ap gov test review

Federalist No. 10

(Hint: 10 is the first PLURAL or two-digit number)

FACTIONS are inevitable, but if ratified, our large republic under the Constitution would better control factions than a small democracy. It is best to allow many competing factions to prevent any one from dominating the political system. This is called PLURALISM.

Federalist No. 51

(Hint: Say fifty-one, two, THREE; what are there 3 of in the U.S. gov’t?)

“If men were angels, no government would be necessary,” but the weakness of the Articles of Confederation have shown us we need a stronger federal government. 

However, the new Constitution will not lead to tyranny because power will be divided between THREE BRANCHES that can use CHECKS & BALANCES to resist encroachments by the other two.

Federalist No. 70

(Hint: think Seventy = strong & solitary; zero for the power to veto!)

The U.S. government should have a SINGLE EXECUTIVE (one president) because this branch requires QUICK decision-making and accountability.

Federalist No. 78

(Hint: Say seven-eight-NINE; what gov’t body has nine members?)

Because the JUDICIAL BRANCH will be the WEAKEST (no pen to legislate or sword to enforce), it needs certain powers and characteristics. Those powers include:

• LIFETIME TERMS to insulate judges from mob opinion

• Power to strike down laws that violate the Constitution (judicial review)

The Declaration of Independence

(Hint: Who did we declare independence from & why?)

The colonies declared independence from British rule, citing a list of grievances and enlightenment ideas as justification.

People create governments to protect their NATURAL RIGHTS to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. When the government repeatedly abuses the people, they have the right to abolish that government. (SOCIAL CONTRACT)

Articles of Confederation

(Hint: More like Con-FED UP with a weak FEDeral gov’t!)

America’s first constitution, the Articles were more like a union of 13 independent states than a united single government. STATES HAD TOO MUCH POWER and Congress had too little power. Congress could not collect taxes, and there was no executive or judicial branch.

Brutus No. 1

(Hint: All governments are BRUTAL)

The proposed Constitution can’t work:

• America is too large & diverse

• People won’t know their leaders

• Too much power to national gov’t    (ex: Necessary & Proper clause)

• It will lead to tyranny and the dissolution of all state power.

Letter from a Birmingham Jail

(Hint: Letter to white pastors after nonviolent protestors arrested )

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s letter to white pastors explaining that injustice in any part of the U.S. requires direct nonviolent action to create discomfort. Only that will pressure moderates to pass reforms. 

“Justice too long delayed is justice denied.”

U.S. Constitution, Preamble

(Hint: We the people do what?…)

We the people create this Constitution to:

• form a more perfect union (Articles of Confederation were imperfect) 

• establish justice (est. Judicial branch)

• Ensure domestic tranquility (Shays’ Rebellion showed fed. gov’t too weaK)

• provide for the common defense (collect taxes to raise a national army)

• promote the general welfare (taxes)

• safeguard liberties (Bill of Rights)

U.S. Constitution, Article I

(Hint: What branch did the founders make the 1st most powerful?)

Sets up Legislative Branch to make laws:

• Different duties/reqs of Senate House

• Census every 10 years to determine apportionment of house seats

• State legislatures run elections

• How to pass a bill/override a veto

• Congress can collect taxes

• Only Congress can coin $, declare war, regulate interstate commerce

• Necessary & Proper Clause

U.S. Constitution, Article II

(Hint: What branch did the founders make the 2nd most powerful?)

Sets up the Executive Branch to enforce law:

• Term 4 yrs; must be Age 35, natural born citizen, 14 year resident of U.S.

• Commander-in-chief, pardon power

• Create treaties & nominate officials (but Senate must advise & consent)

• Give “State of the Union” address

• Subject to impeachment

U.S. Constitution, Article III

(Hint: What branch did the founders make the least powerful?)

Sets up the Judicial Branch to interpret law:

• Congress can create other federal courts below SCOTUS

• Judges serve for life in good behavior

• Federal jurisdiction includes violations of the Constitution, U.S. law, or treaties; disputes between U.S. and a citizens, state & citizen, or diff states

• Criminal trials (minus impeachment) take place in state crime was done

• Defines treason & punishment for it

U.S. Constitution, Article IV

(Hint: Four = Full, Federalism)

Full faith and credit clause ensures the judgments and records of one state will be upheld in the others.

(also “fugitive slaves” returned, statehood process, and all states have protection and republican form of government)

U.S. Constitution, Article V

(Hint: Take five and think about changes we can make)

Amendment process:

1. Propose by ⅔ vote both houses of Congress OR ⅔ state legislatures

2. Ratify by ¾ of state legislatures OR by conventions held in ¾ of states

No amendment banning importation of slaves allowed before 1808

U.S. Constitution, Article VI

(Hint: Six, more like I’m sick of these states running the show!)

All state DEBT prior to the Constitution will be paid off by the federal government 

SUPREMACY CLAUSE

The Constitution is the supreme law of the land; supersedes state and local laws

All federal government officials agree to follow the Constitution but no religious test is allowed.

U.S. Constitution, Article VII

(Hint: Lucky number seven - roll the dice to pass this new Constitution!)

Nine of the 13 states must ratify the Constitution for it to take effect.

1st Amendment

(Hint: Put up one finger and put it against your lips)

Freedom of speech, press, religion (both free expression and separation of church & state), petition, and assembly will not be denied or abridged by Congress

• Schenck v. U.S. (1919)

• Engel v. Vitale (1962)

• Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

• NY Times Co. v. U.S. (1971)

• Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

• Citizens United v. F.E.C. (2010)

2nd Amendment

(Hint: Put up your pointer finger and thumb - pew, pew!)

The right to bear arms

• Handgun ban struck down federally in D.C. v. Heller (2008)

• Incorporated to the states in McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

3rd Amendment

(Hint: Three’s a crowd!)

No forced quartering of soldiers

4th Amendment

(Hint: the four walls of your house)

No search or seizure of your person/property without probable cause and a warrant

• Roe v. Wade (1973) right to abortion through interpretation of 4th and 9th amendments as protecting privacy

• Mapp v. Ohio (1961) incorporated exclusion of evidence gathered in an illegal search

5th Amendment

(Hint: put out your hand with all five fingers and cover your mouth)

• “Plead the 5th” (right to remain SILENT; not testify against yourself)

• DUE PROCESS of the legal system

• No DOUBLE JEOPARDY

• Compensation if property taken by government (eminent domain)

Sometimes nicknamed “Miranda rights” because of Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

6th Amendment

(Hint: Hold out one hand with five fingers, point at your wrist with one finger from the other hand)

Rights in a criminal trial:

• Speedy and public trial

• Impartial jury

• informed of charges

• Confront witnesses against you

• Obtain own witnesses

• Assistance of counsel (lawyer)

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) incorporated right to lawyer to the states

7th Amendment

(Hint: Bet it all on lucky number 7! Win some money!)

Right to a jury trial in civil lawsuits

8th Amendment

(Hint: Look at the shape of the 8 and think of tight handcuffs)

No cruel and unusual punishment; no excessive fines or excessive bail

Supreme Court has limited capital punishment in some cases (i.e. no execution of minors), but allows states to decide whether or not they want the death penalty

9th Amendment

(Hint: Nein! As in the German word for NO!)

The listing of rights in the Constitution should not be interpreted to mean other rights don’t exist.

Used in Roe v. Wade to justify Constitutional right to privacy in right to choose an abortion.

10th Amendment

(Hint: Hold up both hands, all 10 fingers, palms out - STOP!)

Federal government only has DELEGATED POWERS specifically granted in this Constitution. 

All other powers are RESERVED to the states

13th Amendment

(Hint: 13 is a foreboding number; what’s the worst thing about America before this was passed?)

Abolished slavery; states were required to ratify this (and the other reconstruction amendments) to rejoin the union after the Civil War

14th Amendment

(Hint: One 4 all and all 4 one! Equality)

Formerly enslaved people are citizens of the U.S. and their state. No state law can deny any person EQUAL PROTECTION of the law.

• Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

• Baker v. Carr (1961)

• Shaw v. Reno (1993)

No state can deny a citizen DUE PROCESS, and Congress has the power to enforce this.

• SELECTIVE INCORPORATION basis (used to apply amendments to states)

Voting Rights Amendments

(Hint: there are FOUR amendments that expanded who can vote)

Suffrage means the right to vote

15th - Black male suffrage

19th - Women’s suffrage

24th - No poll tax

26th - Lowered voting age from 21 to 18

Amendment that alter 

Article I (Congress)

(Hint: Change to taxation, election, and raises)

• 16th: Congress can levy income tax 

• 17th: Direct election of senators (instead of state legislatures)

• 27th: Any law to raise Congressional salary doesn’t take effect until after next election

Amendment that alter 

Article II (Executive)

(Hint: Changes in electoral process and other aspects)

• 12th (think how to elect #1 and #2): President and VP run on one ticket (before runner up became VP!)

• 20th: January 20th becomes inauguration date

• 22nd: Pres. limited TO TWO terms

• 23rd: (rhymes; two-three, D.C.) Washington D.C. gets 3 electoral votes

• 25th: (rhymes; 25, will survive) clarifies line of succession

Misc. Remaining Amendments 

(Hints: 11th -think 1 on 1 fight; 

18th - old drinking age

21st - new drinking age)

11th - Citizens of one state can’t sue a different state

18th - prohibition of the sale of alcohol

21st - repealed prohibition

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

(Hint: M&M, job commissions that melt in your mouth, not your hand)

Established the power of judicial review

SCOTUS ruled that although Marbury deserved his federal judge commission, the law passed by Congress enabling the court to force Jefferson’s Secretary of State (Madison) to deliver the commission was unconstitutional, because it gave the judicial branch power not in the Constitution.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

(Hint: Maryland wanted to make it a NOT merry land for the national bank)

National Bank president McCulloch sued the state of Maryland for trying to tax it out of existence and won.

Strengthened the Necessary and Proper Clause (affirmed Congress’s power to create the national bank) AND the Supremacy Clause (ruled states cannot tax federal property)

Schenck v. U.S. (1919)

(Hint: If you tell a crowd to go shank someone, is it free speech?)

Established that 1st Amendment free speech could be limited in cases where there is a “clear and present danger” to national security.

Schenck was distributing pamphlets during WWI encouraging people to refuse the draft. He was arrested under the Espionage Act and sued, but lost.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954)

(Hint: What were Kansas schools doing wrong in the 50s?)

Ruled that “Separate but equal” facilities are inherently unequal and therefore a violation of the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.

All public schools had to integrate “with all deliberate speed” but many delayed for decades.

Baker v. Carr (1961)

(Hint: ONE baker gets in ONE car to go and vote ONE time)

Redistricting must produce districts with relatively equal populations to ensure equal protection under the 14th Amendment. One person, one vote. Established SCOTUS has jurisdiction to rule in redistricting cases.

Tennessee’s district lines were outdated. People had moved to cities, but the rural areas were still given far more representatives.

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

(Hint: Engel sounds like Angel… what is VITAL about gov’t and angels?)

A voluntary, nondenominational prayer was ordered to be read at the start of school in NY. This was deemed an unconstitutional violation of the 1st Amendment’s Establishment Clause. 

Public schools are an arm of the government and cannot promote any religious practices

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

(Hint: It wasn’t wright what they did to Gideon!)

Incorporated the 6th Amendment right to free counsel in felony cases at the state level   

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

(Hint: Tinker with your school rules)

Mary Beth Tinker and others wore black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War and were suspended before they got in the building.

The court ruled for the students, saying Students' 1st Amendment right to free speech (symbolic or verbal) cannot be limited unless it creates an actual disturbance to learning.

NY Times Co. v. U.S. (1971)

(Hint: U.S. tried to stop the paper before it was TIME to print)

NY Times was allowed to publish the “Pentagon Papers” which revealed misconduct in the Vietnam War.

Established that prior restraint of 1st Amendment press rights cannot occur unless the government proves that release of information will lead to an “inevitable, direct, and immediate event imperiling the safety of American forces”

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

(Hint: Yoder sounds like Yodel; a traditional/old fashioned singing)

A Wisconsin law required public school attendance up to the age of 16. Amish parents sued, saying their exercise of religion required private schooling at home. 

The court agreed, saying that people’s rights to the 1st amendment’s Free Exercise Clause outweigh the State's interests in requiring school attendance.

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

(Hint: Time to Reno-vate those district lines!)

Ruled that though state legislatures can take race into account when they draw electoral districts in order to increase the voting strength of minorities, they may not make race the sole reason for drawing district lines. (14th Amendment equal protection clause)

United States v. Lopez (1995)

(Hint: It was LOW(pez) of Congress to arrest Lopez for this)

The 1990 Gun-Free School Zones Act was unconstitutional; Congress overstepped the Commerce Clause.  Guns in school zones wasn’t related to interstate commerce in any meaningful way

Limited commerce clause; opposite of Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) which strengthened Congress’ power to regulate interstate trade

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)

(Hint: Upheld right of citizens to unite in corporations and unions to do what?)

Struck down as unconstitutional federal laws limiting some campaign contributions from individuals to their own campaigns, or corporations/unions total contributions.

Corporations and unions are just collections of people, and people have free speech. Contributing money to campaigns is a form of free speech, so such donations cannot be limited. 

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

(Hint: Think of Ronald McDonald running through Chicago streets waving a handgun!)

A Chicago law banned the owning of handguns. McDonald sued.

The Supreme Court agreed that the 2nd Amendment gave individuals the right to keep and bear arms for personal protection. Fully incorporated 2nd Amendment to all states