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Constitution / Judiciary / Congress / PGs & Civil Rights / President

What is the order of the const articles?

I = Congress

II = President

III = Supreme Court

What makes the constitution vague and where?

general ‘welfare clause’ - necessary and proper

right to bear arms - vague

What is the ‘necessary and proper’ clause and what is meant by it?

‘elastic clause’ - what is necessary and proper can change overtime

What is an example of the court putting checks on the president?

2026 - ruled trump tariffs unconst

In what case was the principle of judicial review established?

Marbury v Madison 1803

In what case has the courts checked congress? (reference to campaign funding)

Citizens United vs FEC 2010 - parts of Bipartisan Campain Reform act violated 1st amend

Who was the only SCOTUS justice to be impeached and what was a limit of it?

Samuel Chase 1804-05 (aquitted)

What are two significant checks by congress on the courts?

impeachment

propose const amendments to overturn decisions

How many times has the constitution been amended?

27

Which state was the last to raitfy the 19th amendment in 1920 for it to be incorporated into the constitution?

tennessee

What is one of the requirements for a constitutional amendment?

2/3 majority in both houses

¾ ratification by states

Which amendment passed in congress but not by the states?

Equal Rights Amendment

When was Obama’s nomination to the SC not voted on by the state and who was it?

Merrick Garland 2016

How many people did Trump pardon 2025 for Jan 6th?

1,500

How many justices has Trump appointed and give two examples?

3 - amy coney barret / brett kavanaugh

Who did Biden issue a wide ranging pardon to and when?

Hunter Biden 2024

What are 2 examples of congress using the power of the purse to check the president?

didn’t pass funding bills - led to gov shut down Oct 2025

ending vietnam war - cut off funding

Who did Trump appoint to defence sec and what were the votes on it in the senate like?

Pete Hegseth - 51/50 - Vance deciding vote

What is an example of congress overriding one of Trump’s vetos?

his veto on the National Defence Authorisation Act 2021

How many vetos did Biden use and how many were overturned?

12 - 0 overturned

When was the war powers act and what does it say?

1973 - need congress consent for military action 60+ days

What did Biden order regarding military action in 2024?

US forces to destroy Houthi rebel targets in Yemen

How many executive orders did Trump sign in 2025/26?

254

How many executive orders did Trump make in his first 100 days of 2nd term?

140

Where is the federal relationship between the gov and states laid out?

Article IV + amendment 10

What two types of formal proposals are there and what do the states have to do to ratify the amendments?

Congressional Proposal: 2/3 marjority in both houses

Convention Proposal: 2/3 state legislatures request (never used)

→ ratified by ¾ states

What are 3 informal amendment processes?

Judicial interp

custom/practice

legislative action

Give two examples of controversial appointments to SCOTUS?

Clarence Thomas 1991 - sexual harrassment allegations

Ketanji Brown Jackson 2020 - focus on Biden’s positive discrimination / questioned her lenient past rulings

What % of the court are from ethnic minorities?

33.3% ( US - 40-44%)

What % of the supreme court are women and what is this in comparison to the US population?

44.4% (US - 51%)

What is the age range of the courts in comparison to the US population?

66yrs (US - 40yrs)

Who is the current chief justice?

John Roberts

Who tactically resigned under Biden and in what year?

2022 - Stephen Breyer

Which committee interviews the SCOTUS candidates?

Senate Judiciary Committee

What was the senate vote that confirmed Ketanji Bown Jackson to the SC?

53-47

What is an example of a case where judicial review has been removed?

US v Texas 2016 → stopped exec order giving indefinate delay in deportation to approx 5mil immigrants

When and what was US v Lopez?

1995 - ruled gun free school zones act 1990 as unconst

When was Obergfell v Hodges?

2015

When and what was District of Columbia v Heller?

2008 - unheld individuals right to possess a firearm

When and what was Texas V Johnson?

1989 - invalidated state laws prohibiting the desecration of the US flag

When and what was Bush v Gore?

2000 - suspended recount of florida’s election votes - basically decided the election result

When and what was US v Nixon?

1974 - Nixon ordered to give up watergate tapes

When was Brown v Board of Education?

1954

When and what was Miranda v Arizona?

1966 - principle people must be informed of their rights - used 5th / 6th amends

When was Dobbs v Jackson?

2022

When was Roe v Wade?

1973

When and what was Citizens United v FEC?

2010 - right of corporations and unions to engage in political speech through donations

When and what was US v Virginia?

1996 - ruled Virginia military institute male only admissions policy unconst

When was Plessy v Ferguson?

1896

When and what was Shelby County vs Holder?

2013 - ruled section of voting rights act in unconst

When and what was Students for fair admissions v Harvard?

2013 -struck down affirmitive action policies in college admissions

How many acts of congress have been struck down by SCOTUS?

176 since Marbury v Maddison

When was Kamala Harris senator for California?

2017-2021

How long are senate terms?

6yrs

How long are representative terms?

2yrs

What is an example of a party caucus in congress?

House Democratic Caucus

Who is the minority (dem) leader in the House?

Hakeem Jeffries

Who is the minority leader (dem) in the senate?

Chuck Schumer

Who is the HoR speaker?

Mike Johnson

Whos support did ACA pass with?

largely democrat

What is an example of the senate not ratifying a treaty?

Disability Treaty 2012

When was the last time the senate had to elect the vice-president and who was it?

1837 - Chose Johnson over Granger

Who was the last person to do a significant filibuster, on what legislation and how long did it last?

Corey Booker - 25hrs - against 1957 Civil Rights Act

When was the last time the house chose the president and who did they choose?

1824 - John Quincey Adams

When did the house open a formal impeachment inquiry into Biden and why did the impeachment not continue?

2023 - not sufficient evidence

When has the House initiated impeachment proceedings on Trump?

2019 & 2021

What are the requirements for becoming a member of the HoR?

25yrs old

American Citizen for 7 years

What are the requirements for becoming a member of the Senate?

30yrs old

American Citizen for 9 years

How many seats do the Republicans hold in the HoR compared to the democrats?

217 (repub) to 212 (dems)

How many members of the HoR are there?

435 q

Who is the majority leader in the senate?

John Thune

How many independents are there in the Senate?

2

How many seats in the senate do the republicans have compared to the democrats?

53(repub) & 45 (dem)

How much do reps in the HoR and the Senate earn?

$174,000

When was the Affordable care act passed and what did it do?

2010

increased healthcare coverage

regulate insurance market

control health costs

When was the Sexual Assult Survivors Rights Act passed and what did it do?

2016 - guaranteed rights for sexual assult survivors in federal cases

How many laws were passed by the 115th congress (2017-2019)

338

How many bills passed by the 115th congress were ceremonial?

1/3

What % of Bills die in committee?

90%

How many bills actually get passed by congress?

2-4%

Which Congress was the least productive congress and how many bills were passed?

118th - 27/749 that were voted on

Which committees are the equivalent to UK select committees?

Standing

What are two examples of standing committees?

Senate - Foreign Relations Committee

HoR - Agriculture Committee

What did the Foreign Affairs Committee launch an investigation into under Biden?

military assistance to Ukraine

What do standing committees do?

permanent, policy specialist

18 members in the senate / 30-40 in house

Example of a member of the House Agriculture Committee

Dusty Johnson - state dominated by agriculutre

Example of a Bill being under review

cap of foreign students in the US

What stat shows that committee stage can be weaker under a unified government?

20% fewer committee hearings during 117th congress (united gov) compared to 116th (divided)

What does the house rules committee do?

prioritises bill coming from committee stage + labels whether they are closed or oepn

What is an example of a bill that the house rules committee that was deemed as a closed bill?

Equal Representation Act

What are limitations of the house rules committee ruling bills open or closed?

underproductive congress - 117th congress 65% debated under closed rules

What are two examples of select committee investigations?

Benghazi Investigation 2012 - 10 investigations conducted (6 by repub controlled house committees)

Jan 6th Committee - interviewed 1000+ people

Limits to selet committee investigations

used for political point scoring e.g. Benghazi investigations damage clintons presidential prospects

What is an example of congress voting against laws proposed by the president?

Trump Budget Bill 2025

What is an example of Congress amending laws initiated or supported by the president?

2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill → amendments = project scaled back

What % of House reps are women?

29%

What % of senators are women?

25%

What % of the house representatives are minorities?

28% (aa = 14.5%)

What % of the senate are African American?

12%

What % of the US population are African American?

14%