yaghi final

prorogue

to discontinue a session

At-large elections are...

constitutional unless there is proof of a discriminatory purpose (discriminatory impact not sufficient).

Qualifications for house

25, citizen for 7 years, and inhabitant of state

Continuous body

governing unit whose seats are never all up for election at the same time

Qualifications of Senators

30 years of age, a citizen of the U.S. for at least 9 years, and must live in the state they want to represent.

5 major roles of Congress people

Create laws, declare wars on other countries, approve elected presidents to enter office, approve treaties, serve as the voice of the people and states.

Trustees

believe that each question they face must be decided on its merits

Delegates

act as representatives

Partisan

Devoted to or biased in support of a party

Politico

Lawmaker who attempts to balance the basic elements of the trustee, delegate, and partisan roles

Leadership in house

speaker of the house, majority leader, minority leader, whips

Leadership in the Senate

*U.S. vice president is president of Senate, but his only real power is to break tie votes
*Majority leader most powerful senator
*Committee chairpersons (always members of the majority party) hold much power

4 types of Committees

standing, select, joint, conference

conference committee

A special joint committee appointed to reconcile differences when bills pass the two chambers of Congress in different forms.

How to get on a congressional committee

selected

bill

a proposed law

draft bill

Issued by Government for consultation before being formally introduced to Parliament

Bill (steps to become a law)

1. write bill
2. propose bill
3. committee assignment
4.committee work
5. schedule debate
6. debate and amend
7. budget
8. introducing legislation
9. committee work
10. schedule
11. debate
12. enrollment
13. final approval
14. sent to president

enumerated powers

The powers explicitly given to Congress in the Constitution.

implied powers

Powers inferred from the express powers that allow Congress to carry out its functions.

strict constructionist

a person who interprets the Constitution in a way that allows the federal government to take only those actions the Constitution specifically says it can take

liberal constructionist

someone who argues that the Constitution gives Congress very broad implied powers

ALL Enumerated Powers

to lay and collect taxes

raise and support an Army and Navy

pay debts and borrow money

regulate commerce

coin money

establish post offices

protect patents and copyrights

establish lower courts

establish lower courts

declare war

Ogden v. Gibbons

1824. Congress has the power to regulate interstate commerce.

McCulloch v. Maryland

Maryland was trying to tax the national bank and Supreme Court ruled that federal law was stronger than the state law

legislative power

the power to make laws

nonlegislative power

duty Congress holds besides lawmaking

Examples of non-legislative powers

\-in certain instances, the houses may choose the President and VP -Senate has the power to confirm/deny executive appointees to federal positions -House has the power to impeach federal officials

Senate has power to remove them from office -Senate has power to ratify/deny treaties with foreign relations

Presidential Roles

Chief of State - the ceremonial head of the government of the United States

Chief Executive - given this title by the Constitution

Chief Administrator - carry out the laws, head of the federal bureaucracy

Chief Diplomat - main architect of America's foreign policy

Commander in Chief - head of the nation's armed forces

Chief Legislator - can push for laws to be passed

Chief of Party - Leader of their political party

Qualifications for President

35 years old, born in the U.S., and has to have lived in the U.S. for 14 years

president succession

VP, speaker of the house, president pro tempore, secretary of state

President Disability

The Vice President becomes president if the president becomes deathly ill and has to resign or dies.

National Conventions

A meeting held every four years by each of the major political parties to nominate a presidential candidate.

Open and Closed Primaries

A closed primary election is one in which voters choose from candidates only from the party in which they are registered. This differs from an open primary in that an open primary allows a voter to cast his/her vote within whichever contest (Democrat, Republican, Green, etc.) the voter chooses

Executive powers

the power to execute, enforce, and administer law

Administrative work

managing or organizing documents and information

ordinance power

Power of the president to issue executive orders

executive agreement

an agreement between the president and the leader of another country

Commander in Chief Duties

Commands all military forces
Final word in wartime

reprieve

a temporary relief or delay

Pardon

A declaration of forgiveness and freedom from punishment

clemency

mercy

Commutation

The power to reduce (commute) the length of a sentence or fine for a crime

Amnesty

a pardon to a group of people

3 features of bureaucracy

1. Hierarchical authority
2. Job specialization
3. Formalized rules

commission

An amount paid to an employee based on a percentage of the employee's sales

Executive office of president and main functions

communicating the President's message to the American people to promoting our trade interests abroad

EOP agencies

- Report directly to President
- Most important agency- Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
- Other important EOP agencies
--\> National Security Advisors (NSA)
--\> Council of Economic Advisors
- Some EOP agency heads hired and fired at will
- Congress not involved with approval of National Security Advisor or the President's personal White House staff

Secretaries of State

Cabinet members responsible for subjects such as education, health and defence

15 executive departments

1. Department of Agriculture
2. Department of Commerce
3. Department of Defense
4. Department of Education
5. Department of Energy
6. Department of Health and Human Services
7. Department of Homeland Security
8. Department of Housing and Urban Development
9. Department of The interior
10. Department of Justice
11. Department of Labor
12. Department of State
13. Department of Transportation
14. Department of Treasury
15. Department of Veterans affairs

Independent Executive Agencies

governmental units that closely resemble a Cabinet department but have narrower areas of responsibility and perform services rather than regulatory functions

Independent Regulatory Commissions

Independent agencies created by Congress to regulate important aspects of the nation's economy. Commissioners appointed by President but not removable except "for cause" (to protect independence). Most independent and least accountable part of the federal bureaucracy.

civil service

A system of hiring and promotion based on the merit principle and the desire to create a nonpartisan government service.

corporation income tax

A tax levied on all the earnings of a business less its operating costs and authorized deductions.

Excise taxes

Taxes placed on manufactured products. The excise tax on whiskey helped raise revenue for Hamilton's program.

custom duties

taxes on foreign imported goods

Entitlements Programs

government programs providing benefits to qualified individuals regardless of need

Constitutional Courts

Federal courts specifically created by the U.S. Constitution or by Congress pursuant to its authority in Article III.

The Special Courts

federal courts which were created by Congress to hear specific types of cases

Distinct courts

trial courts at the county, state, or federal level with general and original jurisdiction

Structure of court of appeals

94 district courts are organized into 12 circuits, or regions. panel of 3 judges

Conference (Supreme Court)

When oral arguments are concluded, the Justices have to decide the case. They do so at what is known as the Justices' Conference.

Military Commissions

courtlike boards of usually five commissioned officers that are not a part of the courts-martial system
set up to try terrorist suspects

Civil rights

the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality.

Civil Liberties

freedoms to think and act without government interference or fear of unfair legal treatment

process of incorporation

The process of incorporating, or including, most of the guarantees in the Bill of Rights into the 14th Amendment's Due Process Clause

9th Amendment

Citizens entitled to rights not listed in the Constitution

1st and 14th amendments

People are completely free to believe and practice what they wish and the government cannot intervene. more or less.

Sedition and seditious speech

attempting to overthrow the government by force or to disrupt its lawful activities by violent acts or urging others to do so. Not protected by the First Amendment.

Obscenity

an offensive or indecent word or phrase

Content neutral

the government may not regulate assemblies on the basis on what might be said

police power

state power to enact laws promoting health, safety, and morals

13th amendment

abolished slavery

Habeas corpus

An order to produce an arrested person before a judge.

bill of attainder

a law that punishes a person accused of a crime without a trial or a fair hearing in court

indictment

the act of accusing, a formal accusation

double jeopardy

Being tried twice for the same crime

6th Amendment

The right to a Speedy Trial by jury, representation by an attorney for an accused person

Heterogenous

not similar

rational basis test

A standard developed by the courts to test the constitutionality of a law when applied, a law is constitutional as long as it meets a reasonable government interest.

strict scrutiny test

a test applied by the court when a classification is based on race

the government must show that there is a compelling reason for the law and no other less restrictive way to meet the interest

de jure segregation

segregation by law

de facto segregation

Segregation resulting from economic or social conditions or personal choice.

19th amendment

Gave women the right to vote

Civil Rights Act of 1964

outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

Affirmative Action

A policy designed to redress past discrimination against women and minority groups through measures to improve their economic and educational opportunities

14th Amendment

Rights of Citizens

Jus soli

Law of the soil

Jus sanguinis

The law of blood, which determines citizenship based on one's parents' citizenship.

Expatriation

the legal process by which a loss of citizenship occurs

Franchise

suffrage, the right to vote

Suffrage

the right to vote in political elections

Disenfranchised

denied the right to vote

Electorate

All of the people entitled to vote in a given election

forms of political participation

Writing letters to local representatives, Distributing campaign literature, and Voting in elections

Grassroots participation

bottom-up efforts of people taking collective actions on their own behalf, and they involve the use of a sophisticated blend of confrontation and cooperation in order to achieve their ends

Voting amendments

15, 19, 24, 26

why people do not vote

1. Not Registered to Vote 2. Politically apathetic 2. Too ill to Vote 4. no interest 5. no time

political socialization

the process by which people gain their political attitudes and opinions

socioeconomic status

status in society based on level of education, income, and occupational prestige