The US Constitution(US government)

1787

1787

US Constitution adopted and signed

1788

U.S. Constitution ratified

1789

US Constitution became the official governing document

amendment

A change to the Constitution

Anti-Federalists

favored strong state governments.

Article I

Legislative Branch

Article II

Executive Branch

Article III

Judicial Branch

Article IV

Relationships between the states and with the federal government.

Article V

Sets up the ability to amend the Constitution.

Article VI

Supremacy Article. The US Constitution is the supreme law of the land

Article VII

Process to ratify the US Constitution.

Articles of Confederation

America's first national constitution, which loosely bound the states under a weak central government.

Bill of Rights

1791. First ten amendments of the US Constitution -- focus on individual liberties

checks and balances

the power of each branch of government is checked or limited and balanced by powers held by other branches.

Commerce Clause

a clause of the US Constitution that grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.

compromise

nobody gets everything, but everybody gets something

consensus

a general agreement

consensus decision-making

process in which group members develop and agree to support a decision in the best interest of the whole group or common goal.

constitution

a set of rules that govern how power will be distributed and used legitimately in a government.

enumerated powers

powers specifically given to Congress in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution.

federalism

a system of government where power is shared by national and state governments.

Federalists

favored a strong central government.

John Locke

believed man is naturally good and holds moral values that are widely shared.

Madisonian Model

a structure of government proposed by James Madison that avoided tyranny by separating power among different branches and building checks and balances into the Constitution.

Necessary and Proper Clause

grants to Congress the power to enact laws to carry out the enumerated powers which are specifically assigned to the federal government. Also known as the elastic clause.

political socialization

process by which an individual acquires a sense of political identity.

preamble

the most important part of the US Constitution.

Santa Claus

jolly, white-bearded man, often with spectacles, wearing a red coat with white fur collar and cuffs, white-fur-cuffed red trousers, a red hat trimmed with white fur, a black leather belt and boots, carrying a bag full of gifts for children.

separation of powers

power divided through federalism (national and state) and separation of powers among the three branches of government (legislative, executive, judicial)

social contract theory

agreement regarding the rights and responsibilities of the government and its citizens

special interest

a person or group seeking to influence legislative or government policy to further often narrowly defined interests.

Supremacy Clause

everyone must follow federal law in the face of conflicting state law

Thomas Hobbes

believed that human beings in the state of nature would behave badly towards one another.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

believed people living in a state of nature are kind and without motive to hurt. However, once people live together in society, they become evil.

United States Constitution

the supreme law of the land.