US Gov Test 4

Understand the Sixth Amendment.

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence [sic]"

What is foreign policy?

"the goals that a state's officials seek to attain abroad, the values that give rise to those objectives, and the means or instruments used to pursue them." ; a government's goals in dealing with other countries or regions and the strategy used to achieve them

What has changed minds in this century with regard to foreign policy?

1. the debacle of US involvement in the civil war in Vietnam in the years leading up to 1973, which caused many to rethink the country's traditional containment approach to the cold war 2. The rise of elusive new enemies who defy traditional designations (ex. ISIS0

What are the stages of policy development?

(1) agenda setting, (2) policy enactment, (3) policy implementation, and (4) evaluation.

What are the objectives of foreign policy?

(1) the protection of the U.S. and its citizens, (2) the maintenance of access to key resources and markets, (3) the preservation of a balance of power in the world, and (4) the protection of human rights and democracy

What is AARP?

(formerly the American Association of Retied Persons) its primary job is to convince the government to provide more pubic resources and services to senior citizens , often through regulatory or redistributive politics (lower health care costs and the safety of social security pension payments)

What are unique challenges in foreign policy?

1. there exists no true world-level authority dictating how the nations of the world should relate to one another 2. widely differing views among countries about the role of government in people's lives 3. The foreign policy realm is other countries' varying ideas about the appropriate form of government 4. Many new foreign policy issues transcend borders (not simply friendly states and enemy states) 5. The varying conditions of the countries in the world and their effect on what is possible in terms of foreign policy and diplomatic relations

What did the Supreme Court rule in the Hobby Lobby case?

Based in part on the federal RFRA, the Supreme Court agreed 5-4 with Green and Hobby Lobby's position and said that Hobby Lobby and other closely held businesses did not have to provide employees free access to emergency contraception or other birth control if doing so would violate the religious beliefs of the business' owners, because there were other less restrictive ways the government could ensure access to these services for Hobby Lobby's employees (e.g., paying for them directly).

What is a recession?

Contraction phases in which there is no economic growth for two consecutive quarters

What does a balance of power mean?

A balance of power means no one nation or region is much more powerful militarily than are the countries of the rest of the world

What is the Federal Reserve board? Do they focus on fiscal or monetary policy?

A board of 7 governors overseen by the Federal Reserve System; The most important work of the board is participating in the Federal Open Market Committee to set monetary policy (like interest rate levels and macroeconomic policy)

Describe the United Farm Workers.

A union for migrant workers; led a boycott against California grapes which led to pickers getting better pay and benefits

Describe the 2nd amendment.

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed

Who are two of the largest recipients of government aid when it comes to businesses?

Agriculture and Energy

Understand Privacy. Is it formally listed in the US Constitution?

Although the term privacy does not appear in the Constitution or Bill of Rights, scholars have interpreted several Bill of Rights provisions as an indication that James Madison and Congress sought to protect a common-law right to privacy as it would have been understood in the late eighteenth century: a right to be free of government intrusion into our personal life, particularly within the bounds of the home

Explain the difference between civil liberties and civil rights.

Civil liberties are limitations on government power, intended to protect freedoms that government may not legally intrude on (ex. the first amendment protects free exercise of religion); civil rights are guarantees that government officials will treat people equally and that decisions will be made on the basis of merit rather than race, gender, or other personal characteristics.

Understand the significance of Gideon v. Wainwright.

Clarence Gideon, a poor drifter, was accused of breaking into and stealing money and other items from a pool hall in Panama City, Florida. Denied a lawyer, Gideon was tried and convicted and sentenced to a five-year prison term. While in prison—still without assistance of a lawyer—he drafted a handwritten appeal and sent it to the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear his case. The justices unanimously ruled that Gideon, and anyone else accused of a serious crime, was entitled to the assistance of a lawyer, even if they could not afford one, as part of the general due process right to a fair trial

Describe the 8th amendment.

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted

What are international agreements? How do international agreements differ from treaties?

Executive agreements are negotiated by the president whereas treaties require 2/3 vote by senate

What Congressional Committees contend with foreign policy? Why might a member of Congress become involved with such committees?

the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and the House Foreign Affairs Committee; These members might have military bases within their districts or states and hence have a constituency reason for being interested in foreign policy. Legislators might also simply have a personal interest in foreign policy matters that drives their engagement in the issue. Finally, they may have ambitions to move into an executive branch position that deals with foreign policy matters, such as secretary of state or defense, CIA director, or even president.

What did the Supreme Court rule in District of Columbia v. Heller?

the Supreme Court found that at least some gun control laws did violate the Second Amendment and that this amendment does protect an individual's right to keep and bear arms, at least in some circumstances—in particular, "for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home."

What did the Supreme Court rule in Obergefell v. Hodges?

the Supreme Court overturned state bans and made same-sex marriage legal throughout the United States on June 26, 2015

Describe the Bill of Rights.

First ten amendments of the constitution; created to protect fundamental rights and liberties

Describe the National American Woman Suffrage Association.

Formed from the National Woman Suffrage Associatoin and the American Woman Suffrage Association ; did petitions, lobbied politicians, and held parades to advocate for women's right to vote

Describe the First Amendment

Guarantees religious freedoms (protects from having religous beliefs imposed on them by government and protects people from having their beliefs restricted by government authorities) and the right to express your views in public.

14th amendment

In addition to introducing the equal protection clause to the Constitution, this amendment also extended the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment to the states, required the states to respect the privileges or immunities of all citizens, and, for the first time, defined citizenship at the national and state levels. People could no longer be excluded from citizenship based solely on their race.

Explain the significance of Griswold v Connecticut.

In 1965, the court spelled out the right to privacy for the first time in Griswold v. Connecticut, a case that struck down a state law forbidding even married individuals to use any form of contraception

Describe the American with Disabilities Act.

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) greatly expanded opportunities and protections for people of all ages with disabilities. It also significantly expanded the categories and definition of disability. The ADA prohibits discrimination in employment based on disability. It also requires employers to make reasonable accommodations available to workers who need them. Finally, the ADA mandates that public transportation and public accommodations be made accessible to those with disabilities. The Act was passed despite the objections of some who argued that the cost of providing accommodations would be prohibitive for small businesses

What did the Supreme Court rule in Schenck v. US?

In Schenck v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled that people encouraging young men to dodge the draft could be imprisoned for doing so, arguing that recommending that people disobey the law was tantamount to "falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic" and thus presented a "clear and present danger" to public order

Understand the significance of Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971).

In a 1971 case known as Lemon v. Kurtzman, the Supreme Court established the Lemon test for deciding whether a law or other government action that might promote a particular religious practice should be allowed to stand

Explain the court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education Topeka Kansas.

In this case, the Supreme Court unanimously overturned its decision in Plessy v. Ferguson as it pertained to public education, stating that a separate but equal education was a logical impossibility. Even with the same funding and equivalent facilities, a segregated school could not have the same teachers or environment as the equivalent school for another race. The court also rested its decision in part on social science studies suggesting that racial discrimination led to feelings of inferiority among African American children.

Is obscenity an exception to freedom of expression? What does the Miller Test address?

It is a key exception to the right to freedom of expression; In 1973, the Supreme Court established the Miller test for deciding whether something is obscene: "(a) whether the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest, (b) whether the work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct specifically defined by the applicable state law; and (c) whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value."

Describe the Supreme Court's ruling in Korematsu v. United States.

Japanese American Fred Korematsu challenged the right of the government to imprison law-abiding citizens during WWII, but the SC rules that the actions of the government were a necessary precaution in a time of war

What is LULAC?

League of United Latin American Citizens, created to protest discrimination and to fight for greater rights for Latinos

Describe liberal internationalism.

Liberal internationalism advocates a foreign policy approach in which the United States becomes proactively engaged in world affairs

Describe the similarities between the experiences of Native Americans (Alaska) and Native Hawaiians.

Loss of land and forced assimilation; both have guidelines for those who wish to govern themselves in a relationship with the federal government; all have widespread poverty and high unemployment

Describe the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.

Medicare, like Social Security, is an entitlement program funded through payroll taxes. Its purpose is to make sure that senior citizens and retirees have access to low-cost health care they might not otherwise have, because most U.S. citizens get their health insurance through their employers.Medicaid is a formula-based, health insurance program, which means beneficiaries must demonstrate they fall within a particular income category. Individuals in the Medicaid program receive a fairly comprehensive set of health benefits, although access to health care may be limited because fewer providers accept payments from the program (it pays them less for services than does Medicare). Medicaid differs dramatically from Medicare in that it is partially funded by states, many of which have reduced access to the program by setting the income threshold so low that few people qualify

Which of the two (international agreements or treaties) are there more of?

More international (executive) agreements, like 90%

Define private goods.

Most of the goods you interact with in your daily life are private goods, which means that they can be owned by a particular person or group of people, and are excluded from use by others, typically by means of a price. For example, your home or apartment is a private good reserved for your own use because you pay rent or make mortgage payments for the privilege of living there. Further, private goods are finite and can run out if overused, even if only in the short term.

What is the purpose of NATO?

NATO has the goal of protecting the interests of Europe and the West and the assurance of support and defense from partner nations.

What is NOW? Why was it created?

National Organization for Women; created because feminists were angered by the lack of progress made by women and the government's lackluster enforcement of Title VII; promoted workplace equality, including equal pay for women, and also called for the greater presence of women in public office, the professions, and graduate and professional degree programs.

Would a college classroom be considered a public forum?

No

Describe what the Fifth Amendment addresses.

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person besubject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation (no double jeopardy)

When can law enforcement search without a warrant?

Police can also search and/or seize people or property without a warrant if the owner or renter consents to the search, if there is a reasonable expectation that evidence may be destroyed or tampered with before a warrant can be issued (i.e., exigent circumstances), or if the items in question are in plain view of government officials.

Explain the significance of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Not only did the act outlaw government discrimination and the unequal application of voting qualifications by race, but it also, for the first time, outlawed segregation and other forms of discrimination by most businesses that were open to the public, including hotels, theaters, and restaurants that were not private clubs. It outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, or national origin by most employers, and it created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to monitor employment discrimination claims and help enforce this provision of the law.

Describe freedom of expression.

Rights to free speech, press, assembly, and petition

Understand what the court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson.

SC upheld the separate but equal doctrine

Explain the significance of Dred Scot v. Sandford.

Scott, who had been born into slavery but had spent time in free states and territories, argued that his temporary residence in a territory where slavery had been banned by the federal government had made him a free man. The Supreme Court rejected his argument. In fact, the Court's majority stated that Scott had no legal right to sue for his freedom at all because blacks (whether free or slave) were not and could not become U.S. citizens. Thus, Scott lacked the standing to even appear before the court. The Court also held that Congress lacked the power to decide whether slavery would be permitted in a territory that had been acquired after the Constitution was ratified, in effect prohibiting the federal government from passing any laws that would limit the expansion of slavery into any part of the West.

Explain the difference between soft power and hard power.

Soft power is made up of nonmilitary tools to influence another country, like economic sanctions; hard power uses military power

15th amendment

The Fifteenth Amendment stated that people could not be denied the right to vote based on "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." This construction allowed states to continue to decide the qualifications of voters as long as those qualifications were ostensibly race-neutral

Describe the Homeland Security Act

The Homeland Security Act of 2002 authorized the creation of a massive new federal agency, the Department of Homeland Security, consolidating powers that had been under the jurisdiction of several different agencies. Their earlier lack of coordination may have prevented the United States from recognizing warning signs of the 9/11 terrorist attacks

Explain the Lemon Test

The Lemon test has three criteria that must be satisfied for such a law or action to be found constitutional and remain in effect: 1. The action or law must not lead to excessive government entanglement with religion; in other words, policing the boundary between government and religion should be relatively straightforward and not require extensive effort by the government. 2. The action or law cannot either inhibit or advance religious practice; it should be neutral in its effects on religion. 3. The action or law must have some secular purpose; there must be some non-religious justification for the law.

Describe the National Security Act

The National Security Act governs the way the government shares and stores information

What is the purpose of the UN?

The UN's main purposes are to maintain peace and security, promote human rights and social progress, and develop friendly relationships among nations.

Describe the War Powers Resolution Act.

The War Powers Resolution was passed in 1973 by a congressional override of President Richard Nixon's veto. The bill was Congress's attempt to reassert itself in war-making. Its main feature was a requirement that presidents get approval from Congress to continue any military campaign beyond sixty days

Describe the 13 amendment

The amendment's first section states, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." In effect, this amendment outlawed slavery in the United States.

What is one of the primary or chief reasons that Presidents seek out Congressional approval when it comes to foreign policy?

The basic budgetary authority needed to run foreign policy programs

What White House Staff members are concerned with Foreign Policy?

The national security advisor, director of the CIA, the director of national intelligence

What are ways in which public policy is made?

Typically, elected and even high-ranking appointed officials lack either the specific expertise or tools needed to successfully create and implement public policy on their own. They turn instead to the vast government bureaucracy to provide policy guidance; Policy can even be made when government refuses to act in ways that would change the status quo when circumstances or public opinion begin to shift

Describe humanitarian aid.

the United States operates as a strategic actor with its own interests in mind, but here it also acts as an international steward trying to serve the common good. With foreign aid, the United States provides material and economic aid to other countries, especially developing countries, in order to improve their stability and their citizens' quality of life

Describe neoconservativism.

the belief that, rather than exercising restraint, the United States should aggressively use its might to promote its values and ideals around the world

What does the Fourth Amendment address?

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized

Describe self-incrimination and what the Supreme Court ruled in Miranda v. Arizona.

The right to remain silent (pleading the fifth); also if someone does not testify in his or her own defense, the prosecution cannot use the failure to testify as evidence of guilt; in Miranda v. Arizona, whereby suspects were required to be informed of their most important rights, including the right against self-incrimination, before being interrogated in police custody

What is the takings clause?

The takings clause says that "private property [cannot] be taken for public use, without just compensation." This provision, along with the due process clause's provisions limiting the taking of property, can be viewed as a protection of individuals' economic liberty: their right to obtain, use, and trade tangible and intangible property for their own benefit

What are sharply focused foreign policy outputs?

These sharply focused foreign policy outputs tend to be exclusively the province of the president, including the deployment of troops and/or intelligence agents in a crisis, executive summits between the president and other heads of state on targeted matters of foreign policy, presidential use of military force, and emergency funding measures to deal with foreign policy crises. These measures of foreign policy are more quickly enacted

What happens if the police conduct an illegal search or seizure without a warrant and find evidence of a crime?

They can't use the evidence they found and they can't prosecute you for any crimes discovered while doing the illegal search

What is the purpose of the North American Free Trade Agreement?

This pact removed trade barriers and other transaction costs levied on goods moving between the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

What is meant by the two presidencies?

This theory originated with University of California-Berkeley professor Aaron Wildavsky and suggests that there are two distinct presidencies, one for foreign policy and one for domestic policy, and that presidents are more successful in foreign than domestic policy

What is the NAACP and who founded it?

W.E. B. Du Bois, however, argued for a more confrontational approach and in 1909 founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as a rallying point for securing equality. The NAACP soon focused on a strategy of overturning Jim Crow laws through the courts. Perhaps its greatest series of legal successes consisted of its efforts to challenge segregation in education.

Understand the significance of Mapp v. Ohio.

the court decided that evidence obtained without a warrant that didn't fall under one of the exceptions mentioned above could not be used as evidence in a state criminal trial, giving rise to the broad application of what is known as the exclusionary rule, which was first established in 1914 on a federal level in Weeks v. United States

Describe containment.

the effort by the United States and Western European allies, begun during the Cold War, to prevent the spread of communism

Define diplomacy. What actions are oftentimes taken to formalize diplomacy?

the establishment and maintenance of a formal relationship between countries that governs their interactions on matters as diverse as tourism, the taxation of goods they trade, and the landing of planes on each other's runways; Diplomatic relations are formalized through the sharing of ambassadors. Ambassadors are country representatives who live and maintain an office (known as an embassy) in the other country.

Define selective incorporation.

the gradual process of making some guarantees of the Bill of Rights (so far) apply to state governments and the national government

Define eminent domain.

the power of government to take or use property for a public purpose after compensating its owner; also known as the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment

Define Affirmative Action. What did the Supreme Court rule in Bakke v. California?

the practice of ensuring that members of historically disadvantaged or underrepresented groups have equal access to opportunities in education, the workplace, and government contracting; In 1978, in Bakke v. California, the Supreme Court upheld affirmative action and said that colleges and universities could consider race when deciding whom to admit but could not establish racial quotas

Describe the Establishment Clause.

the provision of the First Amendment that prohibits the government from endorsing a state-sponsored religion; interpreted as preventing government from favoring some religious beliefs over others or religion over non-religion

Describe the Free Exercise Clause.

the provision of the First Amendment that prohibits the government from regulating religious beliefs and practices; regulates government suppression of religion

What is strict scrutiny?

the standard used by the courts to decide cases of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion; burden of proof is on the government to demonstrate a compelling governmental interest is at stake and no alternative means are available to accomplish its goals

Define libertarians.

these individuals believe government almost always operates less efficiently than the private sector (the segment of the economy run for profit and not under government control), and that government actions should therefore be kept to a minimum.

Describe isolationism.

whereby a country stays out of foreign entanglements and keeps to itself

Is the Secretary of State nomination approved by the Senate? Who or whom does the President typically nominate?

Yes, the President seeks to nominate people who know the area to which they're being appointed and who will be loyal to the president rather than to the bureaucracy in which they might work

What is symbolic speech?

a form of expression that does not use writing or speech but nonetheless communicates an idea (e.g., wearing an article of clothing to show solidarity with a group)

What is de facto segregation?

a form of segregation that results from the choices of individuals to live in segregated communities without government action or support.

Explain the significance of the Patriot Act.

a law passed by Congress in the wake of the 9/11 attacks that broadened federal powers to monitor electronic communications; the full name is the USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act); but it has largely been used to prosecute ordinary criminals, in particular drug dealers, rather than terrorists as intended

What is redistributive policy?

a policy in which costs are born by a relatively small number of groups or individuals, but benefits are expected to be enjoyed by a different group in society

What is distributive policy and what is an example of this?

a policy that collect payments or resources broadly but concentrates direct benefits on relatively few; highways and the transcontinental railroad

What is regulatory policy?

a policy that regulates companies and organizations in a way that protects the public; A relatively small number of groups or individuals bear the costs of regulatory policy, but its benefits are expected to be distributed broadly across society.

Describe Social Security.

a social welfare policy for people who no longer receive an income from employment; retirement benefit and a disability payout

What are regressive taxes?

a tax applied at a lower overall rate as individuals' income rises (the percentage paid out of one's income is less for the rich)

Explain the significance of Roe v. Wade.

the Supreme Court decided the right to privacy encompassed a right for women to terminate a pregnancy, at least under certain scenarios. The justices ruled that while the government did have an interest in protecting the "potentiality of human life," nonetheless this had to be balanced against the interests of both women's health and women's right to decide whether to have an abortion.

Describe AIM (American Indian Movement).

the Native American civil rights group responsible for the occupation of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, in 1973; at wounded knee, they occupied it on the site of an 1890 massacre of Lakota men, women, and children by the US Army; the occupation was in protest of the actions of the half white tribal chieftain who worked too closely with the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) and they were also protesting the failure of the justice department to investigate acts of white violence against Lakota tribal members

Describe the Patriot Act

the Patriot Act (passed immediately after 9/11) clarifies what the government may do in collecting information about people in the name of protecting the country

What is a glass ceiling?

an invisible barrier caused by discrimination, prevents women from rising to the highest levels of American organizations, including corporations, governments, academic institutions, and religious groups. Women earn less money than men for the same work

What type of suits does the Seventh Amendment address?

civil disputes; when the value in controversy exceeds $20, the right to trial by jury is preserved

Describe the American Indian Religious Freedom Act.

granted tribes the right to conduct traditional ceremonies and rituals, including those that use otherwise prohibited substances like peyote cactus and eagle bones, which can be procured only from vulnerable or protected species

Define Civil Rights.

guarantees of equal treatment by government authorities

Describe the ERA. Was it officially ratified?

he Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which mandated equal treatment for all regardless of sex. The ERA, written by Alice Paul and Crystal Eastman, was first proposed to Congress, unsuccessfully, in 1923. It was introduced in every Congress thereafter but did not pass both the House and the Senate until 1972. The amendment was then sent to the states for ratification with a deadline of March 22, 1979. Although many states ratified the amendment in 1972 and 1973, the ERA still lacked sufficient support as the deadline drew near. Opponents, including both women and men, argued that passage would subject women to military conscription and deny them alimony and custody of their children should they divorce.73 In 1978, Congress voted to extend the deadline for ratification to June 30, 1982. Even with the extension, however, the amendment failed to receive the support of the required thirty-eight states; by the time the deadline arrived, it had been ratified by only thirty-five, some of those had rescinded their ratifications, and no new state had ratified the ERA during the extension period

Explain the significance of Lawrence v. Texas.

invalidated state laws that criminalized sodomy (oral sex) between the same sex

What types of tests were used to disenfranchise voters?

literacy tests and understanding tests

What is mandatory spending versus discretionary spending?

mandatory spending is the larger, consisting of about $2.3 trillion of the projected 2015 budget, or roughly 57 percent of all federal expenditures, and it is government spending earmarked for entitlement programs guaranteeing support to those who meet certain qualifications (medicare and medicaid, social security); discretionary spending government spending that Congress must pass legislation to authorize each year (portions of the budget not devoted to mandatory spending), and this is for operations of government, employee salaries, maintenance of federal buildings, education, foreign affairs, and military

Who benefits from the nation's science and technology policy?

military ( in the form of research and development funding for defense projects)

Describe the Chinese Exclusion Act.

prevented Chinese from immigrating to the United States for ten years and prevented Chinese already in the country from becoming citizens; Chinese were the first large groups of Asians to immigrate to the US; the exclusion act was placed bc of their willingness to work for less money than whites

What does the Children's Internet Protection Act require?

requires K-12 schools and public libraries receiving Internet access using special E-rate discounts to filter or block access to obscene material and other material deemed harmful to minors, with certain exceptions.

What is de jure segregation?

segregation mandated by law

Define social welfare policy.

social welfare policy is designed to ensure some level of equity in a democratic political system based on competitive, free-market economics.

What are progressive taxes?

tax that tends to increase the effective tax rate as the wealth or income of the tax payer increases (luxury tax)

What are excise taxes?

taxes applied to specific goods or services as a source of revenue