US History Semester 1

Key roles of Whips

* exist in both chambers and both parties have one
* responsible to “whipping the vote” OR encouraging party members to vote along party lines

Key roles of Committee and Subcommittee chairs

* decide which bills assigned to them will be worked on

Key roles of the Senate Majority Leader

* leader of the Senate
* Has the power to determine which bills go to the floor

Congressional District

the geographic area(s) within a state from which members of the HOR are elected - 435 congressional districts in the US

Redistricting

the redrawing of congressional district boundaries (controlled by the state legislature)

\-every 10 years a census is taken and the 435 House seats are redistributed among the states (because of proportional representation)

gerrymandering

redistricting to give your party an advantage in future congressional elections

538

total number of electoral college votes

270

need 270 electoral college votes to win

base states

states that reliably support presidential candidates from the same party

battleground states

states that are more closely contested and less predictable; elections are won/lost in the states

formula for number of electoral college votes per state

\# Congressional Districts in state + 2 senators = total

Straight ticket voting

will vote for candidates from only one political party on their ballot

Split ticket voting

will vote for candidates from multiple political parties on their ballot

Ranked Choice voting

rank your choices of candidates from first to last; designed to produce a majority outcome and eliminate plurality outcomes (all federal elections)

\-instant runoff election

\-started in Maine

Runoff Election

if no candidate wins 50% of the vote, the top 2 vote getters will undergo a runoff election, guaranteeing a majority outcome

majority outcomes

winning over 50% of the vote

plurality outcome

winning the highest amount of votes, but not majority (under 50%)

Referendums

ballot questions that attempt to repeal or remove an existing state law; Citizens decide through voting

Ballot Initiatives

ballot question that propose a new law for a state; citizens decide through voting; citizens propose a law

What is similar between referendums and ballot initiatives?

* both processes initiated by citizens themselves (examples of direct democracy)
* used only at state and local level
* allow citizens to “check” the power of the government

Open primaries/caucuses

any registered voter, regardless of party affiliation can participate

closed primaries/caucuses

only members of that political party may participate

primaries/caucuses

used by voters to select which candidates will be on the ballot in general election

General elections

used by voters to select which candidates will hold office

congressional, presidential, midterm

Congressional elections

* every 2 years
* all 435 House seats and about 1/3 of Senate seats

Presidential elections

* every 4 years
* president and vice president are elected

Midterm elections

= congressional elections that are held halfway through a president’s term in office

* every 4 years
* all all 435 House seats and about 1/3 of the Senate seats

How does the winner take all system for distributing electoral college votes work?

* used by 48 states + D.C.
* whichever candidates wins the most votes statewide (popular vote) wins all of that states electoral college votes

How does the congressional district system work for distributing electoral college votes?

* used by Maine and Nebraska
* Step 1: candidate with the highest statewide vote total wins 2 electoral college votes

Step 2: candidate with highest vote total in each congressional district wins 1 electoral college votes per district

Key roles of the Speaker of the House

* highest ranking member of Congress

2nd in line for presidency

* have the power to determine which bills go to the floor for consideration

Key roles of the Vice President

* can only vote to break a tie in the Senate
* preside over the Senate

How is the governments power limited?

* Separation of Powers between legislative, executive, and judiciary branch
* check and balances
* the people

Why is limiting the power of the government important?

* individual rights
* economic powers

Why did the founding generation think that checks and balances were important to include in the Constitution?

To be sure that the US still had a democracy (citizens should have a say in their government)

How can the power of each branch be checked?

* by other branches
* by the president
* the people

What is the Presidents passive option when a bill is received?

10 day rule - If the President does not sign or veto the bill…the 10 day rule goes into affect

\-if Congress is still “in session” for 10 days after the President receives the bill, the bill automatically becomes a law

\-if Congress goes “on recess” before the 10 days pass, the bill dies (pocket veto)

What are the 2 active options the President has when a bill is received?

* sign the bill
* veto the bill (bill is rejected and sent back to Congress with explanation)

How many senators are there in the US?

100

Weakness:


3. only 1 branch of government (congress)

Problem:


3. no power to enforce laws or settle disputes between states (no executive or judicial power)

Weakness:


2. no national currency

Problem:


2. states currencies were not aligned, unfair exchange rates charged, hurts economy

Weakness:


1. no power to tax

Problem:


1. US is unable to pay back Revolutionary War debts or fund national projects

Weaknesses of the Articles of the Constitution

1. no power to tax
2. no national currency
3. only 1 branch of government (congress)

Key Principles in the Declaration of Independence

1. basic rights
2. representative government
3. limits on power
4. right to revolution

The Right to Revolution

if the government consistently violates people’s rights, then the people can revolt and create a new government

John Locke’s 3 ideas about good government

1. power of government should be limited
2. purpose of creating government is to protect basic rights
3. people must have a say in their government (consent of the governed)

How did the natural rights philosophy influence the founding generation?

natural rights or basic rights are critical; power of government must be limited to prevent abuse

English Bill of Rights (1689)

All British citizens have basic rights that can’t be violated

The Magna Carta (1215)

1. 1st British document to limit the monarchs power
2. the nobility (wealthy land owners) have basic rights that can’t be violated
3. establishes the Rule of Law (no person is above the law)

How did the principles in these British documents influence the founding generation?

limited government; basic rights; Rule of Law

Rome

1st to use representative democracy

Ancient Greece

1st to use direct democracy

How did earlier forms of government influence the founding generation?

Promote the idea that citizens should have a say in the government

Absolute Monarchy

A government in which one person hereditarily gains power and is granted total control over all laws and government decisions

Constitutional Monarchy

A government in which one person hereditarily gains power but their power is limited by agreed upon, written documents

Oligarchy

A government that is controlled by a small group of wealthy elites

Theocracy

A government that is controlled by religious leaders

Dictatorship

A government in which one person or a small group of people gain and then maintain power by use of force

Direct Democracy

A system of government in which the people themselves make the decisions about laws and government policies

Representative Democracy

A system of government in which the people elect
representatives to make the laws and government decisions

Article 1

The legislative branch (Congress)

Article 2

the executive branch (the President)

Article 3

the judicial branch (the Supreme Court)

Article 4

Relations between the states

Article 5

How to Amend (or change) the Constitution

Article 6

the Supremacy clause (the Constitution is the supreme law of the land and federal law is supreme to state law)

Article 7

Ratifying the Constitution (the constitution required 9 out of 13 states to ratify the document and have it go into effect)

People in this position serve for a 2 year term of office

House of Representatives

People in this position serve for a 4 year term of office

President

People in this position serve for a 6 year term of office

Senate

People in this position serve for lifetime term of office (until they resign or retire)

Supreme Court

To be eligible for this office you must be 25 years old

House of Representatives

To be eligible for this office you must be 30 years old

Senate

There are no citizenship requirements to be eligible to serve in this position

Supreme Court

To be eligible for this office you must be 35 years old

President

To be eligible for this office you must be a US citizen for 9 years

Senate

To be eligible for this office you must be a US citizen for 7 years

House of Representatives

To be eligible for this office you must be a natural born citizen

President

There is no minimum age requirement to be eligible to serve in this position

Supreme Court

To be eligible for this position you must have lived in the US for 14 years

President

To be eligible for these positions you must live in the state in which you are running for office in

House of Representatives
AND
Senate

the power to tax

Congress

the power to coin money (est.. a national currency)

Congress

the power to borrow money

Congress

the power to spend money

Congress

the power to regulate interstate trade

Congress

the power to pardon

The President

the power to declare war

Congress

the power to create an army and navy

Congress

the power to nominate judges to the Supreme Court

The President

the power to review laws to see if they are constitutional

the power to spend money on the military

Congress

the power to lead the military as the Commander in Chief

The President

the power to sign or veto laws

The President

the power to admit new states to the U.S.

Congress

the power to propose amendments

Congress

the power to approve or reject treaties

The Senate

the power to negotiate treaties

The President

the power to determine voting qualifications

The states

receive (meet with) ambassadors from other countries

The President

the power to review presidential actions to see if they are constitutional

The Supreme Court