Unit 1 - Foundations of American Democracy Flashcards
federalism
the sharing of power between the national government and the states
checks and balances
a design of government in which each branch has powers that can check the other branches and prevent them from making policy
separation of power
a design of government that distributes powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch too powerful on its own
nullification
states have the right to nullify (invalidate) any federal laws which they deem unconstitutional with respect to the U.S. Constitution
implied powers
authority of the federal government that goes beyond its expressed powers (powers not specifically granted to the national government but considered necessary to carry out the enumerated powers)
expressed powers
authority specifically granted to a branch of the government in the Constitution
reserved powers
powers not given to the national government, which are retained by the states and the people
concurrent powers
powers granted to both states and the federal government in the Constitution
federal system
a system where power is divided between the national and state government
unitary system
a system where the central government has all of the power over subnational governments
confederate system
a system where the subnational governments have most of the powers
articles of confederation
a governing document that created a union of thirteen sovereign states in which the states, not the union, were supreme
federalist
supporter of the proposed Constitution; favors strong national government
anti-federalist
a person opposed to the proposed Constitution; favors stronger state government
The Federalist Papers
a series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay and published between 1787 and 1788 that lay out the theory behind the Constitution
supremacy clause
constitutional provision declaring that the Constitution and all national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land (above state laws)
virginia plan
a plan of government calling for a three-branch government with bicameral legislature, where more populous states would have more representation in Congress (representation by population)
new jersey plan
a plan of government that provided for a unicameral legislature with equal votes for each state (same representation)
the great compromise
combined virginia and new jersey plan; bicameral legislatrue with a house of rep apportioned proportionately to population and a senate apportioned equally
three-fifths compromise
a slave would count as three-fifths of a person in calculating a state’s reresentation
article I
legislative branch
article II
executive branch
article III
judicial branch
article IV
relations among states
article V
provisions for amendments
article VI
public debuts, supremacy of national law, oaths
article VII
ratification
full faith and credit clause
constitutional clause requiring states to recognize the public acts, records, and civil court proceedings from another state
necessary and proper clause
grant Congress the powers necessary to carry out its enumerated powers
Shay’s rebellion
a popular uprising against the government of massachusetts about the debt crisis among the citizens and the state government’s increased efforts to collect taxes
bill of rights
list of fundamental rights and freedoms that individuals posses
dual federalism
a form of american federalism in which the states and the nation operate independently in their own areas of public policy
cooperative federalism
a form of american federalism in which the states and the national government work together to shape public policy
new federalism
political philosophy of devolution; transfer of certain powers from the federal government back to the states
categorical grants
grants-in-aid provided to states with specific provisions on their use; grants given to state and local governments that may be spent only for narrowly defined purpose
block grants
grants-in-aid that gives state officials more authority in the disbursement of federal funds (con : money may be used inefficiency)
unfunded mandates
federal requirement that states must follow without being provided with funding
programmatic requests
requests for congress to fund an authorized federal program at a specific level
16th amendment
Congress have power to lay and collect taxes on income (impose federal income tax)
17th amendment
the senate is composed of 2 senates from each state
(6 year per term and each senator = 1 vote)
political ideology
an individual’s coherent set of beliefs about government and politics
political spectrum
system to characterize and classify diff political positions in relation to one another
(left vs right)
ex post facto law
a law punishing people for acts that were not crimes at the time they were committed
bill of attainder
when the legislature declares someone guilty without a trial
writs of habeas corpus
the right of people detained by the government to know the charges against them
equal protection clause
a clause of the 14th amendment that requires the states to treat al citizens alike with regard to application of the law
Marbury v Madison
holding : court agreed that marbury did have right to have commission be delivered
rationale : judiciary act of 1789 conflicted with the constitution, congress cannot modify constitution –> judiciary act is unconstitutional
impact : established judicial review, checks and balance system
McCulloch v. Maryland
holding : congress have power to establish bank, state cannot tax the bank
rationale : court interpreted “necessary” as “appropriate and legitimate”, constitution is supreme = states cannot not control it
impact : increased federal power (esp supreme court)
US v. Lopez
holding : gun-free school zones act was unconstitutional
rationale : possession of gun does not affect interstate economy enough for it to be regulated by federal government
impact : reaffirmed idea that local government also have control over issues, limiting federal government powers
federalist 10
madison argues that dangers of faction can be mitigated by a large republic and republican government
brutus no.1
anti-federalist paper arguing that the country was too large to be govern as a republic and that the Constitution gave too much power to the national government
federalist 51
madison argues that separation of powers and federalism will prevent tyranny
federalist 78
hamilton argues that federal judiciary would be unlikely to infringe upon rights and liberties but wold serve as a check on the other two branches
