Unit 1 Part A Vocab Flashcards
The study of who governs and what they do with that power
Politics
The ability to influence the behavior of others
Power
The supreme power or authority of a self-governing country
Sovereignty
Laws and other policies of the government
Public Policy
Cruel or oppressive government
Tyranny
A group of people with interests that are different than the overall good of the nation
Factions
A government with unlimited and absolute power; people have little power
Authoritarian
Citizens themselves make decisions on every issue; no representatives
Direct democracy
Citizens elect officials to make decisions for them
Indirect (representative) democracy
A representative form of government where elected leaders make decisions for the nation
Republic
Government power is restricted to certain powers and purposes
Limited Government
Idea that every government decision is made by majority rule or with the good of the majority in mind; broad participation in politics
Participatory Democracy (Majoritarian Theory)
Idea that some people/groups have more power than other people (eg. the rich, the military, the media, corporations, ect.); narrow view of politics
Elite theory
Idea that there are so many various powerful elite groups, no laws can be passed without the support of most of them
Pluralism (Pluralist View)
An agreement in which the government promises to protect the natural rights of the people who created the limited government
Social Contract Theory
Group that opposed to to a strong national/federal government at the time of the Constitutional Convention; feared tyranny and wanted powerful state governments
Anti-Federalists
The first attempt at government for the USA at the time of the revolutionary war; created a loose alliance of the states and a very weak national government with no president, court system, tax power, ect (it failed)
Articles of Confederation
Rebellion if indebted farmers (over taxes) in Massachusetts after the RW; showed that the AOC was a failure and that a Constitutional Convention was necessary
Shay’s Rebellion
The first ten amendments to the Constitution; explained people’s rights and the limits of the national government
Bill of Rights
Meeting of delegates from the states to revise/rewrite the AOC; creates the US Constitution
Constitutional Convention of 1787
Formal document that creates the formal organization and rules of a government
Consitutional
A formal change to the Consitution
Constitutional Ammendment
Those in favor of a stronger national-federal government at the time of the Constitutional Convention; national and state governments should share power
Federalists
Creators of the US Constitution
Framers
Political factions are undesirable but inevitable; factions need to be controlled and that would happen better in a large republic
Federalist Paper No 10 (James Madison)
People in power will always try to become more powerful; separation of power with checks and balances will preserve a limited government; “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition.”
Federalist Paper No 51 (James Madison)
Antifederalist Paper; the Constitution would create a federal government that would “possess absolute and uncontrollable power…” because of the Necessary and Proper Clause and the Supremacy Clause
Brutus No 1
System where each branch of the government can block actions and limit the power of the other two; preserves a limited government
Checks and Balances
Created a compromise between the NJ and VA Plans; created a bicameral legislature (Congress with two houses) with one house based on population and the other having an equal number of Senators from every state
Great Connecticut Compromise
Formal approval of a legal document like the U.S. Constitution
Ratification
Arrangement of government power where the central government has all of the power; states have little or no power
Unitary system
Aka. National Government or Central Government; Three Branches in Washington, D.C.
Federal Government
The Constitution creates three independent branches of government, each with their own specific powers and responsibilities
Separation of Powers
Government power is shared between the national government and state/regional governments
Federalism (Federal Structure)
