they wrote it)
Bill of Rights
Compromise that was made with the Anti-Federalists and are collectively the first 10 amendments to the Constitution (If the Federalists did not put this into the Constitution, the Anti-Federalist states would not have ratified it)
Necessary and Proper/Elastic Clause
Gives Congress the power to make any laws that are deemed necessary and proper to implement their delegated powers (Article I, Section 8)
Presidential Practice
Executive branch’s implementation of the rights given to the President by the Constitution (Consists of implied powers)
Executive Order
Bypass Congress in policy making and have the same effect as law (Implied Power)
Executive Agreements
Act as treaties and bypass Congressional ratification (Implied Power)
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Established Judicial Review
Judicial Review
Allows the Supreme Court to deem laws made by Congress unconstitutional and forces Congress to rewrite the law until it is deemed constitutional by the Supreme Court or get rid of the law entirely
Federalism
Describes a system of government under which the national government and local governments (State and Local) share powers
Confederalism
A system in which many decisions are made by an external member-state legislation (Think about the Confederate States of America (CSA): states had overwhelming power over the national government. which is why the CSA failed)
Delegated/Enumerated/Expressed Powers
Powers given to the branches of government by the Constitution (i.e.printing money, making treaties, declaring war, etc…)
Implied Powers
Powers that the branches of government believe they have and must relate that power to somewhere in the U.S. Constitution for it to be constitutional
Reserved Powers
Powers only given to the states and cannot be found within the Constitution and are derived from the Tenth Amendment (i.e. power to issue licenses, responsibility to pay for federal elections, regulation of intrastate commerce, etc…)
Concurrent Powers
Powers shared by the federal and state governments (i.e. the power to collect taxes, build roads, operate courts of law, borrow money, etc…)
Full Faith and Credit Clause
States are required to recognize court judgments, licenses, contracts, and civil acts of other states (Article IV, Section 1)
Privileges and Immunities Clause
States must grant U.S. Citizens that are not from their state the same rights as they would a citizen of their state (Article IV, Section 2)
Extradition
States must return fugitives back to the state where they are being charged (Article IV, Section 3)
Supremacy Clause
All federal legislation trumps or overrules state legislation (Article VI, Section 2)
Dual Federalism
Federalism in which the state and the national governments of the United States were separate and independent of one another (Also called Layered-Cake Federalism)
Powers Denied to the Federal Government (Article I, Section 9)
- Suspend the writ of habeas corpus (except in times of rebellion or invasion)
- Pass ex post facto laws, issue bills of attainder
- Impose export taxes
- Use money from the National Treasury without approval of an appropriations bill
- Grant titles of Nobility
Writ of Habeas Corpus
A list of reasons why a person is being held in jail (Judges must have this or the person is being imprisoned illegally)
Ex Post Facto Laws
A law that is passed after the something has occured
Bills of Attainder
Declare an individual guilty of a capital offense without a trial
Powers Denied to the State Governments (Article I, Section 10)
- Enter into treaties with foreign countries
- Declare war
- Maintain a standing army
- Print money
- Pass ex post facto laws, issue bills of attainder
- Grant titles of Nobility
- Impose Import or Export Duties/Taxes
States’ Righters
Ideologists that believe that the states should have more political power than the government
Nationalists
Ideologists that believe that the national government is supreme in all matters and is, in the long-run, in control
Categorical Grants
Aid by the federal government with strict provisions on how the money may be spent (supported by Nationalists)
Block Grants
Aid by the federal government with minimal provisions on how the money may be spent (supported by States’ Righters)
Separation of Powers
Prevents any one faction of government holding all power (Division into branches)
Legislative Branch
Creates laws for the government
Executive Branch
Enforces laws made by the government
Judicial Branch
Interprets the laws made by the government
Checks and Balances
Prevents any one branch of government from holding too much power
Amendments
Additions and changes to the Constitution
Amendment Process
- Proposal by 2/3 of:
- Congress
- National Convention
- Ratification by 3/4 of:
- State Legislatures
- State Conventions
First Amendment
Guarantees freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petitioning of the government
Free Exercise Clause
States that the government may not interfere with a person’s right to practice a religion (FIrst Amendment)
Establishment Clause
Prohibits Congress from establishing a national religion (First Amendment)
Schenck v. United States (1917)
Court Case ruling that denied protection to speech or writing that intends to incite violence or to intentionally slander or libel (First Amendment)
Near v. Minnesota (1973)
Court Case ruling that denies the federal government from censoring the press (First Amendment)
Second Amendment
Right to bear arms
Third Amendment
Forbids the Quartering of Soldiers and direct public support of armed forces
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
Court Case ruling that guarantees citizens the right to privacy (Third Amendment)
Fourth Amendment
Protects citizens from unjustified search and seizure
Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
Enforces the exclusionary rule (Fourth Amendment)
Exclusionary Rule
States that any evidence that is unlawfully gathered cannot be used in judicial proceedings
Fifth Amendment
Protects an individual from the federal government
Grand Jury
Guaranteed to those tried in criminal cases and consists of citizens (Fifth Amendment)
Double Jeopardy
Eliminates the possibility of a person being prosecuted for the same crime twice (Fifth Amendment); this means that a person cannot be tried for the same case twice (within the same court type), but they can be tried for the same thing in two different cases and also they can be tried in a Civil Court trial after a Criminal Court trial
Eminent Domain
Establishes that the Government can seize property for public use but it must be justly compensated (Fifth Amendment)
Self-Incrimination
Prevention of defendants having to testify against themselves, i.e. “I plea the fifth” (Fifth Amendment)
Due Process of Law
Denies the government the power to deprive an individual of their natural rights (i.e. life, liberty, or property) (Fifth Amendment)
Sixth Amendment
Right to an impartial jury and a speedy trial; individuals are also allowed to confront witnesses, subpoena or summon witnesses to their defense, and to have a lawyer (Sixth Amendment)
Seventh Amendment
Allows for trial by jury in common-law cases
Eighth Amendment
Prohibition of cruel and/or unusual punishment
Capital Punishment
Most controversial issue in modern-day politics, many people are split on whether or not the death penalty is considered a cruel and/or unusual punishment (Note that despite these debates it is currently a viable punishment)
Ninth Amendment
Rights not specifically mentioned within the U.S. Constitution are given to the people and the states
Tenth Amendment
Defines the relationship between the federal government and the state governments and powers not defined in the Constitution are given to the states (Reserved Powers)
Eleventh Amendment
Deals with court proceedings when states are a party
Chisholm v. Georgia (1793)
Court case ruling that provides that states may not be sued in federal court by citizens by other states/countries without consent of the state that is being sued (Eleventh Amendment)
Twelfth Amendment
Ensures that there are separate votes for the President and the Vice-President (Most President-elects and Vice-President-elects run on the same ticket anyways)
Thirteenth Amendment
Abolishes slavery
Fourteenth Amendment
Grants citizenship rights to all people (aimed at former slaves) and expands due process to all Americans
Selective Incorporation
Process of incorporating some of the Bill of Rights protections into state law (Fourteenth Amendment)
Fifteenth Amendment
Gives voting rights to all males (aimed at former male slaves)
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Enforced the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendment rights to citizenship and voting
Sixteenth Amendment
Gives Congress the power to lay an income tax
Seventeenth Amendment
Allows direct election of senators
Eighteenth Amendment
Prohibition of alcohol (yet people still drank because of smuggling from other places, including Canada)
Nineteenth Amendment
Grants voting rights to all American women
Twentieth Amendment
Shortens the lame-duck period
Lame-Duck Period
Period between the election of the new President and the inauguration of the new President (Old President cannot do anything)
Twenty-First Amendment
Repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment
Twenty-Second Amendment
Limits each President to only serving two terms
Twenty-Third Amendment
Residents of Washington D.C. (District of Columbia) to have electoral votes
Twenty-Fourth Amendment
Eliminates the poll tax that was used to prevent African-Americans from voting
Twenty-Fifth Amendment
Permits the Vice-President to serve as President when the President dies or becomes disabled
Twenty-Sixth Amendment
Sets the minimum voting age to 18
Twenty-Seventh Amendment
Prevents Congress from increasing their own personal pay during their term (All raises in pay will be in effect at the start of the next term)
John Marshall
Helped establish judicial review
Political Parties and Conventions
Have helped shape policy in recent years (Unwritten Constitution)
Party Platform
List of a party’s objectives
Presidential Cabinet
Help advise the President on how to enforce laws (Unwritten Constitution)
Unwritten Constitution
Aspects of the government that are not written or specified by the Consitution
Governor
Has control of the state executive branch (Has similar powers to the President)
State Legislatures
Have control of making state laws
Override of Gubernatorial Veto
The state legislature’s ability to override the governor’s veto on laws (Reserved Power)
Line-Item Veto
Governor’s ability to reject parts of bills (Reserved Power)
Trial Courts and Appeal Courts
Judiciary branch of state government
