DCC Government Final
Democracy: a form of government involving power held by the people, who may rule directly or through elected representatives
- Who governs?
- How does American politics work?
- What does the government do?
- Who are we?
Republic: A government in which citizens rule indirectly and make government decisions through their elected representatives
Pluralist theory: People can influence government through interest groups
Elite theory: Power rests in the hands of a small number of wealthy and powerful individuals
Bureaucratic theory: Control lies within the millions of men and women who carry out the day-to-day operations of modern government
Social movement theory: Emphasizes the power citizens can wield when they organize and rise up in protest
Checks and balances: each branch of government has the authority to block the other branches
Institutions: the organizations, norms, and rules that structure government and public action
Rational-choice theory: an approach to political behavior that views individuals as rational, decisive actors who know their political interests and seek to act on them
Public-private partnership: A government program or service provided through the joint efforts of private sector actors (usually businesses) and public officials
Three primary sectors of a nation: private life, civil society (people act voluntarily), government
American exceptionalism: the US is uniquely characterized by a distinct set of ideas like equality, self-rule, and limited government
freedom: the ability to pursue one’s own desires without interference from others
Negative liberty: freedom from constraints or the interference of others
Positive liberty: the ability and provision of basic necessities
Libertarians: people who believe in minimal government, strong proponents of negative liberty
Self-rule: the idea that legitimate government flows from the people
Referendum: an election in which citizens vote directly on an issue
Initiative: a process in which citizens propose new laws or amendments to the state constitution
Sunshine laws: laws that permit the public to watch policymakers in action and to access the records of the proceedings
Conservatives: Americans who believe in reduced gov’t spending, personal responsibility, traditional moral values, and a strong national defense
Liberals: Americans who value cultural diversity, gov’t programs for the needy, public intervention in the economy, and the right to a lifestyle based on an individual’s social and moral positions
Individualism: the idea that individuals, not the society, are responsible for their own well-being
Social democracy: a government in which citizens are responsible for another’s well-being and use government policy to ensure that all are comfortably cared for
Equality: all citizens enjoy the same privileges, status, and rights before the laws
Social equality: all individuals enjoy the same status in society
Political equality: all citizens have the same political rights and opportunities
Economic equality: a situation in which there are only small differences in wealth among citizens
Median: a statistical term for the number in the middle
Equal opportunity: the idea that every American has the same chance to influence politics and achieve economic success
Equal outcome: the idea that citizens should have roughly equal economic circumstances
Political culture: the orientation of citizens of a state towards politics
Compact: a mutual agreement that provides for joint action to achieve defined goals
Covenant: a compact invoking religious or moral authority
Delegate representation: representatives follow the expressed wishes of the voters
Trustee representation: representatives do what they regard as being the best interest of their constituents, even if the constituents do not agree
Mercantilism: an economic theory according to which gov’t controls foreign trade to maintain prosperity and security
First Continental Congress: a convention of delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies that met in 1774
Second Continental Congress: a convention of delegates form the 13 colonies that became the acting national government for the duration of the Revolutionary War
Confederation: a group of independent states or nations that yield some of their powers to a national government, although each state retains a degree of sovereign authority
Supermajority: an amount higher than a simple majority
Federalism: power divided between national and state government, where each has its own sovereignty and duties
Virginia Plan: Madison’s plan that strengthened the national government relative to state governments
Bicameral: having two legislative houses or chambers (House and Senate)
New Jersey Plan: put forward at the Constitutional Convention by the small states and left most government authority with the state governments
Unicameral: Having a single legislative house or chamber
Electoral college: system established to elect the President; each state has a group of electors (equal in size to that of its congressional delegation in the House and Senate); the public in each state votes for electors, who vote for the president
Classical republicanism: a democratic ideal that calls on citizens to participate in public affairs, seek public interest, shun private gain, and defer to natural leaders
Bill of Rights: the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, listing the rights guaranteed to every citizen
Incorporation: the process by which the Supreme Court declares that a right in the Bill of Rights also applies to state governments
Originalism: a principle of legal interpretation that relies on the original meaning of those who wrote the Constitution
Pragmatism: a principle of legal interpretation based on the idea that the Constitution evolves and that interpretations of the Constitution must be put in the context of contemporary realities
Unitary government: a national polity governed as a single unit, with the central government exercising all or most political authority
Diffusion: the spreading of policy ideas from one city or state to others; a process typical of IS federalism
Granted powers: national government powers listed explicitly in the Constitution
Commerce clause: the Constitutional declaration empowering Congress to regulate commerce with foreign nations, between states, and with Native American tribes (Article 1, Section 8)
Necessary and Proper Clause: the constitutional declaration that defines Congress’ constitutional authority to exercise the “necessary and proper” powers to carry out its designated functions (Article 1, Section 8)
Inherent powers: national government powers implied by, but not specifically named, in the Constitution
Supremacy clause: the constitutional declaration that the national government’s authority prevails over any conflicting state or local government’s claims, provided the power is granted to the federal government (Article 6, Section 2)
Reserved powers: the constitutional guarantee that the states retain government authority not explicitly granted to the national government (10th Amendment)
Concurrent powers: governmental authority shared by national and state governments, such as the power to tax residents
Full faith and credit clause: the constitutional requirement that each state recognize and upholds laws passed by any other state (Article 4, Section 1)
Dual federalism: the clear division of governing authority between national and state governments (layer cake)
Cooperative federalism: a system of mingled governing authority, with functions overlapping across national and state governments (marble cake)
Grants-in-aid: national government funding provided to state and local governments, along with specific instructions about how the funds may be used
New federalism: a version of cooperative federalism, but with stronger emphasis on state and local government activity vs. national government
Block grants: National government funding provided to state an local governments with relatively few restrictions or requirements on spending
Progressive federalism: approach that gives state officials considerable leeway in achieving national programs and goals
Unfunded mandate: an obligation imposed on state or local government officials by federal legislation without sufficient federal funding support to cover the costs
Devolution: the transfer of authority from the national to the state or local government level
Preemption: the invalidation of a US state law that conflicts with federal law
Civic voluntarism: Citizen participation in public life without government incentives or coercion
Civil liberties: the limits on government that allow people to freely exercise their rights
Selective incorporation: the extension of protections from the Bill of Rights to the state governments, one right at a time
Judicial rules: hard-and-fast boundaries between what is lawful and what is not
Judicial standards: guiding principles that help governments make judgement calls
Establishment clause: in the First Amendment, the principle that government may not establish an official religion
Strict separation: the strict principles articulated in the Lemon test for judging whether a law establishes a religion
Lemon test: judged what government actions are permissible (1. secular purpose, 2. principal effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion)
Hate speech: hostile statements based on someone’s personal characteristics, such as race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation
Clear and present danger: court doctrine that permits restrictions of free speech if officials believe that the speech will lead to prohibited action such as violence or terrorism
Symbolic expression: an act, rather than actual speech, used to demonstrate a point of view
Fighting words: expressions inherently likely to provoke violent reactions and not necessarily protected y the First Amendment
Prior restraint: legal effort to stop speech before it occurs (AKA censorship)
Exclusionary rule: the ruling that evidence obtained in an illegal search may not be introduced in a trial
Grand jury: a jury that does not decide on guilt or innocence but only on whether there is enough evidence for the case to go to trial
Double jeopardy: the principle that an individual cannot be tried twice for the same offense
Miranda warnings: a set of rights that police officers must inform suspects of, including the right to remain silent
USA Patriot Act: legislation that sought to enhance national security, passed in the aftermath of 9/11
Civil rights: the freedom to participate in the full life of the community - to vote, use public facilities, and exercise equal economic opportunity
Strict scrutiny: the standard by which courts judge any legislation that singles out race or ethnicity
Quasi-suspect category: a legal standard that requires government to have an important state purpose for any legislation that singles out sex or gender
Missouri Compromise: an agreement to open southern territories west of the Mississippi to slavery while closing northern territories to slavery
Compromise of 1850: Permitted territories to vote on whether they would be slave or free
Dred Scott v. Sandford: a landmark Supreme Court decision holding that Black men could not be citizens under the Constitution
Emancipation Proclamation: executive order issued by Lincoln that declared the slaves in all rebel states to be free
Equal protection of the laws: the landmark phrase in the 14th Amendment that requires equal treatment for all citizens
Reconstruction: the failed effort, pursued by Northerners and Southerners, to rebuild the South and establish racial equality after the Civil War
Jim Crow: the system of racial segregation in the US South that lasted from 1890 to 1965
Plessy v. Ferguson: an 1896 Supreme Court case that permitted racial segregation
Great Migration: the vast movement of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North between 1910 and the 1960s
De jure discrimination: discrimination established by laws
De facto discrimination: more subtle forms of discrimination that exist without a legal basis
Brown v. Board of Education: the landmark Supreme Court case that struck down segregated schools as unconstitutional
Freedom Riders: Black and white activists who rode buses together to protest segregation or interstate bus lines
Free rider problems: a barrier to group or collective action arising because people who do not participate still reap the benefits
1963 March on Washington: a massive rally for civil rights that included MLK’s “I Have A Dream” speech
Civil Rights Act of 1964: landmark legislation that forbade discrimination on the basis of race, sec, religion, or national origin
Affirmative action: direct steps to recruit members of previously under-represented groups into schools and jobs
Disproportionate impact: the effect some policies have of discriminating, even if discrimination is not consciously intended