Power
The ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person's intentions.
authority
the right to use power
legitimacy
political authority conferred by law or by state or national constitution.
democracy
government of the people, by the people, for the people
direct democracy
A government in which people decide directly on issues
Marxist view
view that the government is dominated by capitalists.
power elite view
view that the government is dominated by a few top leaders, most of who are outside the government.
bureaucratic view
view that the government is dominated by appointed officials.
pluralist view
the belief that competition among all affected interests shares public policy
unalienable
a human right based on nature or god.
articles of confederation
Weak central government with only a unicameral Congress
constitutional convention
meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 that produced a new constitution
Shay's Rebellion
A 1787 rebellion in which ex-Revolutionary war soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes
Virgina plan
proposal to create a strong national government with proportional representation (larger states get more representation)
New Jersey Plan
proposal to create a weak national government with equal representation among the states
Great Compromise
Plan to have a popularly elected House based on state population and a state-elected Senate, with two members for each state.
republic
A government in which elected representatives make the decisions.
Judicial review
the power of the courts to declare laws unconstitutional.
federalism
government authority shared by national and state government
checks and balances
authority shared by three branches of government
enumerated powers
power given to the national government alone, includes coining money and national defense
reserved powers
powers given to the state government alone
concurrent powers
powers shared by the national and state governments
separation of powers
constitutional authority is shared by three different branches of government
faction
a group with a distinct political interest
federalists
Those favoring ratification of the Constitution and a stronger national government
antifederalists
Those opposing ratification of the Constitution, arguing for the addition of a Bill of Rights
coalition
an alliance of factioins
habeas corpus
an order to produce an arrested person before a judge, let the person know what they're accused of, and ensure there's adequate evidence for the arrest.
bill of attainder
a law that declares a person, without a trial, to be guilty of a crime
ex post facto law
a law that makes an act criminal although the act was legal when it was committed
bill of rights
first ten amendments to the constitution
amendment
a new provision in the constitution that has been ratified by the states
devolution
the effort to transfer responsibility from the federal government to the states
block grants
money from the national government to spend
''necessary and proper'' clause
Congress can have "implied" powers if it is to allow government to carry out "expressed" powers
Unitary System of Government
Government where the central/national government has all authority and gives state/local governments some duties to carry out
lemon test
Test to see if a law violates establishment clause of First Amendment, must have secular purpose, can't advance or inhibit religion, and no excessive entanglement
Smith Test
Is law general in nature ir is it targeting a specific religion?
Eminent Domain
5th Amendment Provision saying if government has to take property it has to pay just compensation
probable cause
strong reason to believe (based on evidence) that a crime is occurring
Executive Branch
President, Cabinet, and many departments
Legislative Branch
Congress: Divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate
Judicial Branch
Courts/Supreme Court, which interprets laws
10th Amendment
Powers not granted to the Federal Government are reserved to the states
Due Process
Fairness of treatment by the government to people suspected/accused of wrongdoing
obscenity, endangering the public, jeopardizing national security
3 reasons Speech/Press/Assembly can be restricted
Commerce Clause
Federal Government can regulate interstate trade, has allowed government to enact sweeping laws including Civil Rights and Environmental legislation
basic rights
fundamental rights given by God, many protected in the Bill of Rights
Amendment Process
Is generally proposed by 2/3 of Congress and ratified by 3/4 of state legislatures
selective incorporation
process by which the Bill of Rights, one by one, has been ruled to apply to the states by the Courts due to interpretation of the 14th Amendment due process clause
grand jury
makes sure there is enough evidence for an indictment (formal charges)
petit jury
hears all the evidence and determines guilt or innocence
McCulloch v. Maryland,
Court ruled that elastic/necessary and proper clause does give Congress power to open an national bank and Supremacy Clause forbids a state from taxing it
John Locke
Influential on the Declaration of Independence, said that people have the right to alter or abolish government and that people have the right to protect their life, health, liberty, and property
Montesquieu
Elaborated on the idea of separation of powers
James I
God made Kings Kings and peasants peasants and it is God's will that the majority serve and obey the one
Magna Carta
Document that first limited Kings power in England and gave people rights
licensing, conducting elections, handling school system
examples of powers reserved for the states
revenue sharing
program where the federal government returned some of it's tax revenue to states to spend how they pleased