Ap gov unit 1

popular sovereignty

a concept that a government's authority and legitimacy are derived solely from the consent and will of its people

natural rights

fundamental human rights belonging to everyone that aren't granted by government or law

social contract theory

• states that people should give consent to be governed and give up certain freedoms in exchange for the government to protect their natural rights

• Proposed by Thomas Hobbes

• a fundamental theory that supports constitutional governments

limited government

a political theory where there are certain restrictions put on the government to protect individual rights and liberties

republicanism

a political theory where the consent of the governed is expressed through representatives / elected leaders represent the interests of the people

constitutional convention

a meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 states to revise or replace the articles of confederation with a new constitution featuring a stronger central government

participatory democracy

• values broad based public participation in governing,
  more about influencing policy at various stages rather than just voting on final outcomes
• In theory, it keeps government closest to the people and their opinions

direct democracy

• allows citizens to directly govern and make laws. It is considered a chaotic and inefficient system, especially in societies with large populations
• It also has significant risks like the majority violating the rights of the minority

pluralist democracy

a type of government where no one group dominates politics and organized groups (interest groups) compete with each other (at local, state, and federal levels) to influence policy

representative democracy

• a theoretically more efficient system that allows citizens to elect representatives who then govern for them.
• It allows a smaller and more manageable group to make decisions more quickly
• Republicanism retains important elements of broad public participation in government while making governing less chaotic and more efficient.

elite democracy

• favors allowing the best educated and most qualified members of society to govern in the best interests of the country
• This system favors having a small group of the best-informed people to govern

federalism

• a system of government that divided and shares power between a central (national) government and regional (state) governments
• describes the relationship of power between the national and state government

federalists

• support of a stronger central government
• advocated for ratifying the US constitution

anti-federalists

• support of a weaker central government and stronger state governments
• opposing US constitution's ratification
  fearing a strong central government would overpower state & individual rights

brutus 1

• anti-federalist paper
• advocated for a participatory government
• opposed the ratification of the constitution, arguing that a large republic could not accurately represent the interests of the people and if it attempted, b/c of the many diverse & opposing interests, government operations would be hindered
  (this is against pluralism)
• warns that the necessary and proper and supremacy clauses could lead to tyranny

declaration of independence

• declares the British Colonies in North America to be a free and independent country
• relies heavily on concepts of the social contract theory, natural rights, and popular sovereignty to argue that the former colonies are empowered to create their own government because of the abuses suffered under British rule.

federalist 10

• federalist paper
• advocated for a pluralist government
• urged the ratification of the constitution, arguing that the interest of the people can be best protected when factions in a large republic elect representatives whose interests complete with each other
  (increased layers of competition to decrease chances of tyranny by majority)
• pluralism being a check on majority rule/overbearing factions

articles of confederation

• the United States' first constitution
• established a weak central government and put most powers in the hands of the states (state sovereignty)
• national government had only one branch (legislature) with one vote for each state (regardless of population)
• only states had the power to tax (national government was underfunded)
• nation government could not impose tariff or regulate interstate commerce
• national government could not raise a national army or militia

shay's rebellion

• an uprising in western Massachusetts to protest economic conditions, high taxes, and abusive debt and tax collections
• demonstrated the weakness of the national government under the Articles when Congress was unable to fund an army to put down the uprising
• The result of this led to calls for a constitutional convention to fix the national government

confederation

• a unicameral national government under the Articles of confederation
• state sovereignty

states empower the national government to do very limited tasks while maintaining most of the control at the state level

• each state had equal representation in congress regardless of population
• 9/13 states votes (super-majority) were needed to pass any laws
• unanimous vote needed to amend the articles themselves

unicameral legislature

a legislature with only one chamber or house

bicameral legislature

a legislature with two chambers or houses

amendment

a change to the constitution

bill of rights

• the first 10 amendments
• designed to protect individual rights and liberties

article 5

• section of the constitution that describes the process for amending the constitution

congressional proposal method

• one of the two methods for amending the constitution
• 2/3rds of both chambers of congress must propose an amendment
• proposed amendment must be ratified by 3/4ths of the state conventions or state legislature

convention method

• one of the two methods for amending the constitution
• 2/3rds of the state ask congress t organize a convention & the amendment is proposed at the meeting
• proposed amendment must be ratified by 3/4ths of the state conventions or state legislatures
• has never been used to introduce an amendment

great compromise

• compromise at the constitutional convention
• created a bicameral legislature with the Senate having equal representation for all states & the House of Representatives having representation proportional to population

electoral college

• a body of representatives from every state in the United States who formally cast votes to elect the president and vice president
• winner-take-all system where states give all their electoral votes to the popular vote winner in that state

three-fifths compromise

• a compromise between slaveholding and
  non-slaveholding states
• stated slaves would be counted as three-fifths of a person
  • In addition to this compromise on slavery, non-slaveholding states also agreed not to regulate the slave trade before the year 1808.

virginia plan

• called for a bicameral (two house) legislature with representation proportional to the population of states in legislature

new jersey plan

• proposed by the small states, called for a unicameral legislature with equal representation in legislature

supremacy clause

• federal law takes precedence over any conflicting state law
• established under article 6
• allows the federal government to enforce treaties, create a central bank, and enact legislation without interference from the states.

categorical grants

Federal grants that can be used only for specific purposes, or "categories," of state and local spending. They come with strings attached, such as nondiscrimination provisions.

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

access points

the separation of powers all these opportunities or places where stake holders & institutions can interact with parts of the government

foundational principles of american democracy

popular sovereignty, limited government, separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, republicanism, individual rights and liberties, and rule of law are all part of….

individual rights and liberty

the constitution and bill of rights protect core freedoms, including speech, religion and assembly, which the government cannot infringe on

rule of law

a foundational principle under which all people, institutions, and entities are accountable under the law

stake holders and institutions

voters, interest groups, state and local officials, businesses, non-profit organizations that have an interest in the policies the government creates

federalist 51

• addressed concerns raised by anti-federalists (in brutus 1) about a strong central government
• remedies for concerns being each branch of government having its own distinct powers and checks & balances
• idea of checks & balances being necessary because people will not inherently do the right thing on their own, so a structure of government needs to be set up so that it's prompted to actually control itself

revenue sharing

• a process where the federal government collects taxes and distributes some of the money back to the states
• it can be used to exert more control over the state governments

mandates

• directives/requirements by the federal government for the state governments
• tying federal funding to state compliance

mcculloch v. maryland

• congress passes a law to create national bank branches in states & a state sues the manager of the bank for refusing to collect and pay taxes in his bank
• involved article 6 (supremacy clause) & article 1, section 8, clause 18 (necessary & proper clause)
• ruled that the US can create a national bank & states can not tax the bank because heavy taxation could destroy the bank which would interfere with federal operations
• the precedent for judicial review

united states v. lopez

• congress passed gun free school zone act (GFSZA) making it illegal to have a gun near a school & a high school senior violates the law, is tried, and appeals
• held that gun ownership in schools can not be regulated under constitutional reasoning found in GFSZA
• limited the extent to which the commerce clause can be used to reach reserved powers

impeachment

Formal accusation/indictment from the house of representatives by simple majority which is then tried by the senate to be convicted or acquitted with a super majority (2/3rds)

lobbying

the act of talking directly to policy makers and building relationships with them in order to influence policy

reserved powers

outlined in the 10th amendment, they are powers not specifically granted to the federal government or denied to the states belong to the states and the people

exclusive powers

constitutional powers given only to the national government

concurrent powers

powers shared by the national and state governments (levying taxes, creating courts, maintaining roads & thorough fares, borrowing money)

full faith & credit

A clause in Article 4 of the Constitution requiring each state to recognize the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of all other states.

privileges & immunites

A clause in Article 4 of the Constitution preventing states from discriminating against citizens of other states

extradition

A legal process whereby a state surrenders a person charged with a crime to the state in which the crime is alleged to have been committed

enumerated powers

powers specifically listed in the Constitution

implied powerrs

• powers that are not specifically mentioned but implied in certain phrases in the constitutional text
• serve as tools with which the national government can execute the enumerated, or specifically listed, powers granted to it by the Constitution

dual federalism

• states that state power and federal government power and responsibility should be strictly divided and no sharing of power or responsibility should be done
• attempts to give most power and responsibility to state governments
• allows states to experiment with policy and be more specific with that policy, plus power is closest to the people
• states do not have jurisdiction to deal with problems that cross state lines or national borders
• states lack the resources to deal with policy problems, especially in times of disaster and emergency

cooperative federalism

• states that the federal government and state governments should share power and responsibility

• gives more power to Congress and the national government, and prefers that policy is made at the national level

• has massive resources to deal with policy problems, emergencies, and natural disasters; and can provide citizens many access points

• Congress often makes policy that is not specific enough or tailored to unique problems happening in states