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Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Established judicial review; "midnight judges;" John Marshall; power of the Supreme Court.

McCullough v. Maryland (1819)

National bank. Constitution implied that the federal government had the right to make a bank, and states could not tax that bank to destroy it.

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

Affirmed federal control of interstate commerce under commerce clause of the Constitution.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Legalized segregation in publicly owned facilities on the basis of "separate but equal."

Korematsu v. United States (1944)

Internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII does not violate 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Overrules Plessy v. Ferguson (no stare decisis). Racial segregation violates 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause ("separate is inherently unequal")

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

Ordered states to provide lawyers for those unable to afford them in criminal proceedings. Warren Court's judicial activism in criminal rights.

Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023)

Pending Supreme Court case that will distinguish weather or not affirmative action is constitutional during the college admission process

President

Head of the Executive Branch

Vice President

President of the Senate, serves as President if he is killed

Speaker of the House

the leader of the majority party who serves as the presiding officer of the House of Representatives

Majority Leader

the legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House or Senate

Article I

Establishes the Legislative Branch

Article II

Establishes the Executive Branch

Article III

Establishes the Judicial Branch

1st amendment

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

2nd amendment

Right to bear arms

3rd amendment

No quartering of soldiers

4th amendment

Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures

5th amendment

Criminal Proceedings; Due Process; Eminent Domain; Double Jeopardy; Protection from Self incrimination

6th amendment

The right to a Speedy Trial by jury, representation by an attorney for an accused person

7th amendment

Right to a trial by jury in civil cases

9th amendment

Citizens entitled to rights not listed in the Constitution

10th amendment

Powers Reserved to the States

The Federalist Papers

A collection of 85 articles written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison under the name "Publius" to defend the Constitution in detail.

Federalists vs. Anti-federalists

Federalists were people who supported the ratification of the constitution. Anti-Federalists did not support the constitution.

Gerrymandering

Process of redrawing legislative boundaries for the purpose of benefiting the party in power.

Incumbent

the current officeholder

Constituencies

the people and interests that an elected official represents

Expressed powers.

powers directly stated in the constitution

Implied powers

powers that congress has that are not stated explicitly in the constitution

Necessary and Proper clause

constitutional authorization for Congress to make any law required to carry out its powers

Strict Construction vs. Liberal Construction

A strict constructionist believes firmly what is stated in the constitution, while a liberal constructionist believes that the constitution can be bended

War Powers Act

Act that grants emergency executive powers to president to run war effort

President Pro Tempore

Officer of the Senate selected by the majority party to act as chair in the absence of the vice president

Executive Brach

branch of government that executes, or carries out, the law; headed by the president

Chief of state

term for the President as the ceremonial head of the United States, the symbol of all the people of the nation

Chief executive

The role of the president as head of the executive branch of the government.

Chief administrator

Term for the President as head of the administration of the Federal Government

Chief diplomat

The role of the president in recognizing foreign governments, making treaties, and effecting executive agreements.

Chief legislator

term for the president as architect of public policy and the one who sets the agenda for congress

Commander in chief

term for the president as commander of the nation's armed forces

Chief economist

term for the President as monitor of the nation's economic condition

Chief of party

term for the president as the leader of his or her political party

Impeachment

A formal document charging a public official with misconduct in office approved by majority of the House and Senate

Executive order

A rule issued by the president that has the force of law

Executive privilege

The power to keep executive communications confidential, especially if they relate to national security.

Veto

Chief executive's power to reject a bill passed by a legislature

Pardon

legal forgiveness of a crime

Bureaucracy

a system of government in which most of the important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected representatives.

The cabinet

A group of advisers to the president.

Foreign policy

relations with the governments of other countries

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an alliance made to defend one another if they were attacked by any other country; US, England, France, Canada, Western European countries

United Nations

An international organization formed after WWII to promote international peace, security, and cooperation.

Judicial Branch

the branch of government that interprets laws

Jurisdiction

the official power to make legal decisions and judgments.

Precedent

an example that may serve as a basis for imitation or later action

Plaintiff

a person who brings a case against another in a court of law.

Defendant

an individual or group being sued or charged with a crime

Judicial review

review by the US Supreme Court of the constitutional validity of a legislative act.

Writ of certiorari

An order by a higher court directing a lower court to send up a case for review

Brief

a written document explaining the position of one side or the other in a case

Majority opinion

a statement that presents the views of the majority of supreme court justices regarding a case

Concurring opinion

An opinion that agrees with the majority in a Supreme Court ruling but differs on the reasoning.

Dissenting opinion

A statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion

Criminal case

a case in which a defendant is tried for committing a crime as defined by the law

Civil case

A case involving a noncriminal matter such as a contract dispute or a claim of patent infringement

Due process

fair treatment through the normal judicial system, especially as a citizen's entitlement.

14th Amendment and equal protection

no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction "the equal protection of the laws"

Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

Liberties- Individual freedoms guaranteed to the people, mostly by the bill of rights

Rights-Equal treatment under law

Civil liberties

Constitutional freedoms guaranteed to all citizens

Civil rights

Policies designed to protect people against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by government officials or individuals.

Japanese internment

Japanese and Japanese Americans were placed in camps beginning in 1942; upheld by Korematsu v. US

Jim Crowe Laws

laws passed in the south after reconstruction enforcing the segregation of blacks and whites

Segregation

Separation of people based on racial, ethnic, or other differences

Separate but equal

Principle upheld in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) in which the Supreme Court ruled that segregation of public facilities was legal.

Separate is inherently unequal

Brown v. Board of Education

Military necessity

a legal doctrine asserting that violation of the rules of war may be excused during periods of extreme emergency

Affirmative action

A policy designed to redress past discrimination against women and minority groups through measures to improve their economic and educational opportunities

Title IX

A United States law enacted on June 23, 1972 that states: "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."

Civil Rights Act of 1964

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

Voting Rights Act of 1965

a law designed to help end formal and informal barriers to African-American suffrage

Housing Act of 1968

forbade discrimination in most housing and provided penalties for those attempting to interfere with individual civil rights

Lilly Ledbetter Law

A law signed by Congress on January 29, 2009, that restored worker protections against pay discrimination

Gross annual income

Total pay or earnings made over a one-year period before any deductions have been taken.

Gross monthly income

Total amount of earnings made over a month before any deductions

Income tax

Tax paid to the state, federal, and local governments based on income earned over the past year.

Sales tax

a tax on the dollar value of a good or service being sold

Property tax

A tax on the value of a property that funds schools

Medicare

A federal program of health insurance for persons 65 years of age and older

Net annual income

Income amount remaining after a year's worth of deductions have been taken.

Net monthly income

Amount of monthly income remaining after all deductions have been taken

Social security

a federal insurance program that provides benefits to retired people and those who are unemployed or disabled.

Fixed cost

a cost that does not change

Variable cost

a cost that changes

Stock

A share of ownership in a corporation.

Bond

a formal contract to repay borrowed money with interest at fixed intervals

Interest

money paid regularly at a particular rate for the use of money lent

Invest

To commit money to gain a profit or earn interest

Mutual fund

fund that pools the savings of many individuals and invests this money in a variety of stocks, bonds, and other financial assets