Government review
Terms
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- Self-Incrimination
- "No person can be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against themselves"
- Direct Tax
- a tax that must be paid by the person on whom it is levied
- Exclusionary Rule
- evidence gained as the result of an illegal act by police, can't be used against the person from when it was seized
- prior restraint
- the const. allows the gov't to punish some utterances after they have been made, but they can't base any restraint on spoken or written words before they are uttered
- Concurrent Jurisdiction
- these cases may be tried in either a federal or state court ---they share power to hear these cases
- What is the word Bureaucracy often associated with
- a large complex administrative body
- plaintiffs
- the part who initiates suits
- separation of powers
- constitution distributes the powers of the national gov't among the congress
- what is gerrymandering
- practice of drawing electoral district lines in order to limit the voting strength of a particular group or party against the law
- democracy
- supreme political authority rests with the people, the people hold the sovereign power and gov't is conducted only by and with the consent of the people
- What is the prime function of the judicial branch
- apply and interperate laws
- checks and balances
- each branch is checked in the constitution by the powers of the other branches, each branch has certain powers with which it can check the operations, and balance the power of the other 2 branches
- federalism
- division of powers among central gov't a several regional gov't
- What are Reserved powers
- powers held by the states, in a federal gov't
- Indictment
- is the formal complaint laid b4 a grand jury by the prosecuter and it charges the accused with one or more crimes
- Double Jeopardy
- once a person has been tried for a crime, he or she can't be tried again for the same crime
- What are inherent powers
- those that belong to the national gov't because it's the national gov't of a sovereign state in a world community
- direct democracy
- pure democracy where the people vote and that becomes public policy
- civil rights
- positive acts of gov't that seek to make const. guarantees a reality for all
- What are delegated powers
- national gov't is a gov't of delegated powers, meaning that it only has those powers granted to it by the const.
- Dictatorship
- those who rule can't be held responsible to the will of the people, the leader has absolute power
- Rule of law
- gov't and it's officers are always subject to the law, they are never above it
- Cabinet
- executive departments
- What is the "Supremacy Clause"
- "This const. shall be the supreme law of the land"-
- what is plurality
- largest # of votes cast for the office
- Grand Jury
- This is the formal device by which a person can be accused of a serious crime
- Sales Tax
- a tax paid by the purchaser on the sale of commodities
- what are implied powers
- those powers that aren't expressively stated in the const., but are reasonably implied by these powers that are stated
- What are exclusive powers
- those powers that can be exercised only by the federal gov't
- Clear and Present Danger rule
- states that words can be outlawed, and those who utter them can be punished when the words they use trigger an immediate danger
- Separation of church and state
- establishment clause- this sets up a "wall of separation between church and state"
- what are Concurrent Powers
- those powers that both the federal & state gov'ts possess, and exercise such as the power to collect taxes and set criminal law
- Equal Protection clause
- gov't must treat everyobe as equals
- Jus Sanguinis
- a child born abroad to an american citizen and someone who has lived in the U.S at somepoint in time
- Property Tax
- a tax levied on 1) real property 2) personal property
- What is jurisdiction
- power of a court to try and decide a case
- Ex Post Facto Laws
- 1)Criminal law, 1 defining a crime or providing for its punishment, 2)Applied to an act commited before it's passage, 3)A law that works to the disadvantage of the accused
- Executive action
- the way presidents have used their powers, and have produced a # of important informal amendments
- What are public policies
- all the things a gov't decides to do
- Patent
- a license issued to an inventor
- Legal Tender
- any kind of money that a creditor must by law accept in payment for debts
- What is "elastic clause"
- the const. gives "necessary & proper" power to congress specifically
- Jus soli
- anyone born in the U.S., D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Embassey, or sea vessel
- Income Tax
- a tax levied in individual and corporate income
- symbolic speech
- people communicating ideas by conduct
- What is a Gov't
- A select group of people elected to make a stronger country, and keep it running
- defendants
- party who must defend against the complaint
- civil liberties
- guaranteed safeties of persons, opinions, and property from the arbitrary acts of gov't
- habeas corpus
- prevents unjust arrests and punishments
- Define sovereignty
- supreme and absolute power within a territory
- Establishment clause
- in the 1st amendment prohibits either the establishment of a religion or the sanctioning of an existing religion by the gov't
- executive agreement
- a pact made by the president directly with the head aof a foreign state, they're legally binding
- popular sovereignty
- all political power belongs to the people, people are the only source of gov't power
- Define state
- is a body of people living in a defined area that are organized politically, and with the power to make and enforce laws without higher gov't authority
- judicial review
- power to decide whether , what the gov't does is in accordance with what the constitution provides
- Why does a Gov't exist
- to keep national order, and keep peace among the states and other countries
- Copyright
- the exclusive, legal right of a person to reproduce, publish, or sell his or her own literacy, musical, or art creation
- Bail
- a sum of money that the accused may be required to post as a guarantee that he or she will appear in court at the proper time
- Appellate Jurisdiction
- a court that hears a case on appeal from a lower court has appellate jurisdiction
- Indirect tax
- a tax levied on one party but passed on to another for payment
- Free exercise clause
- in the 1st amendment guaranteeing to each person the right to believe whatever that person chooses in matters of religion
- Constitutionalism
- idea that the gov't must be conducted according to the constitution's principles
- Preventive Detention
- a person may be held w/o bail in the most sorrows of circum. and if the judge feels that there is a high likelihood of the person committing another crime
- What is cooperative federalism
- 2 areas federal and local need to get along while also maintaining their integrity and being cooperative and getting what their people need to have
- representative democracy
- a small group of people chosen by the people to act as their representative expressing the popular will
- What is an Informal Amendment
- the porcess by which many changes came to the constitution, but isn't changed in written word
- What is the function of counties
- administ. of state law and county laws that the state allows them to make
- what is franchise
- the right to vote
- Burden of Proof
- the defense never has to prove his or her innocence
- Exclusive Jurisdiction
- these cases can only be heard in federal courts
- Bill of Attainder
- a legis. act that inflicts punishment w/o trial
- What are expressed powers
- these powers delegated to the national gov'ts spelled out in words in the const
- Bankruptcy
- court action to release a person or corp from unpaid debts
- limited gov't
- the idea that gov't isn't all-powerful, that may do only those things that people have given it power to do
- Original Jurisdiction
- a court in which a case is heard 1st is said to have original jurisdiction