AP Am. Gov. Pol. Important vocab (All Units)

Checks and Balances

Checks and Balances

Provides each branch of government with individual powers to check the other branches and prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful.

Cooperative Federalism

A flexible relationship between the federal and state governments in which both work together on a variety of issues and programs.

Electoral Collage

Group of presidential electors that is formed every four years for the sole purpose of voting for the president and vice president

Enumerated Powers

Enumerated powers are those expressly granted to Congress by the Constitution.

Faction

A group of people with a common political purpose

Federalism

A stronger federal government rather than stronger state governments

Federalist papers

Essays that urged the ratification of the United States Constitution

Limited Government

The government only has those powers delegated to it by law, often through a written constitution.

Social Contract

An implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits

Ex: Sacrificing some individual freedom for state protection

Block Grants

Can be used only for a specifically aided set of programs and usually are not limited to narrowly defined activities.

Concurrent Powers

Powers that are shared by both the federal government and state governments

Congressional Oversight

Oversight by the United States Congress over the executive branch, including the numerous U.S. federal agencies.

Discharge Petition

Bringing a bill out of committee and to the floor for consideration without a report from the committee

In the House of Reps.

Divided Government

One party controls the White House (executive branch), while another party controls one or both houses of the United States Congress (legislative branch)

Executive Order

A rule or order issued by the president

Gridlock

The government is unable to act or pass laws because rival parties control different parts of the executive branch and the legislature

Iron Triangle

The unbreakable relationship that forms between Congress, interest groups, and bureaucracy

Judicial Review

The ability of the Court to declare if the Legislative or Executive violate of the Constitution

Log Rolling

The exchange of support or favors, especially by legislators for mutual political gain as by voting for each other's bills

Reserved Powers

Laws that are not specifically given to the national government and are reserved for the states

Selective Incorporation

Deciding which portions of the Bill of Rights apply to states

Writ of habeas Corpus

Right in the Constitution that protects against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment

Dealignment

Voters are not switching from one major party to another. They are abandoning all the dominant parties but not their democratic voice. Rather, they place their votes in independent candidates.

Liberal

The rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, right to private property and equality before the law.

(Somewhere in the middle of Rep. and Dem. but leaning Democrat)

Pluralism

The diversity within a political body

Political Culture

How culture impacts politics

Political Socialization

How people learn about their government and acquire the beliefs, attitudes, values, and behaviors associated with good citizenship

Bully Pulpit

A means of communicating with the American people through the media coverage of presidential events

Caucus

Meetings run by political parties that are held at the county, district, or precinct level

Gerrymandering

Manipulate the boundaries to favor one party or class.

Separation of Powers

A model that divides the government into separate branches, each of which has separate and independent powers

Issue Network

An alliance of various interest groups and individuals who unite in order to promote a common cause or agenda in a way that influences government policy.

Lobbying

Attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies, but also judges of the judiciary.

Pork Barrel

Government projects that benefit people in a particular part of the country and that are done to help the political careers of elected officials

Soft Money

How clients pay their brokers or financial services providers. Refers to payments for indirect items, such as the settlement of a costly error by providing free research

Rule of Law

Everyone is equal under the law, no matter the class or occupation

Fillibuster

To delay/ prevent something from happening

In the Senate

Cloture

To stop the endless debating from the Filibuster and go straight to the voting

Only in the Senate

Hard Money

How clients pay their brokers or financial services providers. In this case, hard money refers to direct payments for services rendered—brokerage commissions