AP Government Vocabulary 2
Terms
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- natural law
- The laws of nature, laws that you were born with. (aristotle)
- unitary government
- system of government in which a central authority holds all power.
- confederation government
- system of government in which decentralized units, such as states, are clearly dominant.
- delegated (enumerated) powers
- specific list of Congressional powers included in Article I of the Constitution; system in which a constitution lists what a limited government is allowed to do.
- separation of powers
- idea that different governmental powers should be placed in separate branches (or institutions) so that no one interest can monopolize governmental authority.
- checks and balances
- system in which each branch of government has the ability to limit powers possessed by other branches.
- New Federalism
- Nixon's attempt to return authority to the states.
- dual federalism
- federal system in which national powers and state powers are sharply differentiated.
- inalienable rights
- an extension of belief that there is natural law, (a law that cannot be taken away.
- Republican Government
- representative or indirect government, run by elected and appointed officials who vote and propose legislation for the public interest.
- Reserved Powers
- those powers which could only be be excersized by the state government
- Necessary and or Proper(elastic) powers
- gave congress some discretion to do that which was necessary to carry out their delegated powers.
- No corruption of blood
- comcept that when a person commits a crime it does not effect his family
- Extended Sphere
- (James madison in federalist 10) national govt. would be less subjest to the effects of factions because it was large.
- privileges and immunities clause
- requires each state to treat citizens of all states on an equal basis.
- Popular Sovereignty
- idea that citizens elect government officials.
- Denied powers
- powers that the national and/or state government could not excersize
- bicameral
- a legislature with two chambers.
- unicameral
- a legislature with only one chamber.
- nationalization period
- marked a substatial growth of the power of the national government, dominated by federalist supreme court under leadership of John Marshall.
- Secular government
- the seperation between church and state
- Antifederalists
- leaders in the debate over ratification who opposed the Federalists; often wanted to protect the power of state governments and therefore opposed the proposed Constitution.
- block grant
- general federal grants for whole areas of public policy; gives the recipient flexibility.
- Federalists
- leaders in the debate over ratification who favored a strong national government and therefore supported the proposed Constitution.
- Admendment
- A change or addition to the constitution
- Compromise
- When a disagreement is settled, each side gets part of what they wanted and give up part of what they wanted.
- Federal government
- A type of government where the some of the power is at the national level and some of the power is at the state level.
- concurrent powers
- Powers shared and exercised jointly under the Constitution by both national and state governments. Examples include taxation and law enforcement.
- democracy
- Form of government in which political control is exercised by all the people, either directly or through their elected representatives.
- monarchy
- Government in which political power is exercised by a single ruler under the claim of divine or hereditary right.
- social contract theory
- Agreement among all the people in a society to give up part of their freedom to a government in return for protection of their natural rights. A theory developed by Locke to explain the origin of legitimate government.
- repeal
- to revoke or annul (a law, tax, duty, etc.) by express legislative enactment; abrogate.
- elite
- a group of persons exercising the major share of authority or influence within a larger group
- abolish
- to do away with; put an end to; annul; make void
- 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.
- aristocracy
- a governing body composed of those considered to be the best or most able people in the state.
- charter
- a document defining the formal organization of a corporate body; constitution:
- theocracy
- a form of government in which God or a deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler, the God's or deity's laws being interpreted by the ecclesiastical authorities.
- Ratify
- to confirm by expressing consent, approval, or formal sanction:
- Full faith and credit clause
- the concept that each state will honor the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state.
- competitive federalism
- period in the 90's, there was an increased competition between states and the national government to exert influence and power.
- creative federalism
- the 5th period under president john F. kenedy's new frontier and president lyndon johnson's great society
- cooperative federalism
- president roosevelt, increased cooperation made necessary because of great depression
- classical republicanism
- is the form of republicanism that began in classical antiquity and was revived and revised during the Renaissance.
- categorical grant
- federal grants that the national government determines the purposes, or categories, for which the money should be used.
- popular consent (legitimacy)
- whether or not people accept the validity of a law or ruling or the validity of a governing regime.
- federal revenue sharing
- giving an annual share of the federal tax revenue to the States and their cities, counties, isthmuses and townships.
- Divine right of kings
- monarch owes his rule to the will of God, not to the will of his subjects, parliament, the aristocracy or any other competing authority.
- letters of marque and reprisal
- an official warrant authorizing the designated agent to search, seize, or destroy specified assets or personnel belonging to a party which had committed some offense under the laws of the nation