GOVT 2305 Final Review

the equal protection clause

14th amendment clause that prohibits states from denying equal protection under the law, and has been used to combat discrimination

Stamp Act

1765; law that taxed printed goods, including: playing cards, documents, newspapers, etc.

War Powers Resolution

A law passed in 1973 spelling out the conditions under which the president can commit troops without congressional approval.

Policy Agenda

A policy agenda is the collection of issues that the media covers, the public considers important, and the politicians address.

Divided Government

Divided government occurs during those periods in which at least one house of Congress is controlled by a party different from the one occupying the White House. Split-ticket voting is most likely to lead to divided government.

Judicial Activism

Proponents of which of the following believe that judges should use their power broadly to further justice? judicial activism

Primary Elections

Super Tuesday is the date on the primary calendar when the most states hold primaries and caucuses on the same day.

the establishment clause

The establishment clause of the First Amendment prohibits government from sponsoring or supporting religious activity.

Exclusionary Rule

The exclusionary rule holds that evidence obtained from an illegal search and seizure cannot be used in a trial. In Mapp v. Ohio, a case that involved the conviction of a woman for possession of obscene material found during an illegal search for a fugitive, the Supreme Court extended the federal exclusionary rule to state courts.

Redistricting

The redrawing of congressional and other legislative district lines following the census, to accommodate population shifts and keep districts as equal as possible in population.

Function of Government

What is the most important function of government according to Hobbes? Political Stability/Peace

Line Item Veto

an executive's ability to block a particular provision in a bill passed by the legislature

Fourteenth Amendment

A constitutional amendment giving full rights of citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States, except for American Indians The civil rights guarantee of "equal protection of the laws" is located in the Fourteenth Amendment. Why did the women's suffrage movement aim at a constitutional amendment? The Supreme Court ruled against efforts to apply the Fourteenth Amendment to women. The Fourteenth Amendment has been construed to provide protection for the individual from the actions of a repressive state government..

Implied powers

A constitutional clause that allows for a broad interpretation of implied powers is known as a(n) elastic clause.

Electoral College

A group of people named by each state legislature to select the president and vice president

Executive Order

A presidential declaration, with the force of law, that issues instructions to the executive branch without any requirement for congressional action or approval.

Cloture

A procedure for terminating debate, especially filibusters, in the Senate.

Barron v Baltimore

John Barron owned a dock in Baltimore . City violated 5th amendment by taking his property without just compensation. Supreme. court ruled 5th amendment only applied to the federal government. States also bound by protections of individual rights?

The Equal Pay Act of 1963

Legislation that requires employers to pay men and women equal pay for equal work

Committees

Committees can "punish" an agency by cutting its budget, altering a key program, and holding up the confirmation of nominees. The House Judiciary Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee are examples of standing committees. A select committee is a temporary committee established to deal with issues that either overlap or fall outside the areas of expertise of standing committees. Standing = Permanant Select = Special Joint = Both Houses

the full faith and credit clause

Constitution's requirement that each state accept the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state

The Education Amendments Act of 1972

Education can not be denied to those of different genders if the institution receives federal funding

Unified Government

Hobbes believes that governmental powers should be Unified in one institution

Public Opinion

In his path-breaking book, Public Opinion, Lippmann insisted "The masses are asses!" and dismissed the young "science" of public opinion as undeserving of the name. According to the text, for public opinion to guide government, the people must know what they want and guide government decisions. Massive shifts in public opinion profoundly affect public officials in matters such as same-sex marriage, legalizing marijuana, police brutality

Clear and Present Danger

Interpretation of the First Amendment that holds that the government cannot interfere with speech unless the speech presents a clear and present danger that it will lead to evil or illegal acts.

Committee Chairman

Longest serving committee member.

Factions

Madison refers to interest groups in the Federalist no. 10 as factions In Federalist no. 10, Madison suggests the way to prevent factions from killing off popular government is to increase the number of them According to Madison in Federalist No.10 the most common and durable source of factions has been unequal distribution of property.

White House Staff

Personnel who run the White House and advise the President. Includes the Chief of Staff and Press Secretary

PLEJFASRA

Please Let Every Junior Fail As Senior Rocks Always Order of the constitution P: preamble L: Legislative Branch (ART.1) E: Executive Branch (ART. 2) J: Judicial Branch (ART.3) F: Full faith and credit clause (ART. 4) A: Full Amendment Process (ART.5) S: Supremacy Clause (ART.6) R: Ratification (ART. 7) A: Amendments (27)

Elitist

Power rests in the hands of a small number of wealthy and powerful individuals.

Reserved Powers

Powers given to the state government alone

Expressed Powers

Powers the Constitution explicitly grants to the president

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

Presidential staff agency that serves as a clearinghouse for budgetary requests and management improvements for government agencies.

Incumbent

Since 1950, approximately 90 percent of all House incumbents running for office have been reelected. An incumbent advantage that permits members of Congress to keep in touch with constituents by sending mailings at the taxpayer's expense is known as the franking privilege. When making contributions to candidates for Congress, PACs tend to show a preference for incumbents. Open seat refers to a seat in Congress without an incumbent running for reelection. One typical poll showed that nearly 80 percent of the respondents agreed that Congress was "out of touch with average Americans," yet a year later more than 90 percent of House and Senate incumbents won reelection, most by large majorities.

Political Party

Strong attachment to one political party, often established at an early age, is known as party identification. The party in government is the portion of a political party's organization that comprises elected officials and candidates for office. Millennials do not identify strongly with either political party—half of them call themselves independents.

PACs

Super PACs may raise unlimited sums from virtually any source—business firms, unions, or individuals—and spend as much as they like to openly support or oppose political candidates. Political Action Committees, raise money for candidates &/or parties

Civil Rights act 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 provided for all of the following except elimination of the poll tax as a requirement for voting. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 provided for all of the following: equal access to public accommodations regardless of race, religion, or national origin. equal employment opportunities regardless of race. withholding federal grants-in-aid from state programs that discriminated on the basis of race. strengthened voting rights legislation. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans private and governmental acts of discrimination. In a challenge to the Civil Rights Act before the Supreme Court, the Court based its decision upholding the act on which constitutional principle? Congress's power to regulate interstate commerce Language protecting women from employment discrimination was added to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act in an attempt to ridicule the overall law and make it unacceptable to some of the male members of the U.S. House

The Equal Rights Amendment

The Equal Rights Amendment was passed by both houses but fell three states short of ratification

Revenue Sharing

federal sharing of a fixed percentage of its revenue with the states

Grants in Aide

national government funding provided to state and local governments, along with specific instructions about how the funds may be used

Federalist 10

The Federalist Papers were drafted by Madison Hamilton and Jay James Madison warns against interest groups in Federalist no. 10.

Gerrymandering

The practice of altering district lines for partisan advantage after the census is also known as gerrymandering.

Voter Turnout

Voter turnout refers to the measure of the proportion of eligible voters that actually cast legitimate ballots in a given election.

Casework

Work performed by Congressional staff members on behalf of constituents is casework

Bill of Rights

1 Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. 2 Right to keep and bear arms in order to maintain a well regulated militia. 3 No quartering of soldiers. 4 Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. 5 Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double jeopardy. 6 Rights of accused persons, e.g., right to a speedy and public trial. 7 Right of trial by jury in civil cases. 8 Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments. 9 Other rights of the people. 10 Powers reserved to the states.The chief obstacle to ratification of the Constitution by the states was the omission of a bill of rights. The main argument against the need for a bill of rights was that the Constitution established a government of limited powers; because the government was not given the power to regulate individual liberties no bill of rights was necessary. The most important obstacle to the adoption of the Constitution by the states was it did not contain a bill of rights. In 1791, when the Bill of Rights was ratified, it imposed limits on the national government but not on the state governments. The rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution are found in the Bill of Rights and the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment. Gitlow v. New York was the fist case to establish that the Bill of Rights would be applied more broadly than the Supreme Court initially held. States are now obligated to protect most provisions of the Bill of Rights as a result of the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment due process clause. Griswold v. Connecticut, which challenged a Connecticut statute that declared the use of birth control devices a crime, established the principle that the Bill of Rights as a whole creates a zone of personal privacy or autonomy. The First Amendment in the Bill of Rights guarantees the right to lobby.

Pluralist

According to pluralist theory, interest groups influence the government.

Plea Bargain

Agreement between a prosecutor and a defendant that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser offense to avoid having to stand trial for a more serious offense.

Rule of Four

At least four justices of the Supreme Court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard

Block Grants

Federal grants given more or less automatically to states or communities to support broad programs in areas such as community development and social services

Independent Regulatory agencies

Federal regulatory agencies that are independent, thus not fully under the power of the president. Ex. Federal Trade Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission.

Judicial Restraint

If a judge believes that she should only strike down laws that clearly violate the Constitution, she likely believes in which of the following? judicial restraint

Veto

If the president neither signs nor vetoes a bill within 10 days while Congress is in session, the bill becomes law. The veto power gives the president authority to reject any congressional legislation. Congress can overturn a presidential veto with a two-thirds vote in each house.

Republican Government

System of government in which power is held by the voters and is exercised by elected representatives responsible for promoting the common welfare.

Necessary and Proper Clause

The "necessary and proper" clause of Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution is an example of a(n) " elastic clause."

Constitution of the USA

The Constitution limits what Congress may do—and Americans vigorously debate exactly where exactly those boundaries lie.

the free exercise clause

The Constitution's free exercise clause prevents the government from interfering with religious practice. The First Amendment declares, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." If Congress forced conscientious objectors to fight—to violate their religious beliefs or deeply held humanistic opposition to war—the government would run afoul of the free-exercise clause of the First Amendment.

Roe v Wade

The case Roe v. Wade upheld the right of women to have abortions. The major criticism of the dissenting justices in Roe v. Wade was that the other justices were writing their own policy preferences into law.

Articles of Confederation

To amend the Articles of Confederation required a(n) unanimous vote of the Confederation Congress. The Articles of Confederation failed because they did not provide an effective means for the government to raise money they did not include an independent leader to direct the government and they did not give the government the power to regulate commerce. Originally the Constitutional Convention's purpose was to revise the Articles of Confederation. After the failure of the Articles of Confederation the founders adopted a federal form of government strong enough to maintain order but not to dominate the states. The framers of the Constitution wanted a government strong enough to avoid the difficulties encountered under the Articles of Confederation.

Executive Agreement

Treaties that the president enters into with foreign nations that do not require legislative approval are called executive agreements.

Public Policy

Which Court was one of the most active in shaping public policy in the twentieth century? Warren Implementation of policies is often difficult because of all but which of the following reasons? After policies are implemented, they must still undergo the development stage.

Declaration of Independence

Which document proclaimed We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights The Declaration of Independence One result of the Second Continental Congress was The adoption of the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence explained the role of government—securing each individual's three rights; life, liberty, pursuit of happiness

Plaintiff

Which of the following brings the case before the court in civil cases? plaintiff Which of the following must plaintiffs have in order to sustain a lawsuit in court? standing

Interest Groups

Which of the following is a way that interest groups attempt to influence the Supreme Court's decisions? filing amicus curiae briefs K Street in downtown Washington, DC, is home to the headquarters of many lobbying firms and interest groups and is synonymous with interest-group lobbying. Representing practically every conceivable issue and group of people, public interest groups and citizen groups cover the political spectrum. Material benefits refer to items distributed by public interest groups as incentives to sign up or remain a member. A/An issue campaign is a concerted effort by interest groups to arouse popular support or opposition for a policy issue. Astroturf lobbying is an attempt by interest groups to simulate widespread public engagement on an issue. An issue network is a shifting alliance of public and private interest groups, lawmakers, and other stakeholders all focused on the same policy area Interest groups promote stability by checking the power of each other How has technology affected the ability of interest groups to distribute information? It has significantly increased their ability to spread information.

Defendant

an individual or group being sued or charged with a crime

Federalism

powers divided between national and state government. Each has its own independent authority and duties. The basic premise of federalism is that two or more governments share power and authority over the same land and people. Someone who believes that the elastic clause of the Constitution should be narrowly interpreted is most likely to endorse the concept of dual federalism. Which metaphor best describes dual federalism? A layer cake According to the theory of dual federalism, a rigid wall separates the nation and the states. Which metaphor best describes cooperative federalism? A marble cake The Great Depression represented a shift away from dual federalism and toward cooperative federalism The use of highway construction funds has been an effective means to promote cooperative federalism.

Police Powers

powers of the states to protect the public health, safety, morals, and welfare of the public