US Govt

Agency Loss

The gap between what people want their representatives to do and what those representatives actually do.

Example: When elected officials fail to pass legislature that is beneficial to the public and instead prioritize their personal interests.

Antifederalists

A group of citizens that were against the Constitution because they believed it jeopardized the individual and state’s freedoms. This led to the creation of the Bill of Rights for them to accept the Constitution.

Articles of Confederation

The first form of government that the states had after the war, which gave more power to the states and created a decentralized government. Ultimately failed and replaced by the Constitution.

Bicameralism

The practice of having 2 chambers that share power.

Bill of Rights

The first 10 amendments of the Constitution created to ensure citizens rights as legal protections against government action.

Block Grant

Fixed amount of money for a specific purpose.

Checks and Balances

Each branch has some power of overseeing of the other branches.

Ex: Presidential veto and Senate approval of presidential appointments.

Civil Liberties

Protections FROM the government.

Ex: Bill of Rights

Civil Rights

Protections BY the government.

Ex: Guarantees equal social opportunities and protection.

Collective Action

An action taken by a group of like-minded individuals to achieve a common goal.

Ex: Montgomery Bus Boycott, where thousands of Black Americans refused to use the buses to end segregation.

Commerce Clause

Power to regulate commerce across the states Found in article 1, section 8.

Confederation

Highly decentralized federal government and grants most powers to states and local governments other than the ones specifically granted to the central govt.

Conformity Costs

The difference between what someone wants and what the group decides. People face this when group decisions don’t mathc their own interests.

De Facto Segregation

By customs.

Ex: Banks wouldn’t give mortgages to people in areas that suffered from redlining. AKA prominantly black areas.

De Jure Segregation

By jury, by law.

Ex: Jim Crow laws

Dual Federalism

A goverment system where federal and state governments operate in clearly defined seperate spheres of authority.

Layer cake.

Enumerated powers

The explicit powers givin to the government from Article 1, section 8, which include taxation, providing national defense, coinage of money, and regulation of commerce.

Equal Protection Clause

A 14th amendment clause that ensures equal protection of the law for all citizens. This now doesn’t exclude minorities and women.

Federalism

A form of government that mixes power levels between state/local and nation/federal level governments.

Federalists

Name given to 2 similar groups, the first one led by Hamilton to ratify the Constitution and the second by Hamilton and John Adams as a political party.

Federalist 51

An essay written by James Madison that argues the necessity for a separation of powers and checks and balances within the government to protect individual liberties.

Free Rider Problem

When people benefit from a public good without contributing to its creation or maintenance.

Ex: National Parks.

The Great Compromise

The creation of combining both the Virginia and New Jersey plans for a bicameral legislature. House of Reps. represents the people and the Senate represents the states.

Incorporation

SCOTUS extenstions to the Bill of Rights by interpretation of the 14th amendment.

Jim Crow laws

Laws created by the south to create segregation and create “white only” spaces like schools, restaurants, and hotels.

Matching Grant

Once the state spends in a certain area, the government will give more money.

Nationalization

The shifting of government powers to the national from the states.

Neccesary and Proper Clause

The last clause of Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution. This clause grants Congress the authority to make all laws that are “necessary and proper” and to execute those laws.

New Jersey Plan

Offered to give equal representation for all states.

Prisoner’s Dilemma

A game-theory scenario where 2 individuals, acting in their own rational self-interest, end up with a worse outcome than if they had cooperated.

Public goods

Goods collectively produced and freely available to public and for anyone’s consumption.

Republic

A form of democracy in which power is vested in elected representatives.

“Separate but Equal”

It was made to justify the creation of segregated buildings. Plessy vs. Ferguson targeted the weakness in this by highlighting the clear inequalitites in schools.

Separation of Powers

The distribution of government powers through institutions.
Ex: National government is divided between 3 branches, judicial, executive, and legislative.

Shared Federalism

Where the responsibilities are shared or overlap between state and national governments.

Supremacy clause

The Constitution and laws made under it are the highest in the country and can’t be overruled by state laws.

Tragedy of the Commons

A situation in which group members overuse/overexploit a common source, causing its destruction.

Transaction cost

Defined as the time and effort put into making compromises and to make collective decisions, or what notably increase when we want to amend the Constitution.

Tyranny of the Majority

When a minority groups rights and interests get overruled by a ruling majority.

Unitary Government

A system of government where one single government unit holds all the power instead of sharing it like a in a federalism government.

Virginia Plan

House legislation would be based off of population, which meant more representation in congress for bigger states.

Miller Test

Test was created by SCOTUS to define obscene speech as anything appealing to prurient interest.

Penumbras

Judicially created rights based on guarantees from the Bill of Rights such as privacy.

14th Amendment

This granted citizenship and guaranteed due process and equal protection.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

A landmark law that outlawed discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, and national origin.

Redlining

Where banks refused to gran mortgages to “high risk” areas that were populated by Black Americans

Dred Scott vs. Sandford

Owner moved to north, but this didn’t mean that slave was free just because it moved to free state. Ruled that the federal laws restricting the expansion of slavery was unconstitutional.

poll taxes and literacy tests

These tests and taxes were used to disenfranchise Black voters after the Reconstruction.

Moments that expanded federal government powers

The New Deal (Roosevelt) and The Great Society (Johnson)

Federalist No. 10

Factions would be solved if we had a large republic with diverse interests.

Electoral college

Balances power among states during presidential elections by giving each state electors based on congressional representation.