Wk 4

Key vocabulary terms and concise definitions drawn from the transcript, covering Florida politics, U.S. political scandals, and major constitutional and policy issues discussed in the video.

Chet Stokes

Republican candidate for Florida House District 16; Jacksonville Beach City Councilman; corrected biography noting he was seven credit hours short of graduating from Auburn University.

House District 16 (HD 16)

New Florida legislative district; ranges from the Beaches to the Regency Square area.

Strengthening Florida’s Future

Campaign committee associated with political fundraising and advocacy.

A Stronger Florida for Us

Another political committee mentioned in connection with campaign fundraising.

Monkey Business

Name of the yacht involved in Gary Hart’s scandal with Donna Rice.

Donna Rice

Miami-based woman who was involved in Gary Hart’s extramarital affair, fueling the Hart scandal.

Hart scandal

Gary Hart’s 1987-1988 presidential campaign controversy over alleged extramarital affairs leading to his withdrawal.

Gary Hart

U.S. senator and Democratic presidential candidate whose private-life scandal halted his campaign in 1987–1988.

Matt Lauer

NBC News anchor who hosted the televised moderator role for presidential forum/debate coverage and drew commentary on his performance.

Pinocchios

Washington Post award for false statements; used here to describe the labeling of false statements in political discourse.

Preclearance

A provision of the Voting Rights Act requiring certain jurisdictions to obtain federal approval before changing voting laws or procedures.

Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

Supreme Court case that struck down the VRA preclearance formula, enabling states to implement certain voting changes without federal clearance.

Abbott v. Perez (2018)

Supreme Court case evaluating Texas redistricting; held that racial intent in districting could be proven under certain standards, affecting how discrimination is shown.

San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez (1973)

Supreme Court ruling that wealth-based disparities in school funding do not violate the Equal Protection Clause; cited as a narrow view of equality.

First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti (1976)

Case establishing corporate free-speech rights in the context of political spending.

Citizens United v. FEC (2010)

Landmark ruling allowing corporations and unions to spend unlimited funds on independent political expenditures.

Buckley v. Valeo (1976)

Case upholding some campaign-finance limits while recognizing First Amendment protections for spending; foundational for later limits.

McCutcheon v. FEC (2014)

Struck down the aggregate cap on individual political contributions across candidates and committees.

Sorrell v. IMS Health, Inc. (2011)

Court struck down a Vermont data-privacy law restricting the sale of physicians’ prescription data; emphasized corporate speech concerns.

Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (2018)

Allowed employers to require individual arbitration agreements and bar class-action wage claims.

NFIB v. Sebelius (2012)

Upheld most of the Affordable Care Act but sustained Medicaid expansion as consent-based and subject to states’ choices.

Rucho v. Common Cause (2019)

Supreme Court ruling that federal courts cannot rule on political questions of partisan gerrymandering.

Powell Memorandum (1971)

Lewis Powell’s memo urging business groups to organize politically and use the courts to promote a pro-business policy agenda.

Plum Book

Official listing of presidentially appointed positions in the federal government; published every four years.

Senior Executive Service (SES)

Senior career executives who operate between political appointees and the general civil service.

Schedule C (SC)

Confidential or policymaking political appointments in federal agencies.

Presidential Appointments Requiring Senate Confirmation (PAS)

Top-level federal positions that must be confirmed by the Senate.

Presidential Appointments Not Requiring Senate Confirmation (PA)

Positions appointed by the President that do not require Senate confirmation.

Three-Fifths Compromise

Constitutional clause counting enslaved people as three-fifths of a person for representation in the House.

Commerce Clause

Constitutional provision granting Congress power to regulate commerce among the states and with other nations.

Supremacy Clause

Constitutional clause declaring that the Constitution, federal laws, and treaties are the supreme law of the land.

Ratification

Process by which the Constitution was approved by the states; required nine states to ratify for it to take effect.

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)

2022 legislation investing in climate, healthcare, and energy provisions, including a 15% corporate minimum tax and other tax reforms.

One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA)

A satirical label used to describe a comprehensive but complex tax-and-law reform package.

Affordable Care Act (ACA)

Also known as Obamacare; comprehensive health-care reform expanding insurance coverage.

Medicaid expansion

Part of the ACA allowing states to extend Medicaid coverage to more low-income individuals; not all states chose to participate.

Crawford v. Marion County Election Board (2008)

U.S. Supreme Court upheld Indiana’s voter-ID law, sustaining burdens on voting access for some groups.

Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Inst. (2018)

Ohio’s voter-purge program upheld as a legitimate method to remove inactive voters from rolls.

Chet Stokes

Republican candidate for Florida House District 16; Jacksonville Beach City Councilman; corrected biography noting he was seven credit hours short of graduating from Auburn University.

House District 16 (HD 16)

New Florida legislative district; ranges from the Beaches to the Regency Square area.

Strengthening Florida’s Future

Campaign committee associated with political fundraising and advocacy.

A Stronger Florida for Us

Another political committee mentioned in connection with campaign fundraising.

Monkey Business

Name of the yacht involved in Gary Hart’s scandal with Donna Rice.

Donna Rice

Miami-based woman who was involved in Gary Hart’s extramarital affair, fueling the Hart scandal.

Hart scandal

Gary Hart’s 1987-1988 presidential campaign controversy over alleged extramarital affairs leading to his withdrawal.

Gary Hart

U.S. senator and Democratic presidential candidate whose private-life scandal halted his campaign in 1987–1988.

Matt Lauer

NBC News anchor who hosted the televised moderator role for presidential forum/debate coverage and drew commentary on his performance.

Pinocchios

Washington Post award for false statements; used here to describe the labeling of false statements in political discourse.

Preclearance

A provision of the Voting Rights Act requiring certain jurisdictions to obtain federal approval before changing voting laws or procedures.

Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

Supreme Court case that struck down the VRA preclearance formula, enabling states to implement certain voting changes without federal clearance.

Abbott v. Perez (2018)

Supreme Court case evaluating Texas redistricting; held that racial intent in districting could be proven under certain standards, affecting how discrimination is shown.

San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez (1973)

Supreme Court ruling that wealth-based disparities in school funding do not violate the Equal Protection Clause; cited as a narrow view of equality.

First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti (1976)

Case establishing corporate free-speech rights in the context of political spending.

Citizens United v. FEC (2010)

Landmark ruling allowing corporations and unions to spend unlimited funds on independent political expenditures.

Buckley v. Valeo (1976)

Case upholding some campaign-finance limits while recognizing First Amendment protections for spending; foundational for later limits.

McCutcheon v. FEC (2014)

Struck down the aggregate cap on individual political contributions across candidates and committees.

Sorrell v. IMS Health, Inc. (2011)

Court struck down a Vermont data-privacy law restricting the sale of physicians’ prescription data; emphasized corporate speech concerns.

Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (2018)

Allowed employers to require individual arbitration agreements and bar class-action wage claims.

NFIB v. Sebelius (2012)

Upheld most of the Affordable Care Act but sustained Medicaid expansion as consent-based and subject to states’ choices.

Rucho v. Common Cause (2019)

Supreme Court ruling that federal courts cannot rule on political questions of partisan gerrymandering.

Powell Memorandum (1971)

Lewis Powell’s memo urging business groups to organize politically and use the courts to promote a pro-business policy agenda.

Plum Book

Official listing of presidentially appointed positions in the federal government; published every four years.

Senior Executive Service (SES)

Senior career executives who operate between political appointees and the general civil service.

Schedule C (SC)

Confidential or policymaking political appointments in federal agencies.

Presidential Appointments Requiring Senate Confirmation (PAS)

Top-level federal positions that must be confirmed by the Senate.

Presidential Appointments Not Requiring Senate Confirmation (PA)

Positions appointed by the President that do not require Senate confirmation.

Three-Fifths Compromise

Constitutional clause counting enslaved people as three-fifths of a person for representation in the House.

Commerce Clause

Constitutional provision granting Congress power to regulate commerce among the states and with other nations.

Supremacy Clause

Constitutional clause declaring that the Constitution, federal laws, and treaties are the supreme law of the land.

Ratification

Process by which the Constitution was approved by the states; required nine states to ratify for it to take effect.

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)

2022 legislation investing in climate, healthcare, and energy provisions, including a 15% corporate minimum tax and other tax reforms.

One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA)

A satirical label used to describe a comprehensive but complex tax-and-law reform package.

Affordable Care Act (ACA)

Also known as Obamacare; comprehensive health-care reform expanding insurance coverage.

Medicaid expansion

Part of the ACA allowing states to extend Medicaid coverage to more low-income individuals; not all states chose to participate.

Crawford v. Marion County Election Board (2008)

U.S. Supreme Court upheld Indiana’s voter-ID law, sustaining burdens on voting access for some groups.

Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Inst. (2018)

Ohio’s voter-purge program upheld as a legitimate method to remove inactive voters from rolls.

Necessary and Proper Clause

Article I, Section 8, Clause 18 of the U.S. Constitution, also known as the Elastic Clause, granting Congress the power to make all laws "necessary and proper" for carrying into execution its enumerated powers.

Political Action Committee (PAC)

Organizations that pool campaign contributions from members and donate those funds to campaigns for or against candidates, ballot initiatives, or legislation.

Super PACs

Independent political action committees that may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, associations, and individuals, then spend unlimited sums to overtly advocate for or against political candidates. Unlike traditional PACs, they cannot donate directly to candidate campaigns.

Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act

Prohibits voting practices or procedures that discriminate on the basis of race, color, or membership of a protected language minority group through the denial or abridgement of the right to vote.

Spoils System

The practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government civil service jobs to its supporters, friends, and relatives as a reward for working toward victory, and as an incentive to continue to work for the party.