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Government Chapter 1

Terms in this set (22)

Public Policy
All of the many goals government pursues in all of the many areas of human affairs in which it is involved.
Division of Powers
Basic principle of federalism; the constitutional provisions by which governmental powers are divided on a geographic basis in the United State's congressional districts.
Sovereign
Having supreme power within its own territory; neither subordinate nor responsible to any other authority.
Government
The institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies.
Executive Powers
The power to execute, enforce, and administer law.
Legislative Powers
The power to make a law and to frame public policies.
Judicial Powers
The power to interpret laws, to determine the constitutionality of a government action.
Constitution
A body of fundamental laws setting out the principles, structures, and processes of a government.
Democracy
A form of government in which the supreme authority rests with the people.
Dictatorship
A form of government in which the leader has absolute power and authority.
State
A body of people living in a defined territory who have a government witht the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority.
Autocracy
A form of government in which a single person holds unlimited political power.
Oligarchy
A form of government in which the power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite.
Federal Government
A form of government in which powers are divided between a central government and several local governments.
Unitary Government
A centralized government in which all government powers belong to a single, central agency.
Confederation
A joining of several groups for a common purpose.
Presidential Government
A form of government in which the executive and legislative branches of the government are separate, independent, and coequal.
Parliamentary Government
A form of government in which the executive branch is made up of the prime minister, or premier, and that official's cabinet.
Mixed Economy
An economy in which private enterprise exists in combination with a considerable amount of government regulation and promotion.
Compromise
An adjustment of opposing principles or systems by modifying some aspect of each.
Free Enterprise System
An economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods; investments that are determined by private decision rather than by state control, and determined in a free market.
Law of Supply and Demand
A law which states that when supplies of goods and services become plentiful, prices tend to drop. When supplies become scarcer, prices tend to rise.
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