Honors Gov Unit 2 Vocab (Baumann)

Civil Liberties

Rights that are granted by the government

Civil rights

Equal protection for ALL people; regardless of gender, race, religion, etc.

Establishment Clause

Clause in the First Amendment that says the government may not enforce an official religion.

Free Exercise Clause

A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion.

Symbolic Speech

Using actions or signs rather than words to convey an idea

Sedition

behavior that promotes rebellion or civil disorder against the state

Defamation

False speech that harms ones good name

Slander

spoken defamation

Libel

written defamation

Alien

a person living in a country who is not a citizen of that country

Resident Alien

a person from a foreign nation who has established permanent residence in the United States, but who has not completed the naturalization process.

Non-resident alien

a person from a foreign country who expects to stay in the United States for a short, specified period of time.

Enemy Alien

a citizen of a nation with which the United States is at war

Illegal Alien

a foreigner who has entered or resides in a country unlawfully or without the country's authorization.

Refugee

A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster

Naturalization

the legal process by which citizens of one country become citizens of another

Expatriation

the legal process of giving up one's citizenship

Denaturalization

the loss of citizenship through fraud or deception during the naturalization process

exclusionary rule

a law that prohibits the use of illegally obtained (gathered without probable cause) evidence in a criminal trial.

self-incrimination

giving testimony that can be used against oneself

double jeopardy

Trial or punishment of the same person for the same crime by the same government; forbidden by the Constitution.

Ideology

a system of ideas and ideals, especially one that forms the basis of economic or political theory and policy.

Caucus

Political party members meet in a room and publicly vote and debate over candidates

Closed Primary

A primary in which only registered members of a particular political party can vote

Open Primary

A primary election in which voters may choose in which party to vote as they enter the polling place

Platform

a political party's formal statement of basic principles, stands on major issues, and objectives

Political Action Committee (PAC)

A committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations

Soft Money

Money raised in unlimited amounts by political parties for party-building purposes

Suffrage

the right to vote

Propaganda

information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view.

Interest Group

An organization of people sharing a common interest or goal that seeks to influence the making of public policy

Lobbying

A strategy by which organized interests seek to influence the passage of legislation by exerting direct pressure on members of the legislature.

Mass Media

Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the Internet, and other means of popular communication.

prior restraint

government censorship of information before it is published or broadcast