American Government - Test 2 (Chapter 4-5)

Mayflower Compact

• the forerunner of the written constitution in America

• established a “Civil Body Politick”

Charters

emphasized the relationship between the king and the colonies

Articles of Confederation

• America’s first national constitution

• established a confederacy, “a firm league of friendship”

• provided for only one branch of government—-the legislative

Land Ordinance of 1785

provided for surveying and selling western lands in the Northwest Territory to settlers

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

provided a plan of government for the territory

Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

1. At least nine states had to approve any measure before it could be passed by Congress

2. provided for no executive or judicial branches of government

3. did not grant Congress the power to tax

Shay’s Rebellion

a rebellion by indebted farmers led by Daniel Shays against farm foreclosures, raising fears of anarchy

Mount Vernon Conference (Virginia)

delegates from Virginia and Maryland attempted to work out differences over commercial navigation on the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay

Annapolis Convention (Maryland)

a meeting to improve national government, but little was accomplished

Constitutional Convention

• a convention in Philadelphia that called for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation

• George Washington and Benjamin Franklin were two of the most famous Americans to attend

James Madison

• the “Father of the Constitution”

• is agreed to have been the single most important member of the Convention

Alexander Hamilton

• the most eager to create a stronger central government than the one under the articles

• Federalist

• Federalist Papers

Gouverneur Morris

wrote the final draft of the Constitution

Jonathan Dayton

the youngest at the Constitutional Convention (26 years old)

Independence Hall

where the Declaration of Independence had been signed, and also where the delegates chose George Washington to preside as the president of the Convention

Federal System

areas of authority were divided among the states and the national government

Republican System

officials were chosen to represent the people and the states

Virginia Plan

• called for a bicameral legislature

• gave the more populous states an advantage in legislation

New Jersey Plan

• called for a unicameral legislature

• all states would have equal representation

Great Compromise/Connecticut Compromise

the government would have a two house legislature consisting the Senate (state) and House of Representatives based on state population

Three-Fifths Compromise

three-fifths of a state’s slave population would be counted in determining both taxation and representation

Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise

agreed that Congress could regulate interstate and foreign commerce and the trade with the Native Americans but could not levy export taxes

Federalists

• favored the new Constitution

• well organized

• supported by northern states

• favored a federal system (national government) over state power

• Federalist Papers

Anti-Federalists

• opposed the adoption of the Constitution

• less organized

• supported by mostly southern states

• state power > federal government

• large in number

Federalist Papers

a series of essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, which defended the Constitution and were considered to be “the best commentary on the principles of government which ever was written.”

New York City

the temporary capital chosen by Congress

Legislative branch

• makes laws

• imposes taxes

• appropriates money

• approves treaties and appointments

• consists of the Senate and House of Representatives

Executive branch

• enforces laws

• makes appointments

• commands the armed forced

• has power to veto (deny a law)

• consists of a president, vice president, department heads who serve as the president’s cabinet, and administrative agencies

Judicial branch

• interprets laws

• tries cases involving federal laws

• consists of the Supreme Court and lower federal courts

Federalism

a division of the power of government between the national government and the state governments

Delegated powers

powers that hav been given to the national government by the Constitution

Separation of powers

• political power is separated among three political institutions

• Charles de Montesquieu

Checks and balances

a system that helps minimize the chance of tyranny from any one branch of government, whereby each branch has control over the others to exercise balance

Articles 1-3 of the Constitution

describes the legislative, executive, and judicial branches and how the members of the three branches are chosen, how long they will serve, and the qualities they must have for office

Article 4

outlines the federal relationship among the states and between the national government and the states

Article 5

provides for making amendments (changes in the Constitution)

Article 6

establishes that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land, to which all judges and federal officers are bound

Article 7

the last article, which sets forth the manner in which the Constitution was to be ratified

Congress

the legislative branch of the U.S. government

Legislative powers

the powers to make laws

Apportionment

the assignment of House seats to states based on population

Reapportionment

redistributes seats using updated population counts

Census

counts the population every 10 years since 1790

Senate

• state interests

• serve 6 year terms

• has to be at least 30 years old

• if immigrant, they have to have lived in the U.S. for 9 years or more

Gerrymandering

the redrawing of district lines to unfairly benefit one political party

17th Amendment

made it so that senators are not chosen by state legislatures, but by all the voters of their state

General Election Day

the day in which all federal elections are held

The 3 leadership positions in Congress:

• Speaker of the House

• President of the Senate

• President pro tempore

Majority party

• the party with the most members in the House

• the Speaker usually falls into this group

Floor leaders

• lead their party in their house

• responsible for securing their parties’ interests in the legislative process

Whip

a person whose task is to “keep the pack together” by urging party members to vote with the party on key issues

Caucus

a private meeting of political party members to decide on policy or to choose their party leaders

Seniority system

• often used by party caucuses in assigning committee or subcommittee chairs

• a chair would be given to a member of the majority party who has had the most years of continuous service on that committee

Ranking member

the senior member of the minority party

Select committee

used for investigations

Joint committee

• members from both houses meet in a single committee

• conference committee

Sergeant at Arms

• the chief protocol and law enforcement officer for his house, chosen by his house

• if there are not enough members present, this person can force members to attend

Parliamentarian

advises house officers on parliamentary rules and house rules

Chaplains

ministers to the spiritual needs of members, staff, and their families

Secretary

a “clerk” within each house who is the official record keeper

Simple majority

one more than half (ex: 51/100)

Quorum

required number to do business

Congressional Record

contain everything that has been said on the Senate floor and the House floor

27th Amendment

any pay raise that Congress gives itself cannot go into effect until the next congressional election

Franking privilege

Congressmen are charged no postage on their official mail

Congressional immunity

Congressmen cannot be arrested for what he or she says during speeches on the floor of Congress

Censure

the ability to officially condemn a member for misconduct

Expulsion

the greatest penalty which either house of Congress may impose on a disorderly

Legislating

aka, lawmaking—the chief responsibility of Congress

Bill

proposed, new law

Public bill

applies to the nation at large; may involve tax measures, copyright law amendments, or armed services appropriations

Private bill

apply only to individual citizens or groups of people

Resolution

a formal statement of opinion/determination adopted by a legislative assembly

Three kinds of resolutions:

• Simple resolution

• Joint resolution

• Concurrent resolution

Simple resolution

passed by only one house and dealing with matters relating to that house

Joint resolution

passed by both houses and signed by the President

Concurrent resolution

passed by both houses and dealing with matters that need joint action but no formal law

Which is the only one with the authority to introduce revenue and appropriation bills? House of Representatives, or Senate

House of Representatives because they represent the people directly

Concur

act together

Hopper

a box on the side of the Clerk’s desk that people can use to submit bills

Bipartisan bill

a bill that has been sponsored by members from both parties

Pigeonholed

the term used to describe the act of setting aside a bill and it is being purposely forgotten

Discharge petition

a petition that allows a bill to get out of committee and onto the floor

Filibuster

an attempt to kill a bill by stalling the vote on it

Cloture Rule

• can prevent a filibuster

• if three-fifths of the senators vote to invoke cloture, each senator is limited to a maximum of one hour to speak on a bill under consideration

Committee of the Whole

the entire House sits temporarily as one large committee

Voice vote

the presiding officer simply calls for “ayes” and “nays” and makes a decision based on what he hears

Standing vote

all those for or against a bill must stand to be counted

Roll-call vote

• this is used to decide important issues

• in the Senate, the clerk calls the name of each senator and records his vote as he answers; in the House, an electronic voting system is used

How a bill becomes a law

1. Drafted

2. Introduced

3. Read by title, numbered, registered, and printed

4. Referred to a committee

5. Referred to a subcommittee

6. Reported by the full committee

7. Reported to the whole house

8. Acted upon by the entire house

9. Examined by a conference committee

10. Delivered to the President

Voting record

where roll-call votes made by a senator or congressman are recorded and printed in the Congressional Record

Conference committee

a temporary committee composed of members of both houses for the purpose of working out a compromise on a bill

“Pocket Veto”

the President defeats a bill by “putting it in his pocket” and ignoring it

Veto message

a message sent along with the vetoed bill by the President, explaining his objections to the bill

Character

the essence of the man

The type of leaders people should be:

• competent - one must be able to complete one’s tasks

• fear God - have reverence for Him and make laws in accordance with His

• are truthful - leaders should embrace truth even if it isn’t politically expedient

• hate covetousness - they would not use government to benefit themselves, but exercise stewardship

Trustee view

the representative votes according to his personal judgment rather than the views of his constituency

Delegate view

the representative votes according to the desires of his constituency rather than his personal judgment

Oversight

the Congressional monitoring of the bureaucracy to make sure that the laws are being faithfully executed

Sunset laws

laws that give a termination date for a bureaucratic agency or program