Building Citizenship: Civics & Economics - Ch. 3

Constitution

a written detailed plan for government

bicameral

a legislature consisting of two parts or houses

New states based their constitutions off of

bill of rights

confederation

a group of states that unit for a certain reason

articles of confederation

first constitution for the US

ratify

to vote and approve of

ordinnce

a law usually of a city or a country

Ordinance of 1785

a law that set up a plan for surveying western lands; this method is still used today.

Northwest Ordinance

1787 law that set up a government for the Northwest Territory and served as a model for other new territories and as a plan for admitting new states to the Union

Shay's Rebellion

an uprising of Massachusetts farmers who did not want to lose their farms because of debt caused by heavy state taxes after the American Revolution

Constitutional Convention

meeting of state delegates in 1787 leading to adoption of a new Constitution

James Madison

father of the Constitution

The Virginia Plan

had a federal government much like ours. It had a president, courts, and a congress with two houses. State population would decide how many representatives were in each house. Larger states would have more votes than smaller states

New Jersey Plan

It was based on the Articles of Confederation, with some changes. The plan kept the Confederation's one-house congress. Each state would have one vote. But Congress could set taxes and regulate, or control, trade. These were powers it did not have under t

Great Compromise

The compromise which there would be two houses in the legislature

Three Fifths Compromise

agreement providing that enslaved persons would count as three-fifths of other persons in determining representation in Congress

Electoral College

agreement providing that enslaved persons would count as three-fifths of other persons in determining representation in Congress

Can regulate trade

congress

cant tax exports

congresssss

9/13 decide

ratify constitution

Federalists

liked the constitution

Anti-federalists

against ratifying the constitution

The federalist papers

a series of essays written to defend the Constitution

Preamble

the openning for the consitution

article

one of the several main parts of the constitution

amendment

any change to the constitution

Article 1

shows the powers of the legislative branch and congress

legislature

the lawmaiking branch of the government

Article 2

says powers of the executive branch

executive

carries out the laws

Article 3

says powers of the judicial branch

judicial

the branch of government that interprets laws

Article 4

the relationship between the states and the national government

Article 5

describes when and how the Constitution can be changed

Aricle 6

declares the Constitution the "supreme Law of the Land.

Article 7

describes how the Constitution was to be ratified.

27

__________:amendments

Bill of Rights

first 10 amendments

Formal amendment

amendments are part of the Constitution

Informal amendment

informal, or unofficial, changes

Dinal authority of interpreting the constitution

supreme court

Five basic principals of government

popular sovereignty
limited government and the rule of law
separation of powers
checks and balances
federalism

popular sovereignty

the idea that power lies with the people

limited government

the principal that a ruler or a government is not all-powerful; a government that can do only what the people allow it to do

rule of law

principle that the law applies to everyone, even those who govern

seperation of powers

the split of authority among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches

checks and balances

a system in which each branch of government is able to check, or restrain, the power of the others

enumerated powers

powers granted directly to the national government by the Constitution; another name for expressed powers

reserved powers

powers that the Constitution does not give to the national government that are kept by the states

concurrent powers

powers shared by the state and federal governments

supremacy clause

the clause in Article VI of the Constitution that makes federal laws prevail over state laws when there is a conflict