Federalism and Virginia Government Study Guide

Vocabulary flashcards covering core American values, constitutional principles, the division of powers, federal mandates, interstate relations, and Virginia state government.

Alexis de Tocqueville

A French politician and writer who analyzed American democracy and society.

Individualism

A core American value centered on hard work, self-reliance, and personal success.

Laissez-faire

An economic system where the government stays out of business decisions and keeps regulations low.

Populism

A political approach that represents politics for regular people against elites.

Federalism

A constitutional system based on sharing power between national, state, and local governments.

Tenth Amendment

The constitutional provision establishing that powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or the people.

Supremacy Clause

The constitutional clause establishing that national law overrides state law, provided the federal law is constitutional and directly conflicts with state law.

Separation of Powers

The constitutional division of government into three distinct branches with separate jobs to stop any one branch from becoming tyrannical.

Checks and Balances

The system that gives each branch of government specific ways to limit the powers of the other branches.

Expressed Powers

Powers explicitly granted to the national government in the Constitution, including declaring war, coining/printing money, raising armies, and regulating interstate commerce.

Implied Powers

Powers grounded in the "necessary and proper" clause of the Constitution that grant the national government flexibility to carry out its expressed duties.

Reserved Powers

Powers kept exclusively by state governments under the Tenth Amendment, such as issuing driver's and professional licenses, running elections, and managing public school systems.

Concurrent Powers

Powers shared and exercised simultaneously by both national and state governments, such as collecting taxes, borrowing money, running courts, and building roads.

Denied Powers

Powers explicitly forbidden by the Constitution to government levels, such as passing ex post facto laws or granting titles of nobility.

Unfunded Mandate

A federal directive or regulation imposed on states for which the federal government provides zero dollars ($0$) in funding.

Underfunded Mandate

A federal regulation where the national government covers only a portion of the cost (such as $60\%$), leaving the state to pay the remainder.

Fully Funded Mandate

A federal requirement in which the national government provides funds covering the entire cost.

General Assembly

The legislative branch of the Virginia state government.

Governor

The head of the executive branch of the Virginia state government.

Extradition

The legal process between states of returning a fugitive to the state where the crime was committed.

Preemption

The constitutional doctrine under which federal law overrides or displaces conflicting state law.

United States v. Lopez

A Supreme Court case ruling that Congress overstepped its Commerce Clause authority because carrying a gun in a local school zone is not an economic activity affecting interstate trade.

Ex Post Facto Law

A retroactive criminal law that is a denied power forbidden to both Congress and state governments.