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Ap Gov Unit 1 > Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy > Flashcards

Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy Flashcards

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1
Q

Democracy

A

power held by the people

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2
Q

Natural/inalienable rights

A

the right to life, liberty, and property which government cannot take away

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3
Q

Social Contract

A

people allow their governments to rule over them to ensure orderly and functioning society

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4
Q

Popular Sovereignty

A

the idea that the government’s right to rule comes from the people

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5
Q

Republicanism

A

the authority of the government comes from the people

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6
Q

Participatory Democracy

A

a theory that widespread political participation is essential for democracy

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7
Q

Pluralist Democracy

A

A theory of democracy that emphasizes the role of groups in the policy making process

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8
Q

Elitist Democracy

A

Theory of democracy that the elites have a disproportionate amount of influence in the policymaking process

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9
Q

Political Institutions

A

the structure of government, including the executive, legislature, and judiciary

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10
Q

Constitutional Republic

A

a democratic system with elect representatives in which the Constitution is the supreme law

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11
Q

Republic

A

a government ruled by representatives of the people

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12
Q

Unicameral legislature

A

a government with only one legislative house or chamber

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13
Q

Annapolis Convention

A

a convention that addressed trade and navigating disputes among the states, but participation was weak

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14
Q

Shay’s Rebellion

A

a popular uprising against the government of Massachusetts which illustrated the weakness of the Articles of Confederation, led many skeptics to agree to replace the Articles

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15
Q

What were the problems with the Articles of Confederation?

A

1) National government could not regulate commerce among states or levy taxes
2) National governments had to ask states for money

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16
Q

Constitutional Convention

A

May 1787- 12 of the 13 states met in Philadelphia to amend the Articles

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17
Q

Writ of habeas corpus

A

the right of people detained by the government to know the charges against the,

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18
Q

Bills of attainder

A

when the legislature declares someone guilty without a trail

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19
Q

Ex post facto laws

A

laws punishing people for acts that were not crimes at the time they were committed

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20
Q

What was the Virginia Plan?

A

proposed a 3 branch government with bicameral legislature
lower house –> elected directly
Upper house –> nominated by state legislatures and chosen by lower house

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21
Q

What was the New Jersey Plan?

A

TA 3 branch government with a unicameral legislature where each state has equal representation regardless of population.

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22
Q

Great (Connecticut) Compromise

A

Bicameral legislature
Lower House (House of Representatives) –> elected by the people
Upper House (Senate) –> selected by state legislature, 2 per state

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23
Q

Three-Fifths Compromise

A

an agreement to count slaves as 3/5s of a person in calculating a state’s representation

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24
Q

Separation of Powers

A

a design of government that distributes powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch too powerful on its own

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25
Q

Checks and Balances

A

a design of government in which each branch has powers that can prevent the other branches from making policy

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26
Q

Federalism

A

the sharing of power between the national government and the states

27
Q

Enumerated/Expressed Powers

A

authority specifically granted to the national government (more specifically Congress) in the Constitution

28
Q

Necessary and Proper Clause

A

granting Congress necessary powers to carry out enumerated powers

29
Q

Implied Powers

A

the authority of the federal government that goes beyond its expressed powers (powers not stated in the Constitution, but rather implied)

30
Q

Supremacy Clause

A

the constitution and all national treaties and laws shall be supreme law of the land

31
Q

Amendment

A

process by which changes may be made to the Constitution

32
Q

What are the 2 stages of amending the Constitution?

A

1) An amendment is proposed by a 2/3 vote from the House and Senate OR constitutional convention called by 2/3 of states
2) An amendment is ratified by 3/4 vote of the 50 state legislatures OR 3/4 of state constitutional conventions

33
Q

Federalists

A

supporters of the proposed Constitution, they called for a strong national government

34
Q

Antifederalists

A

opposed the proposed Constitution, called for stronger state governments

35
Q

Federalist 10

A

Advocated for a large constitutional republic, feared danger of factions.

36
Q

What are Factions?

A

group of self-interested individuals who use the government to get what they want, trampling the rights of others in the process

37
Q

Federalist 51

A

states that separation of powers and checks and balances are keys to preventing tyranny

38
Q

Brutus 1

A

argued that the country is too large to be governed as a republic and that the Constitution gave too much power to the national government

39
Q

Bill of Rights

A

a list of rights and liberties that governments can’t take away (10 amendments of the Constitution)

40
Q

Federalism

A

a system that divides power between a national (central) government and several regional (state) governments

41
Q

Unitary System

A

concentrated power, where the national government rules over a group of state governments

42
Q

Federal system

A

divided power between national government and state governments

43
Q

Confederation System

A

decentralized power, where weak state governments agree to follow a powerful central government

44
Q

Commerce Clause

A

grants Congress the power to regulate commerce among states and foreign nations

45
Q

Concurrent Powers

A

granted in the Constitution, allowed national and state authority to overlap in areas of public policy

46
Q

Full Faith and Credit Clause

A

requires states to recognize the public acts, records, and civil court proceedings from another state

47
Q

Extradition

A

the requirement that officials in one state return a defendant to another state where a crime is allegedly committed

48
Q

Privileges and Immunities Clause

A

prevents states from discriminating against people from out of state

49
Q

McCulloch v Maryland

A

Background: 2nd Bank of the US had a branch in Maryland, the state passed a law taxing the bank but bank officials refused to pay the tax
Decision: This was seen as Constitutional under the implied powers of Congress (Necessary and Proper Clause and Supremacy Clause)

50
Q

13th Amendment

A

outlaws slavery

51
Q

14th Amendment

A

provides that persons born in the US are citizens and prohibits states from denying persons due process or equal protection under the law

52
Q

15th Amendment

A

cannot deny the right to vote based on race

53
Q

Dual Federalism

A

states and nation operated independently in their own areas of public policy

54
Q

Cooperative Federalism

A

both levels of government work together in the same area of public policy

55
Q

Grants-in-aid

A

tool used by the federal government to achieve policy objectives within states

56
Q

Categorical grants

A

provided to states with specific provisions on their use (limited in how states can spend funding)

57
Q

Fiscal Federalism

A

federal government’s use of grant-in-aid to influence policies in states

58
Q

Unfunded mandates

A

national government requiring states to pay for programs without providing funds

59
Q

Block grants

A

a form of grant-in-aid that gives the state more control over how to disperse federal funds

60
Q

Revenue Sharing

A

when the federal government apportions tax money to states with no strings attached

61
Q

United States v Lopez

A

Background: Alfonso Lopez brought a gun to school and was charged with violating the Gun-Free School Zone Act of 1990
Decision: decision against Lopez, belief that Commerce clause had nothing to do with the case because “a gun in a local school is in no sense an economic activity”

62
Q

Declaration of Independence

A

the founding document of the U that announced the separation of the 13 colonies from Great Britian

63
Q

Articles of Confederation

A

The first constitution, declaring that the 13 colonies would be called “The United States of America”, gave powers to a national government which was led by Congress

64
Q

The US Constitution

A

defines the fundamental law of the US federal government, setting forth 3 branches of the federal government and their jurisdiction. Its purpose was to create a government with enough power to act on a national level

Ap Gov Unit 1 (2 decks)

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