UMD GVPT 170 Midterm

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Supreme Court decision that the federal government has powers other than that are explicitly stated in the constitution; they can do things that are necessary to facilitate their constitutional powers (in this case, a federal bank helps them handle taxes.

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Supreme Court decision that education should be desegregated because separate is not equal. Overruled Plessy v. Ferguson

Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)

Supreme Court decision that slaves are not citizens and therefore do not have standing to sue in federal court, even if they are in free states.

Politics

the process through which individuals and groups reach agreement on a course of common, or collective, action—even as they disagree on the intended goals of that action.

Institutions

The organizations of government, as well as the rules and procedures that government must follow. They bestow authority and disperse goods. They solve collective action problems and disperse goods.

Institutional design

The structure that ultimately decides the outcomes of politics, which privileges some interests over others.

Authority (as opposed to power)

The acknowledged right to make a particular decision. Explicit.

Power (as opposed to authority)

An officeholder's actual influence with other officeholders and, as a consequence, over the government's actions. Implicit.

Collective action

An action that is taken or enforced on the entirety of the group.

Coordination problems

The decision doesn't matter but we all need to do the same thing and someone needs to pick one. Solutions are delegation or picking a focal point.

Prisoner's dilemma

Anyone could individually be better off by not cooperating, but the whole group is better off if they cooperate. Solved by adding a cost outside of original dilemma that makes reneging difficult, changing the incentives, and setting up enforceable contracts beforehand.

Free rider problem

Subset of Prisoner's dilemma. An entity realizes that they can benefit from a public good without contributing. Solved by coercion (taxes, private goods in exchange, entreprenaurs.

Tragedy of the Commons

Flipside of the free rider problem. Anyone can take a bit of a public good and be fine, but everyone cannot or we run out. Solved by privatization, regulation.

Transaction costs

Time, effort, and resources that go into making a decision. Inversely related to conformity costs.

Conformity costs

What a specific entity loses from compromising with other entities. Inversely related to transaction costs.

Public goods

Costs are born collectively and no one can be excluded from the benefits.

Private goods

things people buy and consume themselves in a marketplace that supplies these goods according to the demand

Home rule

Power of a local government to govern its own affairs by permission of the a larger government. Gave American colonists familiarity with politics before they were independent.

Articles of Confederation

The governing document of the United States before the Consitution. Set up a confederation of states with weak federal authority, similar to the home rule system. But the US was too weak to provide the public goods Britain had and the AoC allowed states to free ride.

Virginia Plan

James Madison's plan for Congress, that states would be allocated representatives based on population in a bicameral legislature. High conformity costs with lots of power to the federal government.

New Jersey Plan

Alternate plan for Congress, that states would be allocated one representative. Not quite as centralized government as VA Plan but the federal government would have more power than under AoC.

The Great Compromise

Our current government, a mixture of VA and NJ elements.

Federalist No. 10

Madison defended the federal government, criticized for being too large and not responsive enough to the people's concerns, because he thought being large and diverse would prevent factions.

Federalist No. 51

Madison defended the checks and balances system in the federal government, because that would prevent tyranny if one branch was taken over by a faction.

Federalists

Pro-Constitution party.

Anti-Federalists

Anti-Constitution party. Got the Bill of Rights.

Supremacy Clause

Clause of the Constitution stating that federal law overrides state law.

Federalism

System where a national government and multiple regional governments share power.

Unitary

System where a single national government has ultimate power.

Confederation

System where regional governments have ultimate power (a national government can be delegated some power).

Dual federalism

"Layer cake" federalism. National and regional governments have entirely separate areas of power.

Shared federalism

"Marble cake" federalism. National and regional governments have overlapping areas of power.

Path to nationalization

Since the beginning, the US has slowly moved toward more power to the federal government because of collective action problems. In many cases, that is easier for the states. The federal government has more money. Often, the people expect the federal government to solve an issue that affects people in multiple states.

Block grant

Fixed amount of money given to a state for a particular purpose. Can be spent elsewhere.

Matching grant

Non-fixed amount of money given to a state to spend in an area based on how much they spend in that area.

Carrots

Positive incentive

Sticks

Negative incentive

Civil right

Protection by the government.

Civil liberty

Protection from the government. Exists in the state of nature.

Missouri Compromise

Agreement that there would be an equal number of slave and free states, with no slavery beyond Missouri's southern border. Unraveled as more territories applied for statehood and abolitionists turned against the containment strategy of stopping slavery.

Wilmot Proviso

Proposed law banning slavery in new territories. While it failed, Wilmot's argument about why white free men had a stake in banning slavery persuaded many people.

Politics of Reconstruction

Early on, the Democrats had little power since the former Confederate States had been kicked out. That got 13th, 14th, 15th Amendments passed quickly. However, as time wore on, Republicans were less committed and Democrats came back. After a disputed 1876 election, Democrats supported President Hayes in exchange for the end of Reconstruction.

Jim Crow Laws

Laws enforcing segregation. Incuded voting restrictions like white primaries, literacy tests, poll taxes. At the time, the 14th Amendment was interpreted to mean that the states could not restrict privileges explicitly given to the federal government in the Constitution.

Civil Rights Era

During the '50s and '60s, pro-civil rights activists took aggressive tactics of influencing people and then politicians, which results in Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1964. 1964 gave greater authority to the federal government to enforce anti-segregation policies. Then the Voting Rights Act of 1965 gave the federal government the authority to directly enforce voting rights and suspend voting restrictions by the states that had a history of low black turnout.

The Bill of Rights

Designed to limit the capacity of the government to impose conformity costs on those individuals and minorities whose views differ from those of the majority.

Incorporation

Process by which the rights in the Bill of Rights are being ruled to apply to state governments.

Privileges and Immunities Clause (14th Amendment)

No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States

Due Process Clause (14th Amendment)

nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law

Equal Protection Clause (14th Amendment)

nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws

Lemon Test (Freedom of religion)

The statute in question "must have a secular legislative purpose," such as remedial education. The statute's "primary effect must be one that neither advances nor inhibits religion." The statute must not foster "an excessive government entanglement with religion." Too vague and fell out of use in the '90s.

Neutrality test (freedom of religion)

Laws should not affect a group/organization differently based on religion, a religion-neutral purpose and result.

Criminal rights

Amendments 4 (search & seizure), 5 (self-incrimination, grand jury, double jeopardy), 6 (right to counsel, speedy & public trial, jury confrontation, compulsory process), 8 (cruel & unusual process).

Penumbra of privacy

The implictation of the Bill of Rights that American citizens have a right to privacy.