Herrera Exam 1

Rally Around The Flag

Sense of patriotism engendered by dramatic national events such as the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Forms of Government

Democracy, Autocracy, Oligarchy

Democracy

A political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them

Autocracy

a system of government by one person with absolute power.

Oligarchy

A government ruled by a few powerful people

David Easton's Input/output Model

His theory of politics holds that the political system takes inputs from the environment in the form of demands and supports, and then translates them into outputs in the form of policies or decisions. During the input-output analysis process, the political system is considered to be both open and adaptive.

American Core Values

o Liberty and Freedom

o Equality

o Individualism

o Unity

o Diversity

o Civic Duty

Types of Government

Constitutional, Authoritarian, Totalitarian

Constitutional Government

a government in which a constitution has authority to place clearly recognized limits on the powers of those who govern

Authoritarian Government

a system of rule in which the government recognizes no formal limits but may nevertheless be restrained by the power of other social institutions

Totalitarian Government

a system of rule in which the government recognizes no formal limits on its power and seeks to absorb or eliminate other social institutions that might challenge it

Politics

Method of maintaining, managing, and gaining control of government (who gets what, when, and how)

Trust in Government

Trust in government increases during times of national tragedy, trust in government has generally declined since 1960

- Your level of confidence in what the government is doing

Political Knowledge

a general understanding of how the political system works, and who runs the government

Articles of Confederation

A weak constitution that governed America during the Revolutionary War that wrote of a weak central government and left most of the power in the state governments.

- led to the constitutional convention in 1787

Daniel Shay

Head of Shay's Rebellion; he and several other angry farmers violently protested against debtor's jail; eventually crushed; aided in the creation of constitution because land owners now wanted to preserve what was theirs from "mobocracy"

Federalists

A term used to describe supporters of the Constitution during ratification debates in state legislatures. (Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington)

- advocated for a strong central government with individual states holding less power

Anti-Federalists

Opponents of the American Constitution at the time when the states were contemplating its adoption.

- preferred a weak central government in order to oppose British Tyranny (give me liberty or give me death - Patrick Henry)

- feared a strong central government would be dominated by the wealthy

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the Constitution

Amendment I

Freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition

Amendment II

Right to bear arms

Amendment III (three)

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Amendment IV (four)

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Amendment V

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation

Amendment VI

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial

Amendment VII

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

Amendment VIII

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Amendment IX

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment X

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

AMENDMENT XIV - Passed by Congress June 13, 1866. Ratified July 9, 1868.

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. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

- (due process/equal protection)

AMENDMENT XV - Passed by Congress February 26, 1869. Ratified February 3, 1870.

Right to Vote

Amendment 13

abolished slavery

Separation of Powers

Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive applying and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power

E. E. Schattschneider

"Democracy is not to be found in the parties but between the parties"

- Created the idea of Scope of Conflict

Federalism

A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments

James Madison

Ambition must counteract ambition

- checks and balances, separation of powers, federalism, etc.

- fear of corruption

Devolution

the transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal government to the states

New Federalism

system in which the national government restores greater authority back to the states

Home Rule

power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs

Concurrent Powers

Powers held jointly by the national and state governments.

Implied Powers

Powers not specifically mentioned in the constitution

Grants

Blocks, Categorical, Unfunded Mandates

Block Grants

Federal grants given more or less automatically to states or communities to support broad programs in areas such as community development and social services

Categorical Grants

Federal grants for specific purposes, such as building an airport

Unfunded mandates

Programs that the Federal government requires States to implement without Federal funding.

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Constitution's requirement that each state accept the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state

Civil Liberties

Constitutional freedoms guaranteed to all citizens

Texas v. Johnson

A 1989 case in which the Supreme Court struck down a law banning the burning of the American flag on the grounds that such action was symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment.

Citizens United v. FEC

A 2010 decision by the United States Supreme Court holding that independent expenditures are free speech protected by the 1st Amendment and so cannot be limited by federal law. Leads to creation of SuperPACs & massive rise in amount of third party electioneering (Citizens for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow)

Schenck v. U.S.

A United States Supreme Court decision concerning the question of whether the defendant possessed a First Amendment right to free speech against the draft during World War I. Ultimately, the case served as the founding of the "clear and present danger" rule.

- 1919

New York Times v. U.S.

Prior Restraint. Overruled Nixon's attempt to prevent publication of Vietnam documents

- 1971

Barron v. Baltimore

The 1833 Supreme Court decision holding that the Bill of Rights restrained only the national government, not the states and cities.

Mapp v. Ohio

Established the exclusionary rule was applicable to the states (evidence seized illegally cannot be used in court)

- 1961

Gideon v. Wainwright

A person who cannot afford an attorney may have one appointed by the government

- 1963

Miranda v. Arizona

Supreme Court held that criminal suspects must be informed of their right to consult with an attorney and of their right against self-incrimination prior to questioning by police.

- 1966

Griswold v Connecticut

1965 decision that the Constitution implicitily guarantees citizens' right to privacy.

Roe v. Wade

(1973) legalized abortion on the basis of a woman's right to privacy

Free-Exercise Clause

A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion.

Establishment Clause

Clause in the First Amendment that says the government may not establish an official religion.

Puritan Mistake

New Englanders famously fled England because of persecution in the 1620s and 1630s. Oliver Cromwell's regime offered false hope that the Puritans would establish a godly government in England, and the Restoration in 1660 shattered the Puritans' dreams of reforming the English church and state

Positive Rights vs. Negative Rights

Those rights that require overt government action, as opposed to negative rights that require government not to act in specified ways. Examples of positive rights are those to public education and, in some cases, to medical care, old age pensions, food, or housing

Plessy v. Ferguson

a 1896 Supreme Court decision which legalized state ordered segregation so long as the facilities for blacks and whites were equal

- separate but equal

Brown v. Board of Education

1954 - The Supreme Court overruled Plessy v. Ferguson, declared that racially segregated facilities are inherently unequal and ordered all public schools desegregated.

- Strict Scrutiny

Dread Scott v. Sanford

1857 U.S. Supreme Court case that ruled that black people where not citizens, that they possessed no constitutional rights and were considered to be property.

- Couldn't sue in court

Civil Rights Tactics

Little Rock 9, Montgomery Bus Boycotts, Sit-ins, Freedom Rides, Civil Rights March, Protests

Jim Crow Laws

Laws designed to enforce segregation of blacks from whites

Civil Rights Act of 1964

outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

24th Amendment

Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1964) eliminated the poll tax as a prerequisite to vote in national elections.

Strict Scrutiny

A Supreme Court test to see if a law denies equal protection because it does not serve a compelling state interest and is not narrowly tailored to achieve that goal

- Brown v. Board