Government Chapter 4
One reason for the growth of the national government's power and influence has been
heightened expectations and demands placed on the federal government.
Confederal governments are usually found today
in multinational relationships.
McCulloch v. Maryland increased the power of the federal government by
interpreting the "necessary and proper" clause of the Constitution very broadly.
In the United States,
legislative, executive, and judicial powers are handled by separate institutions.
The enumerated powers are
listed in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution.
The Supreme Court has interpreted the ______ clause of the Constitution so broadly that there are very few restrictions on what Congress can do.
necessary and proper
The New Deal increased the scope of both national and state powers by
redefining the purpose of American government.
The enumerated powers are important because they
showed the founders' commitment to creating a strong national government.
The federal government has been able to use categorical grants to coerce states into doing what it wants most of the time because
states have become financially dependent on this aid.
The Supreme Court has interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment to
strike down racial segregation in the states.
The supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution states that
the Constitution is the supreme law of the land.
The founders intended the people to have influence over public policy through
the House of Representatives.
The fact that the federal government was able to get the states to adopt a uniform drinking age is an example of the
ability of the national government to use its funding authority to achieve indirectly what it cannot achieve directly.
Article III of the Constitution
creates the Supreme Court but allows Congress to establish lower courts.
One of the great advantages of American federalism over the years has been the
flexibility it has provided the states when it comes to experimentation with public policy.
Although the Constitution provides for both national and state powers,
the balance between state and national powers has shifted considerably since 1787.
The rulings of the Supreme Court under John Marshall contributed to enhancement of
the power of the national government.
Congress has been reluctant to use block grants to achieve policy goals because
they allow states to pursue their own goals rather than the federal government's goals.
What is the key difference between categorical grants and block grants?
Compared with categorical grants, block grants provide states with more leverage and power over how to spend grants-in-aid money.
The necessary and proper clause of the U.S. Constitution states that
Congress has the power to pass laws that are necessary and proper for the carrying out of its other powers.
A major debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists concerned the
balance of power between the federal and state governments.
Federal funds provided to states for a broad purpose and unrestricted by detailed requirements are called
block grants.
The New Deal increased the power of the federal government in regard to
business and the economy.
Gibbons v. Ogden increased the power of the national government by interpreting the
commerce clause of the Constitution very broadly.
The theory that defines the state and national governments as essentially separate from each other and carrying out independent functions is
dual federalism.
Federal orders that require states to operate and pay for programs created at the national level are called
unfunded mandates.
A ______ system is one in which the central government ultimately has all of the power.
unitary
The amendment process for the Constitution
was designed to allow growth and change but not to be too easy.
In the early years of the New Deal, the Supreme Court ruled that many New Deal programs
were unconstitutional.