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Terms
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- judicial review
- the power of the courts to strike down (cancel) a law or executive action that violates the U.S. Constitution
- powers of the executive
- states created the Constitution to include a President similar to state Governors. Each carries out laws with the help of executive departments headed by cabinet secretaries. Each can check the legislative and judicial branches. Only the President is Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. armed forces
- citizens
- people born in the U.S. or whose parent is a U.S. citizen
- limited government
- public officials must obey the Constitution
- EPA
- helps protect our environment
- checks and balances
- each branch is powerful and can block other branches
- interest group
- private organization that lobbies
- popular sovereignty
- democracy
- Brown v. Board of Education
- 1954 USSC decision that racial segregation in public schools violated the equal protection clause of Amendment 14. This decision overruled the USSC's decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. The court ruled that even if the government funded black schools equal to white schools, the policy of segregation hurt the feelings of black people forever. Thus, separate can never be equal.
- U.S. Constitution
- document that has the basic laws of the U.S. gov't since 1789
- common good
- beneficial to all
- unitary
- a system in which the central government has more power than the states.
- amendments
- improvements to the U.S. Constitution. More than 3/4 of the states must approve these
- FAA
- helps make air travel safer
- New Jersey v. T.L.O
- case in which the U.S. Supreme Court set the precedent that a public school administrator can search a student if he has reasonable suspicion that the student has evidence regarding a violation of a school rule or a law.
- U.S. Bill of Rights
- the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution
- consent of the governed
- gov't has power only because we obey the law
- roles of executives
- The Governor and President have executive, legislative, judicial, political (= party), and symbolic functions. The President also has diplomatic and military power.
- Tinker v. Des Moines Board of Education
- case in which the U.S. Supreme Court set the precedent that students may participate in symbolic political speech in class as long as it does not violate other the rights of other students.
- presidential use of power and executive orders
- An executive order is a written command from the executive to an executive department
- Declaration of Independence
- a document American colonists wrote in 1776 to get Americans to fight for separation for Britain
- lobbyists
- people who to ask the government for something such as 1) kill unfavorable bills and 2) vote to pass favorable bills
- electoral process
- to be a candidate, one must file for office, win a party primary, and then win a general election. to be a voter in Maryland, a person must be an 18 year old citizen by general election day and must register 30 days before the election
- Articles of Confederation
- U.S. rules from 1781 to 1789.
- Gideon v. Wainwright
- case in which the U.S. Supreme Court set the precedent that states must pay for counsel for indigent = poor defendants
- McCullough v. Maryland
- national powers are stronger than state powers, and thatCongress can make laws not listed in the Constitution as long as the goal fits one of the other powers the Constitution gives to Congress
- political action committees
- organizations that raise money and contribute it to candidates
- Miranda v. Arizona
- 1966 case in which the U.S. Supreme Court set the precedent that before police can question a suspect, they must inform the suspect of some of his due process rights.
- reapportionment
- changing the assignments of legislators due to a change in population distribution
- Marbury v. Madison
- a case in 1803 in which the U.S. Supreme Court justices established the power of judicial review
- majority rule
- largest group has more power
- rule of law
- everyone must always obey the law
- federalism
- central and state levels of gov't share power
- confederate
- a system in which the states have more power than the central government
- FDA
- helps protect us from unsafe medicine and foods.
- representative democracy
- people rule indirectly through elected legislators
- referendum
- citizens get to vote YES or NO on a ballot question in an election. If more people vote YES than the question becomes a new law.
- Plessy v. Ferguson
- 1896 USSC case that began when the state of Louisiana arrested Homer Plessy for buying a ticket for the white part of a segregated train. Plessy argued that Louisiana's law violated the equal protection clause of Amendment 14. Louisiana argued that the railroad cars were equal because all were going to the same destination. The majority of USSC justices ruled that separate is legal if it is equal.
- amendment process
- normally a law can only become an amendment if 2/3 of Congress proposes an amendment then 3/4 of states ratify it.
- individual rights and responsibilities
- each of us must respect everyone else's rights
- influencing the lawmaking process
- people, interest groups, and PACS can use 1st amendment rights to lobby legislators and participate in elections.
- authoritarian
- A government that few people control; most people have no power
- FTC
- helps protect us from unfair actions by businesses
- FCC
- helps protect us from unfair action by communication companies
- regional interests
- people who live in different geographic areas have different needs
- structure of executive branch
- each executive department includes hundreds or thousands of worker headed by a cabinet secretary. The executive is the boss of the secretaries
- public opinion
- the way people feel about issues
- powers of legislatures
- making laws, checking the executive and judicial branches
- democratic
- a government that many people control; people have a power
- candidates
- people who have officially filed for office and are running to win elected office
- mass and its roles
- TV, movies, radio, newspapers, magazines, and the world wide web. Technologies that people use to communicate with many people at once. Helpful for propaganda to influence public opinion.
- initiative
- citizens collect signatures of registered voters to qualify a question for a referendum
- political party
- a private organization that works to get its member to win elections
- campaign finance
- money a candidate raises to pay for advertising through the media and to pay for staff
- voting patterns
- the way certain groups of people tend to vote
- primary and general elections
- parties have primaries to select one candidate to represent the party in final (general) election against the other party
- demographic trends
- the ways in which statistics about groups of people seem to be going.
- separation of powers
- three branches with different powers
- structure of the national and state legislatures
- states created the Constitution to include a bicameral (= two house) Congress similar to state legislatures. Both levels have a House and a more powerful Senate.