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150 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Oligarchy |
A form of government where most or all political power effectively rests with a small segment of society, typically the most powerful, whether by wealth, family, military, strength, ruthlessness, or political influence. |
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Republican problem |
The question of how the benefits of self-government can be enjoyed without incurring its inherent problems (human predicament cycle). |
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Constitutional structure |
The nature and arrangement of mechanisms in a constitution that organize the government. |
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Constitutional drift |
When power in the government does not remain where it was originally placed. |
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Confederation |
Defensive alliance among sovereign equals. |
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Articles of Confederation |
Document outlining an alliance of sovereign, equal states in which there was a weak central governing Continental Congress. |
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State sovereignty |
When ultimate political power resides in the state rather than the federal government. |
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John Adams |
Founding Father. Proponent of a bicameral legislature. Second President of the United States. |
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Bicameral legislature |
A legislature in which there are two separate divisions or houses. |
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James Madison |
Founding father. Fourth President of the United States. Father of the Constitution. Co-authored The Federalist. Created the Democratic-Republican Party. |
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Gouverner Morris |
Pennsylvania representative at the Constitutional Convention. Authored large sections of the Constitution including the Preamble. |
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Charles Pinckney |
South Carolina representative at the Constitutional Convention. Strong promoter of Federalism. Helped persuade ratification of the Constitution in South Carolina. |
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George Mason |
Virginia representative at the Constitutional Convention. Refused to sign the Constitution because it did not contain a declaration of rights. |
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Virginia Plan |
Plan presented during the Constitutional Convention in which each state would have proportional representation in the Congress. |
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New Jersey Plan |
Plan presented during the Constitutional Convention in which each state would have equal representation in the Congress. |
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William Paterson |
New Jersey representative at the Constitutional Convention who presented the New Jersey Plan. |
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The Great Compromise |
Proposed by Roger Sherman, it brought together the New Jersey and Virginia Plans by having the upper congressional house representation equal by state and the lower house, representation proportional by population. |
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Roger Sherman |
Connecticut delegate to the Constitutional Convention. Proposed the great compromise. |
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Popular sovereignty |
The idea that power is created by and subject to the will of the people. It was the basis for Madison's proportional representation in Congress and a justification by the South for the continuance of slavery. |
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Benjamin Franklin |
Founding father. Printer. Scientist. Inventor. Diplomat. Secured France as an ally during the Revolutionary War. |
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Federalism |
Dividing powers between the national and state governments. |
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Three-fifths compromise |
Part of the compromise on slavery, where three out of every five slaves were counted as part of state population for taxation and representation. |
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Auxiliary precautions |
Structure in the government to make it more difficult for power to become concentrated in any one group's hands seen by the Founders as a backup system to virtue. Madison talks about this in Federalist 51. |
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Constitutional mechanism |
Parts of the Constitution that help organize and control power. |
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Indirect election |
When government officials are elected by previously chosen representatives, and not directly by the people. |
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Hume's filter or filters of consent |
When the people select the most virtuous representatives, who in turn select even more virtuous government officials. |
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Enumeration |
The written listings of the powers of government. |
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Separation of powers |
Dividing powers of government between the three branches. |
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James Wilson |
Primary framer of Constitution. Proposed 3/5 compromise for slave representation. Proposed election of the President by the people.Key in Pennsylvania's ratification of the Constitution. |
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Checks and balances |
Bridging the separation of powers between branches of government by placing part of each power within two separate branches. |
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FAction |
A group of individuals who share the same specific political agenda. |
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Counterpoise |
A force, influence, or weight that counterbalances another. The Federalist No. 10 & No. 51. |
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Poleis |
City or city-state, often self-governed by its citizens as were the ancient Greek city-states. |
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Supermajority |
A specified majority of voters. In the ratification of the Constitution almost 70% of the states was required. (9 of 13) |
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Samuel Adams |
Second cousin to John Adams. Massachusetts statesman. Organizer of the Boston Tea Party. Served in Continental Congress. Signed the Declaration of Independence. Opposed to a strong federal government. |
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Anti-federalists |
Political group that was against the ratification of the Constitution. |
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Alexander Hamilton |
Served as the first Secretary of the Treasury under Washington. Founded the Federalist Part. Co-wrote The Federalist. Wanted a strong central government. |
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Federalists |
A political group that was for the ratification of the Constitution. |
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Edmund Randolph |
Governor of Virginia. Delegate to the Constitutional Convention. Proposed Madison's Virginia plan but refused to sign it. Wanted a bill of rights. |
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John Jay |
Founding Father. President of Continental Congress. Co-wrote The Federalist. First Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. |
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The Federalist |
Series of essays published in New York newspapers under the pseudonym Publius for the express purpose of gaining support for the ratification of the Constitution. Written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. |
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Natural rights |
Fundamental rights granted by nature that government cannot abrogate and which government is bound to protect. |
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Civil rights |
Rights defined using narrow, concrete language, full of specific terms and qualifiers. |
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The Great Oughts |
Natural rights that don't proclaim an "is" so much as an ought about the world - the way things "should" be. |
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Alien and Sedition Acts |
Laws passed by Congress in 178 to try and stifle the "seditious" writings of French propagandists against the neutrality of the United States with regards to the French and British War. |
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Marbury v. Madison |
Supreme court case in which judicial review was established. |
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Original jurisdiction |
The authority of a court to hear certain kinds of cases first instead of waiting for those cases to be tried in a lower court. |
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Judiciary Act of 1789 |
Congressional act passed in 1789 to form the federal court system and to authorize writs of mandamus. |
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Lame duck |
The time between the election of a new political official and when they take office. Refers specifically to the outgoing official's frequent lack of influence or power during that period. |
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Midnight appointments |
Judiciary appointments of Federalist judges made by Federalist president John Adams shortly before he left office, in response to the Democratic-Republican victory in the Congress and Presidency. |
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William Marbury |
A "midnight appointment" by John Adams. sued Secretary of State James Madison for delivery of his commission, which was being withheld by order of President Jefferson. |
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Writ of mandamus |
A court document forcing an action by a certain party. |
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Judicial review |
Power of the Supreme Court to rule on the constitutionality of laws. |
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Loyal opposition |
When losers in the political game continue to support the system, even when the system is against their ideology. |
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Federalist Party |
Political party founded by Hamilton and John Adams that envisioned a great Western empire with a strong federal government and a broad interpretation of Constitutional powers. |
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Democratic-Republican Party |
Political party led by Jefferson and Madison that championed a society of self-reliant individuals to protect rights, a smaller federal government, and a narrow and strict interpretation of the Constitution. |
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Original consent |
Giving consent to a provision or law the first time, such as the ratification of the Constitution. |
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Periodic consent. |
Giving continuing consent at certain intervals to a provision or law to which original consent has already been given. |
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Filtered consent |
When the selection of government officials is distanced from direct election by the people in order to protect against mob rule and public whim. Filters include indirect election, time between elections, and size of representative regions. |
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Electoral college |
The group of electors selected by the people who are responsible for the selection of the president. |
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Majority |
Receiving more than 50% of the votes. |
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Plurality |
Receiving the largest percentage of the votes. |
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Single representative districts |
Representational structure where each geographical region elects its one representative independent of outcomes in other regions. |
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Proportional representation |
Party representation in the legislative body is closely tied to the national or regional vote of that party. |
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Ordinance of 1784 |
Plan of Thomas Jefferson to organize the national domain into discrete territories along with a three-stage development of government institutions. |
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Land Ordinance of 1785 |
Called for the systematic survey of the Northwest Territory and division into mile-square pots and organization into townships. |
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Northwest Territory |
Lands north of the Ohio River. |
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Northwest Ordinance of 1787 |
Called for the governmental development of the west based on creating self-governing republics that would be systematically added to the Union. |
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Louisiana Purchase |
Land purchased by Thomas Jefferson from France. Consists of much of the midwest United States. |
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Napoleon Bonaparte |
French Emperor and European conqueror. Sold the land in the Louisiana Purchase. |
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Public togetherness |
Aspect of party politics in which groups of political party members would gather together in order to have more solidarity and support. |
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Party newspaper |
A journal used by a political party for disseminating party information to and encouraging more active participation among the grass root voters. |
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Popular campaigning |
Promoting candidates as being from the common masses, rather than as elite gentlemen-politicians. |
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Political convention |
Large meeting of party delegates for the purpose of nominating candidates often held with much pomp and ballyhoo. |
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Get out the vote activity |
Aspect of party politics in which voters are systematically rounded up and helped to get to the polling place. |
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Political machine |
Group of party loyalists organized to deliver the vote on election day. Historically they often used questionable or illegal means such as buying votes or intimidation at the polls. |
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John Quincy Adams |
Sixth President of the United States. Formulated the Monroe Doctrine. |
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Daniel Webster |
A leading American statesman and senator during the Pre-Civl War era. |
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Henry Clay |
American statesman and congressman who founded the Whig party. |
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Frederick Jackson Turner |
American historian who studied and wrote about the American experience and what made it unique. |
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Robert E. Lee |
Confederate general and commander of the Army of Northern Virginia during the Civil War. After surrendering at Appomattox on April 9, 1865, Lee urged reconciliation with the North. |
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Confederacy |
Alliance of southern states that seceded from the Union over slavery. |
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George B. McClellan |
Union General who failed to press his advantage at the Battle of Antietam, and was later relieved of his command by President Lincoln. |
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Antietam |
A severe Civil War battle that took place on September 17.1862. It was the bloodies day in American history. After the battle Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. |
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Emancipation Proclamation |
Presidential order issued by Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863 that freed slaves in the areas of insurrection. |
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Secession |
Formal withdrawal of states or regions from a nation. |
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Faction |
A group of individuals who share the same specific political agenda. |
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Factionalism |
When a city-state or nation has multiple factions that compete against each other. Madison felt that an extended republic would prevent factionalism from leading to tyranny because no faction could be large enough to dominate. |
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Sectionalism |
Factionalism on a larger, more regional scale, with fewer but larger factions. Sectionalism during the 1800s over the slavery issue nullified the benefits of Madison's extended republic and led to the Civil War. |
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Missouri Compromise |
1820 agreement between slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States that regulated slavery in western territories, prohibiting slavery above the border of Arkansas (except Missouri) and permitting it south of that border. |
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Stephen A. Douglas |
Illinois statesman. Ran against Lincoln, Bell, and Breckinridge in the 1860 Presidential election on a popular sovereignty platform for slavery. Authored the Kansas-Nebraska Act. |
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John Brown |
A controversial abolitionist who tried to start a slave rebellion and used sometimes violent guerrilla tactics in fighting against the institution of slavery. |
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Republican Party |
Political party that stems from the controversy over slavery. It was dedicated to keeping future territories and states free from slavery. |
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Dred Scott |
Slave who sued unsuccessfuly for his freedom in 1857 because he had lived with his owner in several states where slavery was illegal. The ruling of Dred Scott v. Sandford determined that slaves were property and could not be freed by state laws. The ruling essentially nullified the Missouri Compromise and was a major factor contributing to the Civil War. |
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Roger B. Taney |
Fifth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Taney ruled in Dred Scott v. Sandford that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional. |
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John Breckinridge |
A senator from Kentucky. Fourteenth Vice President of the United States. Breckinridge ran against Lincoln, Bell, and Douglas in the 1860 Presidential election on an extreme pro-slavery platform. |
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John Bell |
A wealthy slaveowner from Tennessee. Served in the House and the Senate. Ran for President against Lincoln, Breckinridge, and Douglas in 1860 with the Constitutional Union Party on a moderate pro-slavery platform. |
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Abraham Lincoln |
The 16th President of the United States, Lincoln sought to end slavery and preserve the Union. He signed the Emancipation Proclamation and delivered his famous "Gettysburg Address". |
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First Amendment |
Religion Assembly Speech Petition Press |
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Second Amendment |
Right to bear arms |
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Third Amendment |
No quartering of soldiers |
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Fourth Amendment |
No lawful searches or seizures |
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Fifth Amendment |
Grand jury Eminent domain Double jeopardy Due process Can't testify against yourself |
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Sixth Amendment |
Public and speedy trial |
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Seventh Amendment |
Trial by jury |
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Eighth Amendment |
No cruel and unusual punishment No excessive fines |
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Ninth Amendment |
Other rights not listed |
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Tenth Amendment |
All powers not given to federal government are given to states |
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Eleventh |
Suing states |
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Twelfth Amendment |
President and Vice President on separate tickets |
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Thirteenth Amendment |
Abolishes slavery |
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Fourteenth Amendment |
Citizenship Applies the bill of rights to state laws |
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Fifteenth Amendment |
Enfranchisement |
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1st AoC |
Legislative |
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2nd AoC |
Executive |
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3rd AoC |
Judicial |
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4th AoC |
States |
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5th AoC |
Amendment |
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6th AoC |
Supremacy |
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7th AoC |
Ratification |
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Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation |
Individual states were sovereign No executive No pwer to enforce conflicts between states No power to tax No common currency, exchange disputes Not binding if passed No judiciary to resolve disputes State wars Conflicts between state laws State trade problems States made own international treaties, , states were played off each other |
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Strengths of the Articles of Confederation |
Experience gained helped the the creation of the Constitution States acted as experimental labs Provided some solutions in convention Got through the Revolutionary War Ended western land claiming by states Was a product of the people |
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What was the compromise on slavery when the Constitution was formed? |
Slave trade could not be abolished for 20 years. Slaves counted as 3/5 of a person for taxation and representation. Fugitive slaves were to be returned to their owners. |
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Three structural devices |
Bicameral legislature Indirect election Enumeration |
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Legislative checks and balances |
Shared executive: Overrides vetoes Impeachment Approve/deny treaties & appointments Sets up agencies and programs Shared judicial: Impeach and remove judges Determines number of Supreme Court Justices Approves/rejects presidential judicial appointments |
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Executive checks and balances |
Shared Legislative: Vetoes legislation Suggests legislation Calls for special sessions Negotiates treaties Shared judicial: Nominates judges Pardons for Federal offenses
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Judicial checks and balances |
Shared legislative: Determines constitutionality of laws Interprets laws and treaties Shared executive: Declares acts of President unconstitutional Interprets treaties |
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The big four |
New York Massachusetts Pennsylvania Virginia |
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Arguments against a bill of rights |
States already had bills of rights Enumerating rights was very difficult Enforcing rights was very difficult |
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Arguments for a bill of rights |
The Federalists promised dring Ratification debate A rather large, powerful central government was just created Could not hurt to enumerate things the government cannot do |
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Three Great Oughts |
Freedom of conscience Freedom of expression Right to privacy |
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Jefferson's Ideology / Democratic - Republicans |
Leaders: Jefferson and Madison Ideal Society: Self-reliant individuals with small government that protects rights Supported French Revolution and alliances with France Smaller federal government Narrow interpretation of constitutional powers |
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Hamilton's Ideology / Federalist Party |
Leaders: Hamilton and John Adams Ideal Society: Great empire that would dominate the Western Hemisphere and compete with European powers Supported alliances with Great Britain Powerful federal government Broad interpretation of Constitutional powers |
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How is the House of Representatives elected? |
Direct election every 2 years by the people |
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How is the President elected? |
Indirect election every 4 years through the Electoral College who are elected by the people |
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How are Federal Judges elected? |
Serve for life after appointment by the President and approved by the Senate |
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How are senators elected? |
Indirect election every 6 years through State Legislatures who are elected by the people |
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What was Abraham Lincoln's political party and view on slavery? |
Republican. Nation cannot have both free and slave states and survive. |
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What was Stephen A. Douglas' political party and view on slavery? |
Democrat (north). Slave and free state status decided by popular sovereignty. |
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What was John Bell's political party and view on slavery? |
Constitutional Union. No firm stand on slavery, must keep Union together. |
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What was John C. Breckinridge's political party and view on slavery? |
Democrat (south). Pro-slavery. |
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Who was the final general of the Union forces? |
Ulysses S. Grant |
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Who was the General of the Confederate forces? |
Robert E. Lee |
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Who was the President of the Confederate states? |
Jefferson Davis |
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How many people died in the civil war? |
618,000 |
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According to Federalist 10 what are the 2 ways of removing the causes of factions? |
Destroy the liberty essential to their existence. Given everyone the same opinions, passions, and interests. |
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According to Federalist 10 what is the greatest source of factions? |
Various and unequal distribution of property |
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According to Federalist 10 what is the best way to control factions? |
Large society under a representative form of government |
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Why did Madison believe that factions could be controlled according to Federalist 10? |
If an uprising in a faction occurred, it likely wouldn't continue to another state. |
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What is the main point of Brutus I? |
Could a widely dispersed and diverse people be united under one government without sacrificing the blessings of liberty and self-government? |
