U.S. Government Final Prep Sheet (Part 2)
Mr. Wanlin's 1st Semester Final Prep Sheet (Part Two)
Terms
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- G.A.O.
- Government Accountability Office: the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress. It is located in the Legislative branch of the United States Government.
- Schenk v. United States (1919)
- a United States Supreme Court decision concerning th Amendment right to free speech against the draft during World War I. Ultimately, the case served as the founding of the "clear and present danger" rule. (9-0)
- President Pro-Tem
- a senator, usually a senior member of the majority party, who is chosen to preside over the Senate in the absence of the vice president.
- Spoil System
- it refers to an informal practice by which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its voters as a reward for working toward victory, and as an incentive to keep working for the party—as opposed to a system of awarding offices on the basis of some measure of merit independent of political activity
- Conference Committee
- a joint committee that is appointed to hold a conference on differing versions of a bill
- Katz v. United States (1967)
- a United States Supreme Court decision that extended the Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable searches and seizures to protect individuals in a telephone booth from wiretaps by authorities without a warrant.
- Thomas Hobbes
- English philosopher and political theorist best known for his book Leviathan (1651), in which he argues that the only way to secure civil society is through universal submission to the absolute authority of a sovereign.
- Article IV
- It provides for the responsibilities states have to each other, and the responsibilities the federal government has to the states. Furthermore, it provides for the admission of new states and the changing of state boundaries.
- Capitalism
- an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.
- Seniority System
- the concept of a person or group of people being in charge or in command of another person or group. This control is often granted to the senior person(s) due to experience or length of service in a given position, but it is not uncommon for a senior person(s) to have less experience or length of service than their subordinates.
- Redistricting
- To divide again into districts, especially to give new boundaries to administrative or election districts.
- Precedent
- a legal decision or form of proceeding serving as an authoritative rule or pattern in future similar or analogous cases.
- State
- the territory, or one of the territories, of a government.
- Enumerated Powers
- a list of specific responsibilities found in Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution, which enumerate the authority granted to the United States Congress. Congress may exercise only those powers that are stated in the Constitution, limited by the Bill of Rights and the other protections found in the Constitutional text.
- Confederation
- a group of confederates, esp. of states more or less permanently united for common purposes.
- Autocracy
- government in which one person has uncontrolled or unlimited authority over others; the government or power of an absolute monarch.
- Adam Smith
- Scottish political economist and philosopher. His Wealth of Nations (1776) laid the foundations of classical free-market economic theory.
- Factors of Production
- a collection of various resources which contribute to producing goods or services
- Roe v. Wade (1973)
- a United States Supreme Court case that resulted in a landmark decision regarding abortion.[1] According to the Roe decision, most laws against abortion in the United States violated a constitutional right to privacy under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision overturned all state and federal laws outlawing or restricting abortion that were inconsistent with its holdings (7-2)
- Quorum
- the number of members of a group or organization required to be present to transact business legally, usually a majority.
- Communism
- a theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, actual ownership being ascribed to the community as a whole or to the state.
- Sheppard v. Maxwell (1966)
- a United States Supreme Court case that examined the rights of freedom of the press as outlined in the 1st Amendment when weighed against a defendant's right to a fair trial as required by the 6th Amendment. (8-1)
- Whip
- a party manager in a legislative body who secures attendance for voting and directs other members.
- Democracy
- government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.
- Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
- a landmark case in United States Supreme Court history. In the case, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that state courts are required under the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution to provide counsel in criminal cases for defendants unable to afford their own attorneys.
- Gregory v. City of Chicago (1969)
- a United States Supreme Court case in which Chicago police, to prevent what they regarded as an impending civil disorder, demanded that the demonstrators, upon pain of arrest, disperse. When this command was not obeyed, petitioners were arrested for disorderly conduct. The First Amendment claim sustained. (9-0)
- Whitney v. California (1927)
- a United States Supreme Court decision upholding the conviction of an individual who had engaged in speech that raised a threat to society. (9-0)
- Republic
- a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them.
- Aristotle
- Greek philosopher. A pupil of Plato, the tutor of Alexander the Great, and the author of works on logic, metaphysics, ethics, natural sciences, politics, and poetics, he profoundly influenced Western thought. In his philosophical system, which led him to criticize what he saw as Plato's metaphysical excesses, theory follows empirical observation and logic, based on the syllogism, is the essential method of rational inquiry.
- Stare Decisis
- the doctrine that rules or principles of law on which a court rested a previous decision are authoritative in all future cases in which the facts are substantially the same.
- Constituents
- Empowered to elect or designate.
- Poll Tax
- a capitation tax, the payment of which is sometimes a prerequisite to exercise the right of suffrage.
- Article II
- creates the executive branch of the government, comprising the President and other executive officers.
- Concurring Opinion
- an opinion filed by a judge that agrees with the majority or plurality opinion on the case but that bases this conclusion on different reasons or on a different view of the case.
- Jurisdiction
- the right, power, or authority to administer justice by hearing and determining controversies.
- Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
- a landmark United States Supreme Court case. The Court held that criminal suspects must be informed of their right to consult with an attorney and of their right against self-incrimination prior to questioning by police. (5-4)
- Karl Marx
- German philosopher, economist, and revolutionary. With the help and support of Friedrich Engels he wrote The Communist Manifesto (1848) and Das Kapital (1867-1894). These works explain historical development in terms of the interaction of contradictory economic forces, form the basis of all communist theory, and have had a profound influence on the social sciences.
- Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
- a landmark case in the area of U.S. criminal procedure, in which the United States Supreme Court decided that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment protection against "unreasonable searches and seizures" may not be used in criminal prosecutions in state courts, as well as federal courts.
- Elastic Clause
- a statement in the U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 8) granting Congress the power to pass all laws necessary and proper for carrying out the enumerated list of powers.
- Free-market
- an economic system in which prices and wages are determined by unrestricted competition between businesses, without government regulation or fear of monopolies.
- Baker v. Carr (1962)
- a landmark United States Supreme Court case that retring that reapportionment issues (attempts to change the way voting districts are delineated) present justiciable questions, thus enabling federal courts to intervene in and to decide reapportionment cases (6-2)
- Bill of Rights
- a formal statement of the fundamental rights of the people of the United States, incorporated in the Constitution as Amendments 1-10, and in all state constitutions.
- Monarchy
- supreme power or sovereignty held by a single person.
- Elector
- a person who elects or may elect, esp. a qualified voter.
- Article I
- describes the powers of the legislative branch of the United States government, known as Congress, which includes the House of Representatives and the Senate.
- Lobbyist
- a person who tries to influence legislation on behalf of a special interest; a member of a lobby.
- Nation-State
- a sovereign state inhabited by a relatively homogeneous group of people who share a feeling of common nationality.
- Civil Rights
- rights to personal liberty established by the 13th and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and certain Congressional acts, esp. as applied to an individual or a minority group.
- Select Committee
- a committee, as of a legislative body, that is formed to examine and report on a specific bill or issue.
- Socialism
- a theory or system of social organization that advocates the vesting of the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital, land, etc., in the community as a whole.
- Engel v. Vitale (1962)
- a landmark United States Supreme Court case that determined that it is unconstitutional for state officials to compose an official school prayer and require its recitation in public schools. (6-1)
- Cloture
- a method of closing a debate and causing an immediate vote to be taken on the question.
- Mixed Economy
- an economy in which there are elements of both public and private enterprise.
- Laissez-faire
- An economic doctrine that opposes governmental regulation of or interference in commerce beyond the minimum necessary for a free-enterprise system to operate according to its own economic laws.
- Dred Scott v. Sanford (1856)
- a lawsuit, pivotal in the history of the United States, decided by the United States Supreme Court that ruled that people of African descent, whether or not they were slaves, could never be citizens of the United States, and that Congress had no authority to prohibit slavery in federal territories
- Article III
- establishes the judicial branch of the federal government. The judicial branch comprises the Supreme Court of the United States along with lower federal courts established pursuant to legislation by Congress.
- Incumbent
- holding an indicated position, role, office, etc., currently: the incumbent officers of the club.
- Federal System
- strong central government with several branching smaller governments
- Impeach
- to accuse (a public official) before an appropriate tribunal of misconduct in office.
- Gerrymander
- the dividing of a state, county, etc., into election districts so as to give one political party a majority in many districts while concentrating the voting strength of the other party into as few districts as possible.
- Article VII
- describes the process by which the entire document is to be ratified and take effect.
- Amicus Curiae
- a person, not a party to the litigation, who volunteers or is invited by the court to give advice upon some matter pending before it.
- Injunction
- a judicial process or order requiring the person or persons to whom it is directed to do a particular act or to refrain from doing a particular act.
- Article VI
- establishes the United States Constitution and the laws and treaties of the United States made in accordance with it as the supreme law of the land, and fulfills other purposes.
- Market Economy
- An economy that operates by voluntary exchange in a free market and is not planned or controlled by a central authority; a capitalistic economy.
- Census
- an official enumeration of the population, with details as to age, sex, occupation, etc.
- 22nd Amendment
- sets a term limit for the President of the United States. The United States Congress passed the amendment on March 21, 1947.[1] It was ratified by the requisite number of states on February 27, 1951.
- Judicial Review
- the power of a court to adjudicate the constitutionality of the laws of a government or the acts of a government official.
- Article V
- describes the process whereby the Constitution may be altered. Such amendments may be proposed by the United States Congress or by a national convention assembled at the request of the legislatures of at least two-thirds of the several states. To become valid, amendments must then be ratified by either the legislatures of or ratifying conventions held in three-fourths of the several states.
- Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
- a landmark United States Supreme Court decision in the jurisprudence of the United States, upholding the constitutionality of racial segregation even in public accommodations (particularly railroads), under the doctrine of "separate but equal". (7-1)
- Unitary System
- a state or country whose three organs of state are governed constitutionally as one single unit, with one constitutionally created legislature. The political power of government in such states may well be transferred to lower levels, to regionally or locally elected assemblies, governors and mayors, but the central government retains the principal right to recall such delegated power.
- Judicial Restraint
- A view, associated with Felix Frankfurter among others, that judges should be reluctant to declare legislative enactments unconstitutional unless the conflict between the enactment and the Constitution is obvious
- Censure
- strong or vehement expression of disapproval
- Jaffe v. Redmond (1996)
- the Supreme Court created a psychotherapist-patient privilege in the Federal Rules of Evidence.
- John Locke
- English philosopher. In An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) he set out the principles of empiricism, and his Two Treatises on Government (1690) influenced the Declaration of Independence.
- Embassy
- a body of persons entrusted with a mission to a sovereign or government, esp. an ambassador and his or her staff.
- 25th Amendment
- clarifies an ambiguous provision of the Constitution regarding succession to the Presidency, and establishes procedures both for filling a vacancy in the office of the Vice President as well as responding to Presidential disabilities.
- Judicial Activism
- an interpretation of the U.S. constitution holding that the spirit of the times and the needs of the nation can legitimately influence judicial decisions (particularly decisions of the Supreme Court)
- Swing Vote
- a vote that decides the result of an election
- Oligarchy
- a form of government in which all power is vested in a few persons or in a dominant class or clique; government by the few.
- Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)
- a United States Supreme Court case holding that criminal suspects have a right to counsel during police interrogations.