U.S. Gov't
About this set
Created by:
jenniferbart on December 13, 2011
Log in to favorite or report as inappropriate.
Order by
85 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Politics | The process by which the actions of government are determined |
| Government | A political body that makes decisions for the nation |
| Tyranny | Having too much power |
| Grassroots mobilization | Citizens mobilize others who care about an issue to attract the attention of government officials and influence the direction of law and policy ex. organizing a boycott, participating in a rally |
| Elections pathway of action | Citizens elect leaders to represent them and hold those leaders accountable for the decisions they make. ex. voting, fundraising, volunteering for a campaign |
| Lobbying pathway of action | Citizens attempt to influence lawmakers and others involved in the creation of policy by supplying them with information and persuasive arguments ex. meeting face to face with elected official |
| Court pathway of action | Citizens use the court system to challenge laws which they feel are unconstitutional and to make the government play by its own rules ex. filing a suit in court about a state or federal law |
| Cultural change pathway of action | Citizens attempt to change the hearts and minds of their fellow citizens in order to change the dominant values of society ex. educating fellow citizens about issues, publicizing events. |
| Monarchy | One leader controls all |
| Oligarchy | a group of a few people have control |
| Democracy | When the people have a say in their elected representative |
| Republic | A state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president |
| Authoritarian Regime | a government that concentrates political power in an authority not responsible to the people |
| Checks and Balances | A system in our government where each brach has the power to limit the actions of others |
| Capitalism | An economic system where business and industry are privately owned and there is little governmental interference |
| Socialism | An economic system in which the government owns and controls most factories and much or all of the nation's land. |
| Separation of powers | Split the government into 3 separate branches (Executive, Legislative, and Judicial) |
| Popular Soveriegnty | The vote is given to all citizens and the power comes from the people. |
| Limited Government | The constitution is the supreme law of land which means the government does not have full power. |
| Checks and Balances | Each group has the right to check on other groups and make sure there is balanced power. |
| Federalism | An even amount of power between the states and federal government. |
| Delegated Powers (Article 1 Section 8) | Powers expressly given to the national government by the constitution. |
| Implied Powers | Powers of the national government based on the Elastic Clause (Necessary and Proper Clause) |
| Elastic Clause | Part of the Constitution that lets the national government make all laws that are "necessary and proper) |
| Inherent Powers | Powers, usually in foreign affairs, that grow out of the very existence of the national government |
| Reserved Powers (tenth amendment) | Powers given only to the states |
| Concurrent Powers | Powers held by both the national and state governments |
| Prohibited powers (Article 1 section 9) | Powers forbidden to both the national and state governments. |
| Full Faith and Credit Clause | Location in the constitution where you find what the states owe to eachother other |
| Extradition | the surrender of an alleged offender or fugitive to the state in whose territory the alleged offence was committed |
| Commerce Clause | a clause in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution that empowers Congress to regulate interstate commerce and commerce with foreign countries and that forms the constitutional basis for much federal regulation |
| 14th Amendment | All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. |
| Jurisdiction | (law) the right and power to interpret and apply the law |
| Dual court system | federal and state courts |
| Civil Law | Body of law dealing with private rights of individuals |
| Criminal Law | A body of law that applies to violations against rules and regulations defined by the government |
| Judicial Review | the power of the Supreme Court to declare laws and actions of local, state, or national governments unconstitutional |
| Judicial Activism | an interpretation of the U.S. constitution holding that the spirit of the times and the needs of the nation can legitimately influence judicial decisions (particularly decisions of the Supreme Court) |
| Judicial Restraint | view that the courts should reject any active lawmaking functions and stick to judicial interpretations of the past |
| District Courts: original jurisdiction | The court's authority to hear and decide a case for the first time. |
| Appellate Court: appellate jurisdiction | they hear cases on appeal from the lower federal courts |
| Court of last resort | The Supreme Court |
| Writ of Certiorari | A legal order that commands a lower court to send the records of a case up to the U.S. Supreme Court |
| Majority Opinion | the opinion joined by a majority of the court |
| Minority Opinion | a dissenting opinion written by a justice representing a minority point of view in the losing side of a Supreme Court decision |
| Concurring Opinion | A Supreme Court opinion by one or more justices who agree with the majority's conclusion but wish to offer differing reasons. |
| Precedents | prior cases whose principles are used by judges as the bases for their decisions in present cases |
| Stare Decisis | Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from previous cases |
| Civil liberties | Individuals' freedoms and legal protections that cannot be denied by the actions of government. |
| Bill of Rights | a statement of fundamental rights and privileges (especially the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution) |
| Incorporation and the 14th amendment | Process used by the Supreme Court to protect individuals from actions by state and local governments by interpreting the due process clause of the 14th amendment as containing selected provisions of the Bill of Rights. |
| First Amendment | an amendment to the Constitution of the United States guaranteeing the right of free expression |
| Establishment clause | the First Amendment guarantee that the government will not create and support an official state church |
| Free Exercise Clause | the First Amendment guarantee that citizens may freely engage in the religious activities of their choice |
| Separationist | an advocate of secession or separation from a larger group (such as an established church or a national union) |
| Accomodationist | interpretive approach to the establishment clause of the first amendment that would permit the government to provide financial support for certain religious institutions and programs |
| Lemon Test (Lemon v. Kurtzman) | The purpose is to determine when a law has the effect of establishing religion. |
| Strict Scrutiny/Compelling | The strict scrutiny standard of judicial review is based on the EQUAL PROTECTION CLAUSE of the Fourteenth Amendment. Federal courts use strict scrutiny to determine whether certain types of government policies are constitutional. |
| Clear and Present Danger Test (Schenck v. U.S.) | used in dealing with freedom of speech within the first amendment to determine whether or not a statement is protected under the amendment. If the person says something that may cause danger to the people around them, their speech is not protected by the first amendment. |
| Political Speech | Expressions which comment on government action rather than the private conduct of an individual. |
| Symbolic Speech | nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband. The Supreme Court has accorded some symbolic speech protection under the first amendment. |
| Fourth Amendment | protects you from unreasonable search and seizure of your home and property |
| Exclusionary Rule (Mapp v. Ohio) | Rule prohibiting the use of illegally obtained evidence in a court of law |
| Warrant | a writ from a court commanding police to perform specified acts |
| Probable Clause | Reasonable cause for issuing a search warrent or making an arrest; more than a mere suspicion. |
| Fifth Amendment | an amendment to the Constitution of the United States that imposes restrictions on the government's prosecution of persons accused of crimes |
| Double Jeopardy | the prosecution of a defendant for a criminal offense for which he has already been tried |
| Self-incrimination (Miranda v. Arizona) | Act or declaration, during an investigation or in a court, by which a witness explicitly or implicitly subjects himself or herself to criminal liability. The witness may refuse to reply to the questions the answers to which may implicate him or her in a crime. This privilege, however, does not cover civil cases, and does not apply to an accused being tried for a criminal offense. |
| Sixth Amendment | part of the United States Bill of Rights which sets forth rights related to criminal prosecutions. |
| Speedy and public trial | a right contained in the sixth amendment to prevent indefinite pre-trial detention and secret trials |
| Trial by jury | The right of a person to be tried by a jury, or a group of citizens, to decide if the person is guilty or innocent of committing a crime. |
| Eighth Amendment | Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. |
| Capital Punishment | putting a condemned person to death |
| Bicameral Legislature | Government with both a house of reps and a senate |
| Delegate Model | The view that an elected represent should represent the opinions of his or her constituents. |
| Trustee Model | trustee--do what is best regardless of voter opinion; delegate--do what the voters want |
| Politico Model | Role played by elected representatives who act as trustees or as delegates, depending on the issue |
| Impeachment | a formal document charging a public official with misconduct in office |
| Speaker of the House | The leader of the majority party who serves as the presiding officer of the House of Representatives |
| Majority Leader | leader of the majority party in a legislature |
| Minority Leader | leader of the minority party in a legislature |
| Standing Committees | permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area |
| Filibuster | a tactic for delaying or obstructing legislation by making long speeches |
| Constituents | People a member of Congress represents |
| How a Bill Becomes a Law | it gets introduced then sent to committees (house of reps) then house votes on it. Then introduced to senate. Then sent to senate committees senate votes on it. The bill is then on the floor for voting and if it is approved, it is then sent to the president. If the president vetoes it, it can be sent back to the Senate for 2/3s vote. |
First Time Here?
Welcome to Quizlet, a fun, free place to study. Try these flashcards, find others to study, or make your own.