Gov Vocab Chapters 1-3

Common Goods

goods that all people may use but that are of limited supply

Democracy

A form of government where political power rests in the hands of the people

Direct Democracy

A form of government where people participate directly in government desisions instead of choosing representatives to do this for them

Elite theory

claims political power rests in the hand of a small, elite group of people

Government

The means by which a society organizes itself and allocates authority in order to accomplish collective goals

Ideology

The beliefs and ideals that help shape political opinion and eventually policy

Intense preferences

Beliefs and preferences based on strong feelings regarding an issue that someone adheres to over time

Latent preferences

beliefs and preferences people are not deeply committed to and that change over time

Majority rule

a fundamental principle of democracy; the majority should have the power to make decisions binding upon the whole

Minority rights

protections for thise who are not part of the majority

Oligarchy

A form of government where a handful of elite society members hold political power

Partisanship

strong support, or even blind allegiance, for a particular political party

Pluralist theory

claims political power rests in the hands of the people

Political power

Influence over a government’s institutions, leadership, or policies

Politics

the process by which we decide how resources will be allocated and which policies government will pursue

Private goods

goods provided by private businesses that can be used only by those who pay for them

Public goods

goods provided by government that anyone can use and that are available to all without charge

Representative Democracy

a form of government where voters elect representatives to make decisions and pass laws on behalf of all the people instead of allowing people to vote directly on laws

Social capital

connections with others and willingness to interact and aid them

Toll good

a good that is avaliable to many people but is used only by those who can pay the price to do so

Totalitarianism

a form of government where government is all-powerful and citizens have no rights

Anti-Federalists

those who did not support the ratification of the Constitution

Articles of Confederation

the first basis for the nation’s government; adopted in 1781; created an alliance of sovereign states held together by a weak central government

Bicameral legislature

A legislature with two houses, such as the U.S. Congress

Bill of Rights

the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution; most were designed to protect fundamental rights and liberties

Checks and balances

A system that allows one branch of government to limit the exercise of power by another branch; requires different parts of government to work together

Confederation

A highly decentralized form of government; sovereign states form a union for purposes such as mutual defense

Declaration of Independence

a document written in 1776 in which the American colonists proclaimed their independence from Great Britain and listed the grievances against the British King

Enumerated powers

the powers given explicitly to the federal government by the Constitution (Article I, Section 8); power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, raise and support armies, declare war, coin money, and conduct foreign affairs.

Federal system

a form of government in which power is divided between state governments and a national government

Federalists

those who supported ratification of the Constitution

Great Compromise

a compromise between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan that created a two-house Congress; representation based on population in the House of Representatives and equal representation of states in the Senate

Natural rights

the right to life, liberty, and property; believed to be given by god; no government may take away

New Jersey Plan

A plan that called for a one-house national legislature; each state would receive one vote

Republic

a form of government in which political power rests in the hands of the people, not a monarch, and is exersized by elected representatives

Reserved powers

any powers not prohibited by the Constitution or delegated to the national government; powers reserved to the states and denied to the federal government

Separation of powers

the sharing of powers among three seperate branches of government

Social contract

An agreement between people and the government in which citizens consent to be governed so long as the government protects their natural rights

Supremacy clause

the statement in Article VI of the Constitution that federal law is superior to laws passed by state legislatures.

The Federalists Papers

a collection of eighty-five essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Hay in support of ratification of the Constitution

Three-Fifths Compromise

a compromise between northern and southern states that called for counting of all a state’s free population and 60 percent of its enslaved population for both federal taxation and representation in Congress

Unicameral Legislature

a legislature with only one house, like the Confederation Congress of the legislature proposed by the New Jersey Plan

Veto

the power of a president to reject a law proposed by Congress

Virginia Plan

a plan for a two-house legislature; representatives would be electes to the lower house based on each state’s population; representatives for the uppwe house would be chosen by the lower house

Bill of attainder

a legislative action declaring someone guilty without trial; prohibited under the Constitution

Block grant

a type of grant that comes with less stringent federal administrative conditions and provides recipients more latitude over how to spend grant funds

Categorical grant

a federal transfer formulated to limit recipients’ discretion in the use of funds and subject them to strict administrative criteria

Concurrent powers

shared state and federal powers that range from taxing, borrowing, and making and enforcing laws to establishing court systems

Cooperative federalism

A style of federalism in which both levels of government coordinate their actions to solve national problems, leading to the blending of layers as in a marble cake

Creeping categorization

a process in which the national government attaches new administrative requirements to block grants of supplants them with new categorical grants

Devolution

a process in which powers from the central government in a unitary system are delegated to subnational units

Dual federalism

a style of federalism in which states and national government exercise exclusive authority in distinctly delineated spheres of jurisdiction, creating a layer-cake view of federalism

Elastic clause

the last clause of Article I, Section 8, which enables the national government “to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying” out all its constitutional responsibilities

Ex post facto law

a law that criminalizes an act retroactively; prohibited under the Constitution

Federalism

an institutional arrangement that created two relatively autonomous levels of government, each possessing capacity to act directly in the people with authority granted by the national constitution

Full faith and credit clause

found in Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution, this clause requires states to accept court decisions, public acts, and contracts of other states

General revenue sharing

 a type of federal grant that places minimal restrictions on how state and local governments spend the money

Immigration federalism

the gradual movement of states into the immigration policy domain traditionally handled by the federal government

new federalism

a style of federalism premised on the idea that the decentralization of policies enhances administrative efficiency, reduces overall public spending, and improves outcomes

Nullification

a doctrine promoted by John Calhoun of South Carolina in the 1830s, asserting that if a state deems a federal law unconstitutional, it can nullify it within its borders

Privileges and immunities clause

found in Article IV, Section 2, of the Constitution, this clause prohibits states from discriminating against out-of-staters by denying such guarantees as access to courts, legal protection, and property and travel rights; also referred to as the comity provision

Race-to-the-bottom

a dynamic in which states compete to attract business by lowering taxes and regulations, often to workers’ detriment

Unfunded mandates

federal laws and regulations that impose obligations on state and local governments without fully compensating them for the costs of implementation

unitary system

a centralized system of government in which the subnational government is dependent on the central government, where substantial authority is concentrated

venue shopping

 a strategy in which interest groups select the level and branch of government they calculate will be most receptive to their policy goals

writ of habeas corpus

a petition that enables someone in custody to petition a judge to determine whether that person’s detention is legal