Unit 1 Flashcards
A political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them
Democracy
A form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives
Direct democracy
An election in which voters choose party nominees
Direct primary
Method of maintaining, managing, and gaining control of government (who gets what, when, and how)
Politics
The institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies
Government
An agreement between the people and their government signifying their consent to be governed
Social contract
A form of government where citizens elect representatives to run the government for them
Representative government
A democratic system with elected representatives in which the Constitution is the supreme law
Constitutional republic
Basic principle that government and those who govern must obey the law of the Constitution
Constitutionalism
A shared set of beliefs, customs, traditions, and values that define the relationship of Americans to their government and to other American citizens
American political culture
The principle that governments must draw their powers from the consent of the governed
Popular consent
The theory that political power is distributed among a wide array of diverse and competing interest groups
Pluralist theory
A theory that a few top leaders make the key decisions without reference to popular desires
Elitist theory
Structures of a political system that carry out the work of governing
Political institutions
1st Constitution of the U.S. 1781-1788 (weaknesses-no executive, no judicial, no power to tax, no power to regulate trade)
Articles of Confederation
A meeting held in September 1786 to consider problems of trade and navigation, attended by five states and important because it issued the call to Congress and the states for what became the Constitutional Convention
Annapolis Convention
The meeting of state delegates in 1787 in Philadelphia called to revise the Articles of Confederation. It instead designed a new plan of government, the US Constitution
Constitutional Convention
A 1787 rebellion in which ex-Revolutionary War soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes
Shay’s Rebellion
The principle of a two-house legislature
Bicameralism
“Large state” proposal for the new constitution, calling for proportional representation in both houses of a bicameral Congress
Virginia Plan
A constitutional proposal that would have given each state one vote in a new congress
New Jersey Plan
Bicameral Congress; House is based on state population, Senate with equal representation
Connecticut Compromise
The decision at the Constitutional convention to count slaves as 3/5 of a person for the purpose of deciding the population and determining how many seats each state would have in Congress
3/5 Compromise
A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president
Electoral college
Supporters of the Constitution
Federalists
People who opposed the Constitution
Antifederalists
A collection of 85 articles written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison under the name “Publius” to defend the Constitution in detail
The Federalist Papers
A doctrine that society should be governed by certain ethical principles that are part of nature and, as such, can be understood by reason
Natural law
A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments
Federalism
The division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government
Separation of powers
A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power
Checks and balances
A system of government by one person with absolute power
Autocracy
Governance divided between the parties, especially when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress
Divided government
Government action based on firm allegiance to a political party
Partisanship
Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws
Judicial review
Written order from a court to enforce the performance of some public duty
Writ of mandamus
Congressional legislation that gives further meaning to the Constitution based on sometimes vague constitutional authority, such as the necessary and proper clause
Congressional elaboration
Charges against a president approved by a majority of the House of Representatives
Impeachment
A rule issued by the president that has the force of law
Executive order
An implied presidential power that allows the president to refuse to disclose information regarding confidential conversations or national security to Congress or the judiciary
Executive privilege
A decision by the president not to spend money appropriated by Congress, now prohibited under Federal law
Impoundment
An approach to constitutional interpretation that envisions the document as having a fixed meaning that might be determined by a strict reading of the text or the Framers’ intent
Originalist approach
A method used to interpret the Constitution that understands the document to be flexible and responsive to the changing needs of the times
Adaptive approach
The right to vote
Suffrage
A form of government in which people elect representatives to create and enforce laws
Republicanism
The networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively
Social capital
The idea that all humans are born with rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and property
Natural rights
Rights that cannot be taken away
Inalienable rights
