American Government Lecture Review Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts, constitutional principles, and government structures derived from lecture notes for Chapters 1-15.

Political Efficacy

The belief that ordinary citizens can affect what the government does, with knowledge as its first prerequisite.

Good Citizenship

Requires political knowledge and engagement, particularly because knowledgeable citizens understand how politics affects their lives.

Politics

Defined by political scientist Harold Lasswell as the struggle over "who gets what, when, how."

Authoritarian Government

A system of rule in which certain institutions, such as the church or labor unions, may operate independently of the government, placing some limitations on government power.

Totalitarianism

A form of government that entails the government having unlimited political power.

Direct Democracy

A form of rule where members of the polity meet to discuss policy and make decisions, permiting citizens to vote directly on laws and policies.

Bourgeoisie

The middle class that championed political participation and wanted to promote participation for their own class.

Articles of Confederation

The first governing document in the United States where the execution of laws was conducted by the states and no executive leader was specified.

Shays’s Rebellion

A key event that typified the weakness of the Articles of Confederation by providing evidence that the central government was unable to act decisively in a national crisis.

Three-Fifths Compromise

An agreement at the Constitutional Convention where every slave would be counted as $\frac{3}{5}$ of a person for the purpose of taxation and representation.

The Great Compromise

A constitutional agreement where the Senate was established as an arena where large and small states compete on equal footing.

Federalist Papers

A series of advocacy pieces written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay to sway public opinion in support of the Constitution.

Article V

The section of the U.S. Constitution that details the process for amending the document.

$$27$$

The exact number of amendments to the U.S. Constitution that have been successfully ratified.

Elastic Clause

Also known as the necessary and proper clause, it gives Congress the ability to pass laws related to its expressed powers.

Federalism

A system in which power is distributed between state and national governments; the United States was the first nation to adopt this system.

Tenth Amendment

An amendment designed to reserve power to the states and individuals and limit the powers of the central government.

Dual Federalism

A system of government that prevailed from $1789$ to $1937$ where the national and state governments were seen as distinct entities providing separate services.

Cooperative Federalism

Also known as "marble cake federalism," this era signaled the rise of a more active national government, often using categorical grants.

Police Powers

The authority of a state to regulate health, safety, and morals.

Full Faith and Credit Clause

A constitutional requirement that states recognize actions and decisions taken in other states as legal and proper.

Devolution

The idea of transferring responsibility for policy from the federal government to state and local governments.

Selective Incorporation

The process by which the Supreme Court uses the Fourteenth Amendment to apply civil liberties in the Bill of Rights to the states on a case-by-case basis.

Establishment Clause

A clause in the Bill of Rights interpreted to require a virtual wall of separation between church and state, primarily concerned with Congress favoring a specific religion.

Free Exercise Clause

The part of the First Amendment that protects the right of every citizen to believe in and practice the religion of their choice.

Strict Scrutiny

The judicial doctrine that places a heavy burden of proof on the government when it seeks to regulate or restrict speech.

Exclusionary Rule

Established in Mapp v. Ohio, this rule prohibits evidence obtained during an illegal search from being introduced in a trial.

Eminent Domain

The power of government to take private property for public use.

Political Socialization

The process by which Americans learn political beliefs and values, with the family providing the initial orientation.

Gender Gap

The phenomenon where men and women respond differently to issues of public policy or demonstrate different voting preferences.

Push Polling

A polling practice that involves asking loaded questions to subtly shape the respondent’s opinion rather than measuring it.

Digital Divide

The gap separating citizens with Internet access from those without Internet access.

Suffrage

The legal right of an individual to vote.

Political Party

An organization that tries to influence the government by getting its members elected to office.

Party Platform

A document written at a national convention that contains a party's philosophy, principles, and positions on issues.

Incumbent

A candidate running for re-election to a position that he or she already holds.

Gerrymandering

A strategy where state legislators manipulate the organization of electoral districts to influence electoral outcomes.

Electoral College

The group of presidential electors from each state who cast the official ballots for president and vice president.

Prospective Voting

Voting based on the imagined future performance of a candidate.

Political Action Committees (PACs)

Organizations established by corporations, labor unions, or interest groups to channel member contributions into political campaigns.

Pluralism

The theory that competition among organized interests will produce a balance and that no single interest can tyrannize others.

Iron Triangle

A stable relationship between an executive agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group.

Amicus Curiae

Literally meaning "friends of the court," these are briefs filed by outside parties to influence a court's decision.

Free Rider

An individual who enjoys the benefits of a collective good without paying the cost of its production.

Bicameral Legislature

A legislative body consisting of two chambers, such as the U.S. Congress with the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Standing Committees

Permanent congressional committees with the power to propose and write legislation covering particular subjects like finance or agriculture.

Filibuster

A tactic used in the Senate to "talk a bill to death," which can only be ended by a vote of cloture.

Logrolling

A practice in Congress where one member supports another's bill in exchange for support on their own bill.

Executive Privilege

The power used by presidents to withhold information regarding executive branch deliberations from other branches of government.

War Powers Resolution

A $1973$ act where Congress attempted to limit the president's use of troops in military action without congressional approval.

Stare Decisis

A Latin phrase meaning "let the decision stand," referring to the judicial doctrine of reasoning from precedent.

Marbury v. Madison

The landmark Supreme Court case that established the precedent for judicial review.

Senatorial Courtesy

The norm where the president consults senators of his own party from a state before appointing a district court judge for that state.

Solicitor General

The official who screens most cases being appealed by federal agencies and has a strong influence on the Supreme Court's flow of cases.