U.S. Government and Constitutional Principles Flashcards

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key Supreme Court cases, constitutional amendments, and founding principles based on the lecture notes.

Electoral college

Construction mechanism that gives individual states a key role in selecting the president.

Individual liberty

Principle reflected when a court overturns the conviction of a defendant for burning the American flag.

19th amendment

Amendment that established the voting rights of women.

Federalist papers

A series of essays that influenced the court by suggesting the national government could override State laws.

Dred Scott v. Sandford

Supreme Court case that ruled the U.S. Congress had no authority to exclude slavery from federal territories.

Declaration of Independence

Founding document stating: "Everyone has the right to life, liberty, security of person."

Riley conviction overturn

Occurred because the police failed to obtain a warrant to search a phone.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments included in the U.S. Constitution as of 1791.

17th amendment

Amendment that empowered voters to elect senators rather than state legislatures.

Three-fifths compromise

Negotiated settlement that addressed the dispute over population counts for taxation and representation purposes.

New deal legislation

Legislative action that was threatened by the U.S. Supreme Court during a presidential speech.

Northwest ordinance

Document that addressed slavery and the establishment of new states.

First continental press

Political entity formed as a colonial response to the implementation of the Coercive or Intolerable Acts.

Federalism

Constitutional principle reflected in the division of power between the national government and states.

Brown v. Board

Supreme Court decision that overturned the "Separate but equal" doctrine established in Plessy v. fergusson.

Rule of Law

Term describing when both people in government and outside government are held to the same standards.

Treaty of Versailles

Document the U.S. Senate rejected, leading the U.S. to not join the League of Nations.

Engel v. Vitale

Supreme Court case focused on the topic mentioned in a 1954 Presidential Signing Statement.

Living document

Perspective that the U.S. Constitution was intended to have different interpretations over time.

Article V

Article of the Constitution that describes the amendment process.

Consent of the governed

Principle describing the perspective that the growth in interest groups gives people a voice in a representative democracy.

McColloch v. Maryland

Supreme Court decision based on the Necessary and Proper Clause that changed the relationship between national and state government.

Veto

Power allowing the president to reject legislation passed by both chambers of Congress.

Marbury v. Madison

Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review.

Popular Sovereignty

Political principle described as "the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed."

Thirteenth Amendment

Amendment containing language originally found in the Northwest Ordinance of 1767 regarding slavery.

Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments

Amendments whose purpose was to extend civil rights to African Americans.

Plessy v. fergusson

Landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that expressed the notion of "Seperate but equal."

Chief Justice selection process

Includes nomination by the president and confirmation by the senate.

Common Sense

Document that provided a rationale for American independence.

Necessary and Proper Clause

Clause introduced to provide flexibility to the powers granted to Congress.

John Locke

Thinker who influenced the Declaration of Independence.

Korematsu v. United States

Supreme Court case that upheld a suspension of civil rights in the name of national security.

Federalist 39

Essay focusing on self-government by stating power will derive from the people of America.

Articles of Confederation

Document that created a weak national government.

Vice President's legislative role

Under Article I of the Constitution, the role of breaking a tie in the Senate.

Representative democracy

Principle promoted by the change from state legislatures electing senators to election by the people.

Anti-federalists

Group that wanted rights for the people as a condition of ratification for the U.S. Constitution.

Texas v. Johnson

Case reflecting the principle that the government may not prohibit expression just because people find it disagreeable.

Legislative branch

Branch granted the "power to lay and collect taxes."

Tenth amendment

Amendment whose purpose is to reserve power to the states.

Monroe Doctrine of 1823

Policy focused on protecting central American nations from hostile aggression.