American Government Unit 2 Study Guide

Instructions:

Here is the study guide for Test #2. The quiz will consist of a vocabulary section where you will match vocabulary with their definitions, A section where you will be matching parts of the Constitution with the VII articles of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and a short-answer section where you will be asked questions about Unit 2 from a pool of questions.

No answer to this question

Vocabulary:

Here are the vocabulary terms for Unit 1. The terms you will be required to match will come from this pool.

*Note the first definition is from Quizlet AI

Liberty

Freedom from arbitrary government control and the protection of basic rights.

Freedom from external control or autocratic rule.

A state of Freedom

Democracy

A system of government where power is vested in the people, exercised directly or through elected representatives.

A system of government by the whole population, typically through elected representatives.

A type of government in which the power is held by the people who exercise it through voicing their opinions, voting, or electing representatives.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that the authority of a state and its government is created and sustained by the consent of its people.

The principle that the authority of a state is created by the consent of its people.

A system in which government's authority comes from the people.

OR

A principle of democracy in which political authority rests ultimately in the hands of the people.

Natural Rights

Rights inherent to all human beings, such as life, liberty, and property, regardless of laws.

Rights that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government (e.g., life, liberty).

Rights that are not dependent on the laws, customs, or beliefs of any particular culture or government, and are therefore universal and inalienable.

OR

Universal rights not dependent on laws, customs or government

Separation of Powers

Dividing government responsibilities into distinct branches to limit any one branch from exercising the core functions of another.

An act of vesting the legislative, executive, and judicial powers of government in separate bodies.

The Idea of Separation of Powers was advocated by Baron de Montesquieu who believed that distributing government power to many different branches and layers of government helped to prevent tyranny.

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to amend or veto acts of another branch to prevent any one branch from having too much power.

Counterbalancing influences by which an organization or system is regulated to prevent concentration of power.

The system of checks and balances was designed so that no branch of the federal government - legislative, executive, or judicial - is totally independent from the other two. Each branch has the power to "check" or curb the other branches' powers. This keeps the government in "balance."

Constitution

A fundamental document or set of principles establishing the legal and political framework of a nation.

Articles of Confederation

The original US constitution, drafted in 1777, which established a weak central government and was later replaced.

Confederation

A union of sovereign states united for a common purpose, retaining most of their own power.

Federalism

A system of government where power is divided between a central national government and constituent state governments.

Unitary System

A governing system where a single central government holds supreme power over any subnational regions.

Intergovernmental Relations

The interactions and collaborative dynamics between different levels of government (national, state, local).

Expressed Powers

Powers directly granted to the federal government in the US Constitution (e.g., coin money, declare war).

Implied Powers

Powers not explicitly granted in the Constitution but reasonably inferred through the necessary and proper clause.

Reserved Powers

Powers not delegated to the federal government, retained by the states or the people under the Tenth Amendment.

Police Power

The capacity of states to regulate behavior and enforce order within their territory for the betterment of health, safety, morals, and general welfare.

Concurrent Powers

Powers shared by both the federal and state governments, such as the power to tax and build roads.

Dual Federalism

A system of federalism where national and state governments have distinct, non-overlapping areas of authority.

Cooperative Federalism

A system of federalism where national and state governments share responsibilities and collaborate on policy.

Regulated Federalism

A system where the national government sets strict regulations and mandates that state and local governments must follow.

Grants-in-Aid

Funds given by the federal government to state and local governments for specific projects or programs.

Categorical Grants

Federal grants-in-aid given to states for specific, narrowly defined purposes with strict conditions.

Preemption

The principle that allows the national government to override or invalidate state laws in certain areas.

Devolution

The transfer of power from a central government to subnational (state or local) governments.

Block Grants

Federal grants-in-aid given to states with few restrictions, allowing broad flexibility in how funds are spent.

Unfunded Mandate

A federal regulation or requirement imposed on state and local governments without providing the funding to carry it out.

Privileges and Immunities Clause

Prevents states from discriminating against citizens of other states, ensuring equal treatment.

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Requires states to respect and honor the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state.

Supremacy Clause

Establishes that the US Constitution and federal laws take precedence over state laws and constitutions.

Commerce Clause

Grants Congress the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the several states, and with Indian tribes.

Parts of the Constitution:

For this section, you will be matching parts of the Constitution with the first seven articles of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Please make sure to know the following information.

Legislative Branch

The branch of government responsible for making laws (Article I of the Constitution).

Commerce Clause

Executive Branch

The branch of government responsible for enforcing laws (Article II of the Constitution).

Judicial Branch

The branch of government responsible for interpreting laws (Article III of the Constitution).

Relations between the States

Outlines how states must interact, including interstate compacts and extradition (Article IV).

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Privileges and Immunities Clause

Amending the Constitution

Specifies the process for proposing and ratifying amendments to the Constitution (Article V).

Supremacy of the Constitution

Declares the Constitution and federal law as the supreme law of the land (Article VI).

Supremacy Clause

Ratifying the Constitution

Outlines the requirement that nine states must approve the Constitution for it to take effect (Article VII).

Bill of Rights

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

Guaranteed under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights.

Right to Bear Arms

The right of individuals to keep and bear arms, protected by the Second Amendment.

No Quartering of Troops

Prohibits the forced housing of soldiers in private homes during peacetime (Third Amendment).

Protections From Warrantless Searches and Seizures

Requires warrants to be based on probable cause, protected by the Fourth Amendment.

Rights of Person Accused of a Crime

Protections including protection against double jeopardy and self-incrimination (Fifth Amendment).

Due Process/Jury Trial in Criminal Cases

Guarantees a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury and legal counsel (Sixth Amendment).

Due Process/Jury Trial in Civil Cases

Guarantees the right to a jury trial in federal civil court cases involving property or money (Seventh Amendment).

No Cruel and Unusual Punishments

Prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments (Eighth Amendment).

Rights not listed are retained by the people

The Ninth Amendment clarification that unenumerated rights still belong to individuals.

All powers not delegated are held by the people and the states

The Tenth Amendment principle establishing reserved powers for states and citizens.

Short-answer Questions:

The short-answer questions for your quiz will be pulled from the pool of questions below.

Identify 2 weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

Included lack of executive/judicial branches, no power to tax, and inability to regulate commerce.

Identify the original goal of the Constitutional Convention

To revise and amend the existing Articles of Confederation, which evolved into drafting a new constitution.

Identify 3 debates/issues from the Constitutional Convention

- Tax powers

- Separation of powers

- Federal vs. State Powers

- Representation in Congress

- The Office of the Presidency

- The Slave Trade

Describe the Virginia Plan

Proposed a bicameral legislature with representation based on population, favoring large states.

Describe the New Jersey Plan

Proposed a unicameral legislature with equal representation for each state, favoring small states.

Explain how the Great Compromise resolved the differences between the Virginia and New Jersey Plans.

The Great Compromise was the agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that gave each state an equal number of senators regardless of its population, but linked representation in the House of Representatives to population.

Each state - Equal number of senators

Representation - Linked with population

Identify one of the ways enslaved people were referenced in the Constitution. (Use specific language from the Constitution.)

- "Other persons"

- "Persons as any state shall see proper to admit"

- "Persons held in service or labor"

Explain how the 3/5ths Compromise affected representation in Congress and why northern and southern states agreed to this compromise.

The 3/5ths Compromise was the agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that stipulated that for purposes of the apportionment of congressional seats only 3/5ths of the enslaved people would be counted.

Describe the Anti-Federalist arguments against the Constitution.

- Strong State Government; Central Government leads to tyranny

- Strong State Government: Close to the people

- Farmers/Rural areas

- Republic can only be small

-> If large: Tyranny

-> In a large republic: Can't know beliefs -> Too many -> Too large

- In a large republic government has to have more power

-> Lesser bad people seek this power -> Checks/Balances don't work

-> Tyranny -> Power corrupts

Describe the Federalist arguments for the Constitution.

- Strong central government

- Merchants/Urban

1.) Problem of Factions

-> Remove Causes: Destroy Liberty or Give everyone the same opinions -> NOT POSSIBLE

-> Control Effects: Democracy -> Minority(good), majority(BAD) -> NOT POSSIBLE

-> Control Effects: Republic: Review, refine, and filter opinions

-> Small Republic -> Fall to Factions -> BAD

-> Large Republic -> More opinions, less influence on Factions -> GOOD

Solution: In order to fix the problem of Factions you must control its effects through a Large Republic which will allow for more opinions and less influence on Factions.

According to Brutus I explain how and why small republics are better than large republics.

Describe the role of the Bill of Rights in the ratification process.

According to Federalist 10 explain how and why large republics are better than small republics.

Describe how the slave trade clause limited Congress's ability to ban the slave trade.

Explain how the Privileges and Immunities Clause protects American citizens' rights.

Explain how the Full Faith and Credit Clause affects the relationship between states.

Explain how the Supremacy Clause affects state and local laws/constitutions.

Describe the system of dual federalism.

Describe the system of cooperative federalism.

Describe the transition from the system of dual federalism to cooperative federalism.

Compare and contrast Dual and cooperative federalism.

Describe how the federal government influences state and local governments through grants-in-aid.

Compare and contrast categorical grants and block grants.

Describe an interpretation of the Commerce Clause that supports dual federalism.

Describe an interpretation of the Commerce Clause that supports cooperative federalism.