AP US Government Midterm

Participatory Democracy

a theory of democracy that holds that citizens should actively and directly control all aspects of their lives

Pluralist Democracy

a theory of democracy that holds that citizen membership in groups is the key to political power

Elitist Democracy

a model of democracy in which a small number of people, usually those who are wealthy, have the most influence on political decision making

Republicanism

A philosophy of limited government with elected representatives serving at the will of the people.

Popular Sovereignty

A government in which the people rule by their own consent.

Natural Rights

the idea that all humans are born with rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and property

John Locke

English philosopher who advocated the idea of a "social contract" and "natural rights"

Baron de Montesquieu

French aristocrat who believed government should have separation of powers

Shay's Rebellion

Rebellion in Massachusetts, protesting foreclosures and high taxes. It highlighted the need for a strong national government just as the call for the Constitutional Convention went out.

Bill of Attainder Clause Article I, §9, clause 3

Congress cannot pass a law that singles out a person for punishment without trial.

ex post facto law clause

Congress cannot pass a law that makes an act criminal although the act was legal when it was committed

Necessary and Proper Clause (Elastic Clause)

A clause in Article I, section 8, of the Constitution that gives Congress the power to do whatever it deems necessary and constitutional to meet its enumerated obligations

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power

Social Contract

An agreement between the people and their government signifying their consent to be governed

Thomas Hobbes

English philosopher believed that people are inherently selfish and need a strong central authority

Separation of Powers

Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches

Declaration of Independence Main Points

Natural rights, right to representation, and the right of people to institute a new government.

Articles of Confederation weaknesses

weak union, cant tax, could not regulate trade, no enforcement mechanisms, and unicameral

Virginia Plan

Proposal to have proportional representation in congress

New Jersey Plan

A constitutional proposal that would have given each state one vote in a new congress

CT (Great) Compromise

Compromise at Constitutional Convention which created the bicameral legislature

Three-Fifths Compromise

Agreement that each slave counted as three-fifths of a person in determining representation in the House for representation and taxation purposes

Compromise on Importation

Congress could not restrict the slave trade until 1808

writ of habeas corpus

A court order requiring jailers to explain to a judge why they are holding a prisoner in custody.

enumerated powers

The powers explicitly given to Congress in the Constitution.

Supremacy Clause

Article VI of the Constitution, which makes the Constitution, national laws, and treaties supreme over state laws when the national government is acting within its constitutional limits.

Amendment Process

Proposal by 2/3 vote of both houses of congress Ratification by 3/4 of the 50 state legislatures

Federalist Beliefs

supported a strong federal government, supporting industry and trade, and feared tyranny of the majority

Anti-federalist Beliefs

Against ratification of the constitution, wanted a Bill of Rights, and feared a powerful executive with standing army

Fed 51

Argues that separation of powers within the national government is the best way to prevent the concentration of power in the hands of one person or a single group.

Federalist 10

Argues that the dangers of factions and tyranny of the majority can be mitigated by a large republic

Brutus 1

Argues a centralized gov. in a large republic wouldn't be able to cater to the needs of all. Too much power is being given to the national gov. (ex. standing army)

Federal Negative

proposed by madison, government would be able to veto any state laws

Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. Proposed to assuage the fears of Anti-Federalists, protects individual liberties.

Unitary System

A government that gives all key powers to the national or central government

Confederal System

a system where the subnational governments have most of the power

Federalism

A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments

The Commerce Clause

The clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.

Tenth Amendment

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Constitution's requirement that each state accept the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state

Extradition Clause

Part of Article IV of the Constitution that requires states to extradite, or return, criminals to states where they have been convicted or are to stand trial.

Privileges and Immunities Clause

Guarantees that the citizens of each state are afforded the same rights as citizens of all other states.

Dual Federalism (Layer Cake)

A system of government in which both the states and the national government remain supreme within their own spheres, each responsible for some policies.

Cooperative Federalism (Marble Cake)

A system of government in which powers and policy assignments are shared between states and the national government. They may also share costs, administration, and even blame for programs that work poorly.

Grants-in-aid

federal money provided to states to implement public policy objectives

Fiscal Federalism

Federal government using money (grants) to influence & control states.

Categorical grants

Federal grants that can be used only for specific purposes of state and local spending. They come with strings attached, such as nondiscrimination provisions.

unfunded mandate

federal requirements that states must follow without being provided with funding

Block Grants

federal grants-in-aid that allow states considerable discretion in how the funds are spent

Revenue sharing

federal sharing of a fixed percentage of its revenue with the states

Devolution

the transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal government to the states

13th Amendment

abolished slavery

14th Amendment

Declares that all persons born in the U.S. are citizens and are guaranteed equal protection of the laws

15th Amendment

Citizens cannot be denied the right to vote because of race, color , or precious condition of servitude

reserved powers

Powers given to the state government alone

concurrent powers

Powers held jointly by the national and state governments.

Political Socialization

the process by which people gain their political attitudes and opinions

Individualism

a social theory favoring freedom of action for individuals over collective or state control.

Equal Opportunity

the idea that all people should have the same chance to achieve success, social status is based on effort, political equality for all

Free Enterprise/Laissez Faire

an economic system in which government intrudes as little as possible in the economic transactions among citizens and businesses

Rule of Law

principle that the law applies to everyone, even those who govern

Limited Government

The idea that a government's powers should be defined and limited by a constitution to protect the natural rights of citizens

Political Ideology

a more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue

Generational Effect

the impact of historical events experienced by a generation upon their political views

Life-cycle effects

The impact of age-related factors in the formation of political attitudes, opinions, and beliefs.

Party Ideology

a party's philosophy about the proper role of government and its set of positions on major issues

Conservatism

an ideology favoring more control of social behavior, fewer regulations on businesses, and less government interference in the economy

Liberalism

an ideology favoring less government control over social behavior and more greater regulation of businesses and of the economy

Libertarianism

An ideology insists on minimal government intervention, only use to protect individual liberties and public property

Democrat Ideology

more likely to favor social welfare programs, job programs through public works, tax laws that help people with lower income, and government regulation of business

Republican Ideology

more likely to be pro-life, larger role for state government, protection of business, and limiting social welfare programs

Straight ticket voting

practice of voting for candidates of only one party in an election

split-ticket voting

voting for candidates of different parties for different offices at the same election

party coalition

The groups and interests that support a political party.

realignment

when the groups of people who support a political party shift their allegiance to a different political party

critical election

An election when significant groups of voters change their traditional patterns of party loyalty (ex. FDR)

party era

time period when one party wins most national elections

Era of Divided Government

a trend since 1969, in which one party controls one or both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party

linkage institutions

The channels through which people's concerns become political issues on the government's policy agenda. In the United States, linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media.

Political mobilization

efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote

Base voters

party members who tend to vote loyally for their party's candidates in most elections

two-party system

An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.

proportional representation system

an election system for a legislature in which citizens vote for parties, rather than individuals, and parties are represented in the legislature according to the percentage of the vote they receive

single member plurality system

an election system for choosing members of the legislature where the winner is the candidate who receives the most votes, even if the candidate does not receive a majority of the votes

Third parties

minor political parties in competition with the two major parties

scientific poll

a representative poll of randomly selected respondents with a statistically significant sample size, using neutral language

random selection

A way of ensuring that a sample of people is representative of a population by giving everyone in the population an equal chance of being selected for the sample

benchmark poll

a survey taken at the beginning of a political campaign in order to gauge support for a candidate and determine which issues are important to voters

tracking poll

a survey determining the level of support for a candidate or an issue throughout a campaign

Article 1, Section 4

Directs and empowers states to administer congressional elections, subject to Congress' authority to "make or alter" state regulations

Ballot measures

A direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal.

Casework

Assistance given to constituents by congressional members, answering questions/doing favors

Caucus

A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.

Coattail effect

the influence of a popular presidential candidate on the election of congressional candidates of the same party

Electoral College

a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president.

Faithless elector

Elector who does not vote for the candidate they promised to vote for. These have never determined outcome of presidential election but is a major problem with electoral college system

Get out the vote (GOTV)

This phrase describes the multiple efforts expended by campaigns to get voters out to the polls on election day.

Invisible primary

The period before any votes are cast when candidates compete to win early support from the elite of the party and to create a positive first impression of their leadership skills.

rational choice voting

Voting based on what is perceived to be in the citizen's individual interest

retrospective voting

voting for a candidate because you like his or her past actions in office