STUDY GUIDE U.S

STUDY GUIDE

U.S. Government

2nd Half of Term

Judicial Branch, Elections, Political Parties, Interest Groups, Media & Citizenship

*THE JUDICIAL BRANCH

Jurisdiction of a court is the extent or scope of authority a court has to hear and decide a case brought before the court. Original jurisdiction is the authority to be the trial courts, which are where cases are heard. Appellate jurisdiction is the power to review decisions made by lower courts. District courts are; trial courts appellate are appeals courts. The Supreme Court is primarily appellate but can be a trial court in special circumstances. Federal judges are appointed by the President and approved by the Senate. Political Ideology is the most important factor in appointing judges, District courts hold trials. Appellate courts only decide if an original trial was fair/constitutional. The Supreme Court has the power of Judicial Review which was decided in Madison v. Marbury (Supremacy Clause). Judges match facts of specific cases to Judicial principals and statutory guidelines which is referred to as rule interpretation. If they issue a dissenting (disagree) opinion, they remand the case. If they concur (agree, they offirm the case. When making decisions, the Supreme Court must weigh out Individual freedoms provided to all citizens as well as the safety of society. When it comes to freedom of speech, The Court usually errs on the side of speech first and does not typically prohibit speech before it happens (prior restraint). Civil cases relate to rights of citizens and criminal cases mean a crime has been committed. Public law includes every type of law (administrative, legislative, constitutional) except civil law. Cases heard by one judge are called bench trials. The decision in a case is a verdict. The Supreme Court chooses which cases to hear and they do not choose many.

Marbury v Madison: gave Supreme Court the right of judicial review.

Lemon v Kurtzman: separation of church and state; must pass "Lemon Test"; can't inhibit or prohibit Mapp v.Ohio: protection from illegal search and seizure; use of evidence Reno v ACLU: Internet speech entitled to protection under 1 amendment

Citizens United v FEC: unions and corporations can donate to election candidates Gideon v Wainwright: all accused have the right to an attorney in every state

*ELECTIONS

Candidates declare they want to run for office, political parties select their candidate and candidates campaigns. Winners are directly elected by popular vote (the people), and officially selected through the Elec College, In order for a presidential candidate to win an election they must have an absolute maiority of the lectors which is 270 out of 538. An incumbent is a person who is currently in office. Conservatives believe dividuals and businesses should find solutions for society's problems, rather than the government. Libera lieve the government should take action to solve society's problems. Redistricting of election boundarie ds to gerrymandering which means drawing party lines to favor one party over another to try to win an s can hurt an incumbent because voters who oppose him/her may be included in the new districts. As eral voter profiles, more African Americans, females and people from the Northwest and Northeast t tify with the Democrats. Males, Christians, southerners and those with income over $75,000 tend t Republicans. These profiles are not absolute, but are general indicators of voters. An independer ated with any one political party and often referred to as swing voters. Independents often bring ideas to the table and reveal political divides among the two major parties. A midterm election does not occur during presidential election years, includes all House of Rep members, some Senate and several state and local positions. A primary election is when people vote for the presidential candidate for the party they support. a

*INTEREST GROUPS

Interest groups recruit, endorse and contribute to candidates running for public office. Interest groups have a broad, common interest. They organize in order to win elections, control government and Influence public policy. Lobbyists help draft about 50% of legislation in Congress so competition among them is Important because

- it can encourage lawmakers to reach across party lines. Political Action Committees (PAC) are organizations formed by an individual or special interest group to raise money for political campaigns. An example of an interest group is the NRA.

*MEDIA

Mass media refers to methods of communicating with large numbers of people. But the phrase "the media" refers to sources of our news and information about current events. Media is newspaper, magazines, televisions, radio, billboards and the Internet. The Internet has a huge impact on politics because it can gather large numbers of people in support of an issue or candidate. Advertisements often appeal to voters emotions when trying to influence politics. When the media acts as a watchdog, they do so to reveal wrongdoing in politics.

Today's media, especially when it comes to politics, is often accused of "fake news". Fake news comes in many forms. It can be blatant lies, or even smäll snips of video that does not tell the whole story (soundbites). Media outlets have become centers of political controversy because they often side with one party and report only what is favorable to that party (bias). This type of media coverage is similar to "yellow journalism" which is a term used in earlier generations for journalists who stretch the truth. Propaganda is used to get people's attention and examples are celebrity endorsements and patriotic symbols. ane tris tren

*POLITICAL PARTIES

The two major political parties are Democrat and Republican. Democrats use the color blue and donkey symbol. Republicans use the color red and the elephant symbol. Democrats lean toward more liberal ideas (left) and big government. Republicans lean more toward conservative ideas (right) and less government. A person is most influenced for a political party at a young age by his/her parents. Members of Congress will sometimes cross party lines but most often vote according to their party affiliation. Political parties nominate candidates and support their campaigns because winning allows the party to influence public policy and have control in government. A party's platform is a set of statements describing a party's views on major issues. The age to vote is 18 and is set forth by the 25th amendment. Non-citizens living in the U.S. are not eligible to vote.

*CITIZENSHIP

Citizenship means to be a member of a country and having full rights and responsibilities under that

country's laws. Some people are born citizens, while others go through a process called naturalization.

Requirements for naturalization include 18 years old, resident for 5 years, good character and passing a civics test and interview. Patriotism is a deep bond and love of one's country. A few ways this is exhibited is national holidays, songs and the Pledge. All people living in the U.S. are protected by the Bill of Rights. However, only citizens can vote, run for political office and serve on a jury. The Selective Service (draft) exits or national emergencies and all male citizens must register by age 18. The crime of betraying one's country is called treason and is punishable by death. The U.S. flag häs 50 stars (each Staté) and 13 stripes resembling the original 13 colonies. The National Anthem is the Star Spängled Banner.