Government and Civics Study Guide Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards based on the review questions covering fundamental concepts of American government, political philosophy, the US Constitution, and the Articles of Confederation.

Direct Democracy

A system of government where citizens participate directly in making laws, passing policies, and deciding public matters rather than electing representatives to decide for them.

Representative Democracy

A system of government where citizens elect leaders and representatives to make laws, establish policies, and conduct the business of government on their behalf.

John Locke's Social Contract Theory

The political philosophy that government authority is based on a contract with the governed to protect natural rights (life, liberty, and property); if the government violates this contract, citizens have the right to alter or overthrow it.

Thomas Hobbes's Social Contract Theory

The view that individuals agree to surrender their personal freedoms to an absolute ruler in exchange for social order and security, with no right reserved for citizens to overthrow the government once created.

State of Nature

The condition of humanity prior to the establishment of formal government and laws; viewed by Hobbes as a violent state of constant war, and by Locke as a state where natural rights exist but lack secure enforcement.

Right to Overthrow Government

According to John Locke, the right of citizens to replace or abolish a government when it acts tyrannically and fails to protect their fundamental natural rights.

Declaration of Independence

The 1776 founding document that formally announced the separation of the 13 American colonies from Great Britain, outlining natural rights, popular sovereignty, and a list of grievances against the King.

Articles of Confederation (A.O.C.)

The first national constitution of the United States, which established a weak central government lacking executive or judicial branches, power to tax, or power to regulate interstate commerce.

Popular Sovereignty

The constitutional principle that sovereign political power resides in the people, who give their consent to be governed through voting and representation.

Separation of Powers

The division of government responsibilities into three distinct branches—legislative (makes laws), executive (enforces laws), and judicial (interprets laws)—to prevent power concentration.

Checks and Balances

A constitutional system that gives each branch of government specific power to restrain, oversee, or veto actions of the other two branches to maintain equilibrium.

Limits on Central Government in the U.S. Constitution

Structural provisions created out of fear of a strong central government, including Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances, Federalism, and the Bill of Rights (specifically the 10th Amendment).

Federalism

A system of governance where power and authority are divided and shared between a central national government and individual state governments.

The Great Compromise

An agreement reached during the Constitutional Convention that established a bicameral legislature combining proportional representation by population in the House of Representatives and equal state representation in the Senate.

The 3/5ths Compromise

An agreement at the Constitutional Convention where three-fifths of the enslaved population would be counted for both congressional representation in the House and direct tax assessments.

Compromises Between Federalists and Anti-Federalists

The political compromise where Federalists promised the addition of a Bill of Rights to secure Anti-Federalist support for the ratification of the Constitution.

Constitutional Amendment Process

A two-stage mechanism requiring proposal (by a 2/3 vote in both houses of Congress or a national convention) and ratification (by 3/4 of state legislatures or state conventions), designed to require broad agreement to modify the Constitution.

10th Amendment

The amendment in the Bill of Rights establishing that powers not delegated to the federal government by the Constitution, nor prohibited to the states, are reserved to the states or to the people.

Supremacy Clause

A clause in Article VI of the U.S. Constitution stating that federal laws, national treaties, and the Constitution itself are the supreme law of the land, overriding conflicting state laws.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, added to guarantee specific individual liberties and state powers against federal government overreach.

Federal Grants

Financial awards issued by the federal government to state or local government entities to fund specific programs, projects, or public policy objectives.

Ratification of the Constitution

The official approval process requiring at least 9 of the 13 original states to vote in favor of accepting the U.S. Constitution for it to take legal effect.

Three Branches of Government

The tripartite organization of the U.S. federal government comprising the Legislative Branch (Congress), the Executive Branch (headed by the President), and the Judicial Branch (Supreme Court and federal courts).