Foundations of American Government

The State

Population Territory Sovereignty Government

Government

an institution that maintains social order, provides public services and enforces decisions

Sovereignty

Absolute power and authority

The Constitution

Rules for government, government organization, government powers and duties, supreme law

Popular Sovereignty

Power of the people

Limited Government term-31

The government is not all powerful; The government can only do what the people direct it to do

Federalism

Power divided between the national and state (local) government

Delegated Powers

Powers given to the national government by the Constitution

Reserved Powers

Powers set aside for the state governments by the Constitution

Concurrent Powers

Powers that both the national and state government can exercise

Separation of Powers

The three branches of government have been given separate powers and unique responsibilities

Checks and Balances

The Constitution gives each branch of government several ways to keep the others in check

Judicial Review

Supreme Court determines the constitutionality of laws, judicial decisions, or acts of government

Force Theory

Countries with government came to be because a small group made everyone follow them

Divine Right Theory

God gave a specific person/family the right to rule

Evolutionary Theory

Countries with government came from the family

Social Contract Theory

We give up some freedoms to government for protection but if they do not serve us and follow our will, we can overthrow them; foundational idea of the Declaration of Independence

Thomas Hobbes

Created the Social Contract Theory

John Locke

Built upon the Social Contract Theory; Natural Rights

Natural Rights

Right to life, liberty and property (pursuit of happiness)

Jean Jacques Rousseau

A fundamental objective of good government is the freedom of all its citizens

Montesquieu

Best government has separate, Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches with checks and balances

Federal System

Government power divided between national and state governments

Unitary System

Government power all in one (central) place

Confederacy

Loose union of independent states

Politics

How government is conducted

Democracy

Government by the people

Republican form of Democracy/Indirect Democracy/Representative Democracy

People elect representatives and give then responsibility to make laws and conduct government

Economics

The study of how governments use limited resources to satisfy unlimited wants

Free Enterprise

Allows for people and businesses to make their own economic choices about how best to produce, distribute and exchange goods and services with limited interference from government

Mixed Economy

Individual incentives, private property, make economic choices, competition, government regulation

Public Policy

The choices the government makes and the actions it takes in response to a particular issue or problem

Preamble

The introduction to the Declaration of Independence and Constitution

Statement of Beliefs

Philosophy behind the Declaration of Independence

List of Complaints

What the colonists said that King George II to them

Statement of Prior Attempts to Redress Grievance

What colonists said they did to make things right with King George III