Unit 1 Vocabulary

Politics

the process of influencing the actions and policies of

government.

Government

the rules and institutions that make up the system of

policymaking.

Democracy

a system of government where power is held by the

people.

Natural rights (inalienable rights)

the right to life, liberty, and property, which

government cannot take away.

Social contract

people allow their governments to rule over them

to ensure an orderly and functioning society.

Popular sovereignty

the idea that the government’s right to rule

comes from the people.

Republicanism (representative democracy)

a system in which the government’s authority

comes from the people.

Liberty

social, political, and economic freedoms

Participatory democracy

a theory that widespread participation is essential for democratic government.

Civil society groups

independent associations outside the government’s control.

Pluralist theory

a theory of democracy that emphasizes the role of groups in the policymaking process.

Elitist theory

a theory of democracy that the elites have a disproportionate amount of influence in the policymaking process.

Hyperpluralism theory (not in textbook)

when a large

number of different groups or factions become so politically influential,

the government is unable to function properly.

Political institutions

the structure of government, including the executive, legislature, and judiciary

Constitutional republic

a democratic system with elected representatives in which the Constitution is the supreme law

Articles of Confederation

a governing

document that created a union of thirteen sovereign states in

which the states, not the union, were supreme.

Unicameral vs. Bicameral

a one-house legislature.

Shays’s Rebellion

a popular uprising against the government of

Massachusetts.

Constitutional Convention

a meeting attended by state delegates

in 1787 to fix the Articles of Confederation.

Writ of habeas corpus

he right of people detained by the

government to know the charges against them

Bills of attainder

when the legislature declares someone guilty

without a trial.

Ex post facto laws

laws punishing people for acts that were not

crimes at the time they were committed.

Virginia Plan

plan of government calling for a three-branch

government with a bicameral legislature, where more populous

states would have more representation in Congress.

New Jersey Plan

a plan of government that provided for a

unicameral legislature with equal votes for each states.

Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)

n agreement for a plan of

government that drew upon both the Virginia and New Jersey

Plans; it settled issues of state representation by calling for a

bicameral legislature with a House of Representatives

apportioned proportionately and a Senate apportioned equally.

3/5ths Compromise

an agreement reached by delegates at

the Constitutional Convention that a slave would count as three-

fifths of a person in calculating a state’s representation.

Slave Trade Compromise

newly enslaved people from Africa could not be imported into the United States after 1808.

Separation of powers

a design of government that distributes

powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch

too powerful on its own.

Checks and Balances

a design of government in which each

branch has powers that can prevent the other branches from

making policy.

Federalism

the sharing of power between the national

government and the states.

Legislative Branch

he institution responsible for making laws.

Expressed/Enumerated Powers

authority specifically granted to

a branch of the government in the Constitution.

Necessary and Proper Clause (Elastic Clause)

Language in Article I,

Section 8 granting Congress the powers necessary to carry out its

enumerated powers.

Implied Powers

authority of the federal government that goes

beyond its expressed powers.

Inherent Powers

Judicial Branch

the institution responsible for hearing and

deciding cases through the federal courts.

Supremacy Clause

constitutional provision declaring that the

Constitution and all federal laws and treaties are the supreme law

of the land.

Amendment

the process by which changes may be made to the

Constitution.

Federalists

supporters of the proposed Constitution, who called

for a strong national government.

Antifederalists

those opposed to the proposed Constitution, who

favored stronger state governments.

Federalist Papers

a series of eighty-five essays written by

Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay and published

between 1787 and 1788 that lay out the theory behind the

Constitution.

Executive Branch

the institution responsible for carrying out laws

passed by the legislative branch.

Faction

group of self-interested individuals who

use the government to get what they want

Unitary system

a system where the central government has all of

the power over subnational governments.

Confederal system

a system where the subnational governments

have most of the power.

Exclusive powers

powers only the national government may

exercise.

Commerce Clause

grants Congress the authority to regulate

interstate business and commercial activity.

Tenth Amendment

reserves powers not delegated to the national

government to the states and the people; the basis of federalism.

Reserved powers

powers not given to the national government,

which are retained by the states and the people.

Concurrent powers

powers granted to both states and the federal

government in the Constitution.

Full faith and credit clause

constitutional clause requiring states

to recognize the public acts, records, and civil court proceedings

from another state.

Extradition

the requirement that officials in one state return a

defendant to another state where a crime was committed.

Privileges and immunities clause

constitutional clause that

prevents states from discriminating against people from out of

state.

Dual federalism

a form of American federalism in which the

states and the national government operate independently in their

own areas of public policy.

Selective incorporation

the process through which the Supreme

Court applies fundamental rights in the Bill of Rights to the states

on a case-by-case basis.

Cooperative federalism

a form of American federalism in which

the states and the national government work together to shape

public policy.

Grants-in-aid

federal money provided to states to implement

public policy objectives.

Fiscal federalism

he federal government’s use of grants-in-aid to

influence policies in the states.

Categorical grants

grant-in-aid provided to states with specific

provisions on their use.

Block grants

a type of grant-in-aid that gives state officials more

authority in the disbursement of the federal funds.

Unfunded mandate

federal requirements the states must follow,

without being provided with funding

Revenue sharing

when the federal government apportions tax

money to the states with no strings attached.

Devolution

returning more authority to state or local

governments.

Inherent powers

powers of a state or branch of government that are not expressly written in a Constitution