Key Concepts in American Government and Politics

Constitutional government

Formal limits - codified and legal limits

Critical thinking

Careful gathering and sifting of information in the process of forming knowledgeable views of political developments.

Pluralism

A theory of American politics that holds that society's interests are substantially represented through the activities of groups.

American political culture

Liberty, Equality, Individualism, Self-government.

Majoritarianism

The idea that the majority prevails not only in elections but also in determining policy.

Articles of Confederation

Adopted during the revolutionary war; each state retained its full 'sovereignty, freedom, and independence.'

Process for amending the Constitution

The articles of confederation can only be amended if all states agree.

Checks and balances

The elaborate system of divided spheres of authority provided by the U.S. Constitution as a means of controlling the power of government.

Separation of powers

A way of dividing power among three branches of government.

The Bill of Rights

The division of the powers of government among separate institutions or branches.

Categorical grants

Federal grants-in-aid to states and localities that can be used only for designated projects.

Block grants

Federal grants-in-aid that permit state and local officials to decide how the money will be spent within a general area, such as education or health.

Tenth Amendment

The powers not delegated to the United States by the constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states.

Concurrent powers

Powers that are exercised over the same policy areas; national and state governments have these.

Devolution

The passing down of authority from the national government to the state and local governments.

Texas v. Johnson

Flag burning case; 'government may not prohibit the expression of idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.'

Right of privacy

Grounded in the Constitution because it fits into a 'zone of privacy' created by the combination of 3rd, 4th, and 5th Amendments.

Exclusionary rule

The legal principle that the government is prohibited from using in trials evidence that was obtained by unconstitutional means.

Miranda v. Arizona

Miranda confessed to kidnapping and rape during a police interrogation; the court overturned Miranda's conviction because he was not informed of his rights to remain silent and attain legal counsel.

Selective incorporation

The process by which certain of the rights contained in the Bill of Rights become applicable through the Fourteenth Amendment to actions by the state governments.

Civil rights

The right of every person to equal protection under the laws and equal access to society's opportunities and public facilities.

Fourteenth Amendment

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.

Nineteenth Amendment

ratification which led to demands for a constitutional amendment granting equal rights to women.

Plessy v. Ferguson

ruled that "separate" public facilities for Black citizens did not violate the Constitution as long as the facilities were "equal"

Equal protection clause

A clause of the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids any state to deny equal protection of the laws to any individual within its jurisdiction.

Political socialization

The learning process by which people acquire their political opinions, beliefs, and values.

Public opinion

The politically relevant opinions held by ordinary citizens that they express openly.

Sampling error

A measure of the accuracy of a public opinion poll, mainly a function of sample size and usually expressed in percentage terms.

Probability sampling

a method where every individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected as a respondent.

Selection bias

polling error resulting from non-representative sample which lead to over-representation or under-representation of some opinions.

Voter registration

System design to reduce voter fraud by limiting voting to those who have established eligibility to vote by submitting the proper documents.

Primary elections

Also called a direct primary, a form of election in which voters choose a party's nominees for public office.

Voter turnout

the number of voters during an election.

Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission

(2010) that federal laws restricting campaigns spending by corporations and unions violated their rights of free expression.

Midterm election

The congressional election that occurs midway through the president's term of office.

Single-member district

The form of representation in which only the candidate who gets the most votes in a district wins office.

Democratic Party coalition

One of the two major U.S. political party; founded in 1828 by Andrew Jackson to support a decentralized government and state's rights.

Republican Party coalition

Political party that believed in the non-expansion of slavery & consisted of Whigs, N. Democrats, & Free-Soilers in defiance to the Slave Powers.

Proportional representation

A form of representation in which seats in the legislature are allocated proportionally according to each political party's share of the popular vote.

Difference between interest groups and political parties

interest groups - organized groups of people that make policy-related appeals to government. Political parties - an organized group that attempts to influence the government by electing their members to office.

Economic groups

Interest groups that are organized primarily for economic reasons but that engage in political activity in order to seek favorable policies from the government.

Citizens' groups

Also called noneconomic groups, organized interests formed by individuals drawn together by opportunities to promote a cause in which they believe but that does not provide them significant individual economic benefits.

Priming

The process in which the media highlight certain aspects of an issue or event and not other aspects, thereby affecting how people respond to the issue or event.

Framing

The process by which the media play up certain aspects of a situation while downplaying other aspects, thereby providing a particular interpretation of the situation.

Agenda setting

The power of the media through news coverage to focus the public's attention and concern on particular events, problems, issues, personalities, and so on.

Traditional media

Daily newspapers and broadcasters.

FCC

Federal Communications Commission regulate broadcasting and oversees the process.

How a bill becomes law

1. Written, 2. Discussed in committee + voted 3. Discussed in House of Reps. and Senate + vote on in both 4. President signs it or vetoes it (which brings back to congress, needs ⅔ vote to override veto).

Incumbent advantage

Fundraising advantages, name recognition, franking privileges, constituent service, pork barrel legislation - legislative acts whose benefits are targeted at a particular legislator's constituency.

Differences between the House of Representatives and the Senate

Senate: senator represents the entire state so a senator is more filtered from the people and tends to be a generalist, less organized and more individualistic, more deliberative, and has more flexible rules. House: represents a district rather than an entire state, more organized, and with central authority, has greater degree of policy specialization and is generally quicker to act, but there is no filibuster in the house so less flexible with rules.

Impeachment

Charges against a president approved by a majority of the House of Representatives.

War Powers Act

The act does not prohibit the president from sending troops into combat but does require the president to consult with Congress, whenever feasible, before doing so and requires the president to inform Congress within 48 hours of the reasons for the military action.

Expressed powers of the president

Specific powers granted to president under article II cannot be revoked by congress. Includes: commander and chief, issue pardons, act as the head of state, execute laws, appoint officials, veto power, etc.

National Security Council

Created in 1947 to advise the president on national security matters.

Power of veto

The president's rejection of a bill, thereby keeping it from becoming law unless Congress overrides the veto.

Cabinet

A group consisting of the heads of the executive departments, who are appointed by the president, subject to confirmation by the Senate. The cabinet was once the main advisory body to the president but no longer plays this role.

Tenure of federal judges

Judges hold their seats until they resign, die, or are removed from office.

Marbury v. Madison

(1803) most important constitutional ruling. The supreme court established the power of judicial review. Chief Justice John Marshall declared that Marbury had the legal right to his commission and the court lacked the authority to issue him a writ of mandamus.

Nomination and confirmation of federal judges

Federal judges are appointed by the president and confirmed by the senate, do not face elections and were insulated from political considerations so they can be neutral arbiters of the Constitution. Serve life terms.

Judicial activism

The doctrine that the courts should develop new legal principles when judges see a compelling need, even if this action places them in conflict with precedent or the policy decisions of elected officials.

Judicial restraint

The doctrine that the judiciary should broadly defer to precedent and the judgment of legislatures.

Precedent

A judicial decision that serves as a rule for setting subsequent cases of a similar nature.

Inflation

A general increase in the average level of prices of goods and services.

Laissez-faire economics

A classic economic philosophy holding that owners of business should be allowed to make their own production and distribution decisions without government regulation or control.

Keynesian economics

The level of the government's response should be commensurate (aka corresponding in size) with the severity of the downturn.

Fiscal policy

Tool of economic management by which government can attempt to maintain a stable economy through its taxing and spending policies.

The Federal Reserve

Established by congress in 1913 to help govern the nation's monetary policy through an independent and political process.

Reserve ratios

The federal reserve established the minimum cash reserves any bank must hold.

Federal funds rates

The interest rates on loans between banks.

Discount rate

The costs banks pay to borrow money from the federal reserve bank.

Open-market operation

The efforts by the Fed to buy or sell government bonds.

Recall

The power to remove an elected official from office before the end of term in office.

Initiative

A procedure by which a specified number of voters propose a statue, constitutional amendment, or ordinance, and compel a popular vote on its adoption.

Referendum

The practice of submitting to popular vote a measure passed on or proposed by a legislative body.

California legislature

Lawmaking, budget, confirmations, redistricting, oversight, amending the constitution.

Governor of California

Chief executive of the state, has the power of line-item veto, prepare the budget for submission to legislature, and general duties of the office.

President of the United States

Does not have the power of line-item veto, has to accept or reject the budget in its entirety.

Secretary of State of California

Responsible for overseeing election laws, ballots, and election results.