AP Gov Final Study Guide

Writ of Habeas Corpus

A court order requiring jailers to explain to a judge why they are holding a prisoner in custody

The main goal of a push poll is to

A form of political telemarketing, used to manipulate or alter prospective voters' views

American with Disabilities Act in 1990

A law passed in 1990 that requires employers and public facilities to make "reasonable accomodations" for people with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against these individuals in employment

Ex Post Facto Laws

A law which punishes people for a crime that was not a crime when it was committed. Congress cannot pass these laws.

Standing committee

A permanent committee established in a legislature, usually focusing on a policy area

Checks and Balances

A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power

Select Committee

A temporary legislative committee established for a limited time period and for a special purpose

Suppose a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission is a former employee of a large investment firm on Wall Street and has been easing the enforcement of regulations on his old firm. This is an example of

Agency capture

On Election Day, the local news station has a reporter posted outside a large polling place asking people who have just voted who they voted for and why. This reporter is conducting

An exit poll

How is the president able to influence the federal bureaucracy?

Appoints agency directors and subheads issuing executive orders compelling an agency to do/not do something

How is the president able to influence the federal bureaucracy?

Appoints most of the leaders of each branch

Which of the following is a main idea in Federalist No. 70?

Articles of Confederation have no strong executive; we need a president

Suppose the Department of Energy has decided to provide funds to state governments for the purpose of researching, establishing, and implementing any number of clean energy sources in any way the state sees fit. This is an example of

Block Grant

How is Edward Snowden's situation similar to the circumstances surrounding the Gitlow v. New York case?

Both Snowden and Gitlow acted in a way that was intended to inform the American people but posed a threat to safety of others.

Schenck v. United States

Clear and present danger test in order to justify whether or not an individual's right of speech could be impeded

Based on what you know about news media, what is causing consolidation?

Concentration of ownership of news sources aka DISNEY

New York Times v. United States

Defended freedom of press, constitutional to publish pentagon papers

What was the main function of the Three-Fifths Compromise?

Determined that each slave would be counted as three-fifths of a person for the purpose of apportioning taxes and representation. The compromise granted disproportionate political power to Southern slave states.

What is the main difference between the majority opinion and the dissenting opinions in the McDonald v. Chicago case on the Second Amendment?

Dissenting: The right to own guns was not "fundamental" and therefore states and localities should be free to regulate or even ban them Majority: The second amendment applies to state and local governments

Suppose a free speech advocacy group is attempting to stop legislation that would infringe upon American citizens' First Amendment rights, but they lack money to donate to a pro-free speech candidate's campaign. What is another way this group might be able to influence this legislation?

Donate to PAC's or the party/Lobbying

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"

Dr. Kings letter of response to worries of segregation from white people Basically people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws

An open primary

Election in which voters are not required to declare party affiliation

Concerns that large companies like the e-commerce giant Amazon are not paying enough in taxes reflects which theory of democracy?

Elitist

A candidate running for the House of Representatives has promised constituents that she will push for legislation to reform campaign finance laws so that the wealthy elites and business owners do not have greater influence on policies than American citizens. Such legislation is based on which theory?

Elitist Theory

A feature of school vouchers is

Enable students to go to private schools or receive higher quality education

The function of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) is to

Enforces campaign finance law

Enumerated Powers and Concurrent Powers

Enumerated Powers: List exclusive federal powers Concurrent Powers: Are shared between the federal and state governments

Which condition allowed for President Barack Obama to push through billions of dollars in aid to banks and the automobile industry during his first term as president?

Executive Order

Shay's Rebellion

Exposed the weakness of the government under the Articles of Confederation, opposed high taxes and bad economic conditions. Forced the Supreme Court to adjourn

Baker v. Carr

Federal Courts can review redistricting issues

Suppose the president has nominated someone for a vacancy on the Supreme Court, but a senator in the opposing party does not approve of the president's choice. What can that senator do to change the situation?

Filibuster, talk to other senators to skew the vote

What is the main function of the Government Accountability Office (GAO)?

GAO, or Government Accountability office, is the nations watchdog over how the how the funds Congress appropriates are spent.

What motive is there for news media outlets to report on political news as opposed to important public policies?

Get a bigger audience

How does John Locke's concept of a social contract compare to the form of government that existed in Great Britain at the time?

Great Britain's government at the time stated that kings were granted the right to rule by God, whereas Locke's concept of a social contract dictated that leaders were granted the right to rule by the people

Brandenburg v. Ohio

Hate speech is allowed under the first amendment

How did James Madison's proposed amendments for the Bill of Rights address Alexander Hamilton's concerns that a list of rights would be incomplete and allow for tyranny?

He emphasized the right of the individual. The Bill of Rights guarantees rights to the people and what rights the government cannot infringe upon

The Rush Limbaugh Show

Highest rated talk radio show, very Conservative

Many accuse CNN of consistently reporting negative news stories about President Donald Trump and other Republican or conservative officials, suggesting that CNN

Is biased

What lasting impact did the Supreme Court's decision in Schenck v. United States have on the First Amendment?

It established the clear and present danger test, which set the precedent that speech that posed a threat to national security would not be protected by the First Amendment.

Partisan polarization manifests itself during the end of a President's term in the form of...

Lame Duck Period

Which type of state would have been in favor of the proposed Virginia Plan?

Larger states

The rule of law is the

Law that everyone must obey including citizens, non-citizens, and government leaders

The Daily Show

Liberal Rush Limbaugh Show

Having social, political, and economic freedoms is characteristic of which self-evident right?

Liberty

Why was the freedom to practice religion and the avoidance of establishing a national religion important to the founding fathers?

Many of those who came to America did so to escape religious persecution, and the founding fathers wanted to avoid the conditions they fled in England.

Which aspect of infotainment would be considered negative?

Merging entertainment and politics can lead to increased cynicism among audiences

Symbolic Speech

Nonverbal communication, such as burning a flag or wearing an armband. The Supreme Court has accorded some symbolic speech protection under the first amendment.

A closed primary

Only registered party members may participate

One argument Alexander Hamilton made in favor of only one executive leader was that having

Plural executive is too powerful; only one allows for purpose, direction, and flexibility

A political activist who supports gun control legislation believes that interest groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) have too much money and influence over lawmakers in Congress. Such a belief is characteristic of which theory?

Pluralist Theory

José is discussing party identification and political values with friends from his U.S. History class and says that he sees himself as socially liberal Republican, which means he likely supports

Pro-choice, pro-environment, etc... yet financially conservative

Gerrymandering

Process of redrawing legislative boundaries for the purpose of benefiting the party in power.

According to John Locke, it is the government's job to

Protect you natural rights

Why were the Federalist Papers so effective in gaining support for the Constitution?

Proved that the Constitution was necessary to safeguard liberty and independence

How do public approval trends impact a president's ability to take action during a time of crisis?

Public approval often increases during a time of crisis, which would allow the president to expand the power of the executive without much protest

In a debate about the scope of the American government providing social welfare programs, one student argues that such programs are conductive to helping Americans realize the Americans Dream, while the other argues that such programs run contrary to the inherent right to

Pursue happiness through hard work, sacrifice, and one's own skill set

Rational basis, Intermediate, Strict

Rational basis: the most lenient form of judicial review/use to determine the constitutionality of a statute or ordinance and when no fundamental rights or suspect classifications are at issue Intermediate: test courts will use to determine a statute's constitutionality, applied when law only partially affects the suspect Strict (scrutiny test??): used to determine the constitutionality of certain laws, "strict in name, but fatal in practice."

Citizens of a small American town have been dissatisfied with their elected representative in the House of Representatives and are planning to vote for a different candidate in the next election. Which form of government allows the citizens to take such an action?

Representative

How do critical elections impact the American political system?

Reshape american political scene and the party in power

Tinker v. Des Moines

Students have the right to symbolic speech at school as long as it is not disruptive (Black Armbands)

Reserved powers

Tenth Amendment: Powers not specifically granted to the federal government or denied to the states, belong to the states and the people

Suppose a strict constructionist on the Supreme Court is reviewing the Roe v. Wade case and issues a dissenting opinion on the Court's decision. This justice would likely criticize the Court's broad interpretation of...

The 14th Amendment

Engel v. Vitale

The 1962 Supreme Court decision holding that state officials violated the First Amendment when they wrote a prayer to be recited by New York's schoolchildren.

The city of Denver passes a law that bans civilians from purchasing or possessing handguns. People who are upset with this could file a lawsuit arguing the new law violates the

The 2nd amendment - the right to bear arms

After the Revolutionary War, but prior to the adoption of the Constitution, the United States was under which system of government?

The Articles of Confederation

How does the position of the Speaker of the House compare to the Senate majority leader?

The Speaker of the House has more influence than the Senate majority leader.

Front-loading

The moving up of presidential primaries and caucuses by states, thereby increasing their influence in the selection of a party's candidate

Suppose you are working for the president and are responsible for coordinating foreign policy initiatives. Which part of the Executive Office of the President do you work for?

The national security council

What was the Antifederalists' most compelling argument against the Constitution?

They feared that the new national government would be too powerful and thus threaten individual liberties, given the absence of a bill of rights. There was no bill of rights.

Why might the citizens of a certain state choose to elect a new senator in an upcoming election?

They feel the senator no longer represents their beliefs.

Marbury v. Madison

This case establishes the Supreme Court's power of Judicial Review

What is the purpose of federal bureaucrats?

To implement regulations and standards that Americans must follow to comply with the law

What is the primary purpose of the War Powers Resolution?

To limit the president's ability to initiate or escalate military actions abroad

Suppose an interest group that advocates for accessible and affordable health care is lobbying members of Congress on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services to secure additional funding to develop a public health campaign to increase awareness about changes to the Affordable Care Act. These groups are engaged in which activity?

Using the iron triangle

Suppose Congress has presented a law to the president that the president believes will infringe upon the due process rights of Americans. To prevent this from happening, the president may

Veto the bill

American system of Federalism

Was dual (separate) but now cooperative (marble cake)

Campaigning, political participation, a social movement, lobbying

What individuals do to participate in politics

major parties will go through realignment

When there is a social change/Critical Election

Conference Committee

Work out differences between two versions of the same bill from the different houses

Danielle has a distrust of new, online news sites and likes to tune into a variety of news networks to get a balanced opinion of what is going on in the world, mainly watching CNN and Fox News to do so. Which type of media does Danielle depend on for information?

broadcasting news, television news

The judicial branch

court systems/the branch of government that interprets laws

Democracy can be defined as a system of government

in which the people hold the power

Globalization can best be described as the increased

interconnectedness of economies, political systems and societies on a global scale. sensitivity. more awareness.

Slander

spoken defamation

The main purpose of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) is

to ban the use of soft money contributions and raised the limit on donations to $2000, preventing corporations and unions from using their money to advertise for candidates

Libel

written defamation