AP GOV ALL VOCAB

American dream

A complex set of ideas that the United States is a land of opportunity where individual initiative and hard work can bring economic success.

Antifederalists

Opponents of ratification of the Constitution and of a strong central government generally.

Articles of Confederation

The first governing document of the confederated states, drafted in 1777, ratified in 1781, and replaced by the present Constitution in 1787.

Bicameralism

The principle of a two-house legislature.

Capitalism

An economic system based on private property, competitive markets, economic incentives, and limited government involvement in production, pricing, and distribution of goods and services.

Connecticut Compromise

The compromise for a bicameral legislature: lower house representation based on population and upper house with two senators per state.

Constitutional democracy

Government that enforces recognized limits on those who govern and allows the voice of the people to be heard through free, fair, and relatively frequent elections.

Constitutionalism

The set of arrangements, including checks and balances, federalism, separation of powers, rule of law, due process, and a bill of rights, that requires leaders to listen, think, bargain, and explain before acting.

Democracy

Government by the people, directly or indirectly, with free and frequent elections.

Democratic consensus

A condition for democracy in which the people widely share a set of attitudes and beliefs about governmental procedures, institutions, core documents, and fundamental values.

Direct Democracy

Government in which citizens vote on laws and select officials directly.

Direct primary

An election in which voters choose party nominees.

Electoral College

The electoral system used to elect the president and vice president, where voters vote for electors pledged to a party’s candidates.

Federalists

A group that argued for ratification of the Constitution and a stronger national government; they controlled the new federal government until Thomas Jefferson’s election in 1803.

Initiative

A procedure by which a certain number of voters may petition to propose a law or constitutional amendment and have it submitted to voters.

Linkage institutions

Political channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the policy agenda (e.g., elections, parties, interest groups, media).

Majority

The candidate or party that wins more than half the votes cast in an election.

Majority rule

Governance according to the expressed preferences of the majority.

Natural rights

The rights of all people to dignity and worth; also called human rights.

New Jersey Plan

A proposal at the Constitutional Convention for a central government with a single-house legislature in which each state would be represented equally.

Plurality

The candidate or party with the most votes cast, not necessarily more than half.

Policy agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and others involved in politics at any given time.

Political Culture

The widely shared beliefs, values, and norms citizens hold about their relationship to government and to one another.

Popular consent

The idea that a just government must derive its powers from the consent of the people it governs.

Recall

A procedure for submitting to popular vote the removal of officials from office before the end of their term.

Referendum

A procedure for submitting to popular vote measures by the legislature or proposed amendments to a state constitution.

Representative Democracy/Republic

Government in which the people elect those who govern and pass laws; also called a republic.

Shay’s Rebellion

A rebellion led by Daniel Shays of farmers in western Massachusetts in 1786–1787 protesting mortgage foreclosures; it highlighted the need for a strong national government.

The Federalist

Essays promoting ratification of the Constitution, published anonymously by Hamilton, Jay, and Madison in 1787 and 1788.

Theocracy

Government by religious leaders who claim divine guidance.

Three-fifths Compromise

The compromise between Northern and Southern states that three-fifths of the slave population would be counted for direct taxation and representation in the House.

Virginia Plan

The initial proposal at the Constitutional Convention for a strong central government with a bicameral legislature dominated by the big states.

Marbury v Madison

background: madison refused Marbury papers

ruling: marbury entitled to commission, unconstitutional to write writs mandamus, established judicial review, federal judiciary act that allows marbury sue is unconstitutional

clause: article 3, necessary and proper clause and supremacy clause

McCulloch V Maryland

background: maryland tax bank and mcculloch refuse pay

ruling: states cannot tax nat gov under supremacy (1st implied)/ government has right to create national bank under necessary and proper

clause: article 3 necessary and proper and supremacy

Schenck v us

background: schenck protested war draft through pamphlets and arrested under espionage act

ruling: speech limited if danger clear and present

clause: first amendment freedom of speech

Brown v board

background: segregated schools

ruling: segregation is inherently unequal

clause: 14th amendment equal protections clause

baker v carr

background: tennessee failed redistrict based on population

ruling: populations in districts need to be equal, one man one vote, courts will hear redistributing

clause: 14th amendment equal protections clause

Engel v. Vitale

background: New york school prayer

ruling: school led prayer is unconstitutional/ coercive in nature

clause: 1st amendment establishment clause

Gideon v Wainwright

background: gideon arrested and denied attorney

ruling: free legal counsel required, selective incorporation

clause: 6th amendment right to attorney applies through 14th amendment due process clause

Tinker v Des Moines

background: tinker wire black armbands to protest vietnam war

ruling: protest if not disrupt education

clause: 1st amendment freedom of speech

New York Times v US

background: NYT got access to pentagon papers and gov tried ban publication

ruling: prior restraint is unconstitutional unless immediate national security

clause: 1st amendment freedom of press

Wisconsin v Yoder

background: yoder not enroll kid in school bc amish beliefs and fined

ruling: wisconsin not allowed fine since it’s through religious beliefs

clause: 1st amendment free exercise clause

Shaw v Reno

background: redistricting based on race to enhance voting rights

ruling: race can be factor but not only

clause: 14th equal protections

US V Lopez

background: lopez brought gun to school through guns free zones act

ruling: act is unconstitutional (first limit commerce clause in 60 years)/ guns are under state local government.

clause: commerce clause

citizens united v FEC

background: campaigns are expensive and cooperations not make ads for/against

ruling: independent expedentures are protected

clause: 1st amendment freedom of speech

Mcdonald v chicago

background: mcdonald wanted gun but was banned

ruling: due process clause has 2nd amendment right to bear arms, selective incorporation

clause:2nd amendment right to bear arms through 14th due process clause

Cabinet

Advisory council for the president consisting of the heads of the executive departments, the

vice president, and a few other officials selected by the president (pg 342)

Chief of staff

The head of the White House staff (pg 341)

Congressional-executive agreement

A formal agreement between a U.S. president and the leaders of other nations that requires

approval by both houses of Congress (pg 332)

Electoral College

the electoral system used in electing the president and vice president, in which voters vote for

electors pledged to cast their ballots for a particular party’s candidates (pg 328)

Executive agreement

A formal agreement between the U.S. president and the leaders of other nations that does not

require Senate approval (pg 330)

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

The cluster of presidential staff agencies that help the president carry out his responsibilities.

Currently the office includes the Office of Management and Budget, the Council of Economic

Advisers, and several other units (pg 341)

Executive order

Formal orders issued by the president to direct action by the Federal bureaucracy (pg 338)

Executive privilege

The right to keep executive communications confidential, especially if they relate to National

Security (pg 337)

Impeachment

Formal accusation against a president or other public official, the first step in removal from

office (pg 334)

Impoundment

A decision by the president not to spend money appropriated by Congress, now prohibited

under Federal law (pg 339)

Inherent powers

Powers that grow out of the very existence of government (pg 333)

Line item veto

Presidential power to strike, or remove, specific items from a spending bill without vetoing the

entire package; declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court (pg 339)

Mandate

A president’s claim of broad public support (pg 349)

National Security Council

An office created in 1947 to coordinate the president’s foreign policy and military policy

advisors. Its formal members are the president, the vice president, secretary of state, and the

secretary of defense. It is managed by the president’s national security advisor. Known as the

NSC. It is a major policy making institution w/in executive branch.

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

Presidential staff the agency that serves as a clearinghouse for budgetary requests and

management improvements for government agencies (pg 341)

Pocket veto

A formal decision to reject a bill passed by Congress after it adjourns – if Congress adjourns

during the ten days that the president is allowed in order to sign or veto law, the president can

reject the law by taking no action at all (pg 332)

Political capital

the amount of overall public approval that a president can use to win support for major

decisions and proposals (pg 349)

Presidential support score

the percentage of times a president wins on key votes in Congress (pg 349)

Presidential ticket

The joint listing of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on the same ballot as

required by the Twelfth Amendment (pg 329)

Recess appointment

presidential appointment made without Senate confirmation during Senate recess (pg 332)

Signing statement

a formal document that explains why a president is signing a particular bill into law; these

statements may contain objections to the bill and promises not to implement key sections (pg

333)

State of the Union Address

The president’s annual statement to Congress and the nation (pg 333)

Take care clause

The constitutional requirement (in Article II, Section 3) that presidents take care that the laws

are faithfully executed, even if they disagree with the purpose of those laws (pg 333)

Treaty

A formal, public agreement between the United States and one or more nations that must be

approved by two thirds of the Senate (pg 330)

Twentieth Amendment

Passed in 1933 and known as the “Lame Duck Amendment”, it changed the inauguration

from March 4th to January 20th

.

Twenty-fifth Amendment

Passed in 1967, this amendment permits the vice president to become acting president if both

the vice president and the president’s cabinet determine that the president is disabled. The

amendment also outlines how a recuperated president can reclaim the job.

Twenty-second Amendment

Passed in 1951, the amendment that limits presidents to two terms of office.

Vesting clause

the president’s constitutional authority to control most executive functions (pg 329)

Veto

A formal decision to reject the bill passed by Congress (pg 332)

War Powers Resolution

A resolution passed in 1973 requiring the president to give advance warning of a military

attack or ask Congress for a declaration of war or specific legislation (pg 336

527 organizations

Named for the section of the IRS Tax Code, a 527 is an advocacy group trying to influence elections through voter mobilization and the spending of unlimited dollars in “independent expenditures.”

Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BiCRA/McCain-Feingold)

Largely banned party soft money, restored a long-standing prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes, and narrowed the definition of issue advocacy (pg 250); Citizens United v. FEC overturns some of this Act

Candidate appeal

The tendency in elections to focus on the personal attributes of a candidate, such as his/her strengths, weaknesses, background, experience, and visibility (pg 236)

Caucus

A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform (pg 241)

Coattail effect

The boost that candidates may get in an election because of the popularity of candidates above them on the ballot, especially the president (pg 234)

Direct primary

Election in which voters choose party nominees; may be open or closed

Electoral college

Electoral system used in electing the president and vice president, in which voters vote for electors pledged to cast their ballots for particular party’s candidates (pg 230)

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

A commission created by the 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act to administer election reform laws. It consists of six commissioners appointed by president and confirmed by the Senate. Its duties include overseeing disclosure of campaign finance information and public funding of presidential elections, and enforcing contribution limits (pg 249)

Hard money

Donations made to political candidates or groups which, by law, are limited and must be declared (pg 251)

Independent expenditures

Money spent by individuals or groups not associated with candidates to elect or defeat candidates for office (pg 252)

Issue advocacy

Promoting a particular position or an issue paid for by interest groups or individuals but not candidates. Much issue advocacy is often electioneering for or against a candidate, and until 2004 had not been subject to any regulation (pg 252)

Midterm election

election held midway between presidential elections (pg 213)

Name recognition

Incumbents have an advantage over challengers in election campaigns because voters are more familiar with them, and incumbents are more recognizable (pg 237)

National tide

The inclination to focus on national issues, rather than local issues, in an election campaign. The impact of the national tide can be reduced by the nature of the candidates on the ballot who might have differentiated themselves from their party or its leader if the tide is negative, as well as competition in the election (pg 236)

National party convention

A national meeting of delegates elected at primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules (pg 244)

Nomination

The official endorsement of a candidate for office by a political party. Generally, success in the nomination game requires momentum, money, and media attention

Presidential election

election held in year when the president is on the ballot

Proportional representation

Election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote (pg 229)

Prospective issue voting

voting based on what a candidate pledges to do in the future about an issue if elected (pg 220)

Retrospective issue voting

holding incumbents, uualy the president’s party responsible for their records on issues, such as the economy and foreign policy (pg 220)

Safe seat

Elected office that is predictably won by one party or the other, so the success of the party’s candidate is almost taken for granted (pg 234)

Single-member district

An electoral district in which voters choose one representative or official (pg 229)

Soft money

Contributions to a state or local party for party-building purposes (pg 251)