Chapter Three And Four

Front 1

Powers Set in Article I

Back 1

1) establishes the legislative branch, specifically creating Congress.

2) Spells out the procedure for making laws, lists the types of laws Congress may pass, and specifies the powers Congress does not have.

Front 2

Powers set in Article II

Back 2

1) created the executive branch to carry out laws passed by Congress

2) specifies the power and duties of the presidency

3) describes qualifications for the president and procedures for electing a President and Vice President.

Front 3

Powers set in Article III

Back 3

Establishes the Supreme Court and outlines their jurisdiction

Front 4

Powers in Article IV

Back 4

1) states the power of the states

2) sets the procedure for admitting new states

3) gives guarantee that the government will protect the new states

Front 5

Article V and Amending the Constitution

Back 5

The only way to amend the Constitution is to pass an amendment, that must be ratified by 2/3 of the states and the house of representatives or by holding a Constitutional Convention.

Front 6

Supremacy Clause (Article VI)

Back 6

Establishes that the Constitution, laws passed by congress, and treaties are supreme laws of the land-- they override state laws.

Front 7

Article VII

Back 7

The Constitution must be ratified by nine states in order to take effect.

Front 8

Popular Sovereignty

Back 8

Rule by the people

Front 9

Federalism/Federal System

Back 9

Power is divided between the national and state governments

Front 10

Separation of Powers

Back 10

no one within the government has supreme power- it is split amongst branches.

Front 11

Checks and balances

Back 11

What one branch does, another branch has the power to override and change.

Front 12

Enumerated powers- economic

Back 12

Congress has the power to levy taxes, borrow money, regulate commerce, coin money, and punish counterfeiting.

Front 13

Enumerated powers- defense

Back 13

Congress has the power to punish piracies, to declare war, to raise and support armed forces, to provide a navy, to regulate the armed forces, call forth the militia, and organize the militia.

Front 14

The Elastic Clause

Back 14

gives Congress the right to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out all the powers expressed in the other clauses of Article I

Front 15

"Wild Card" Powers

Back 15

Article II states that executive power will be vested in the president, thus giving him/her powers not explicitly stated in the Constitution

Front 16

Precedents of George Washington

Back 16

Presidents should only serve for two terms and be cautious of entering into foreign alliances.

Front 17

Dual Court System

Back 17

Federal Court- power derived from the Constitution- courts for the central government

State Court- one court for each of the 50 states- derives power from the states' Constitution and laws

Front 18

Determination of Jurisdiction

Back 18

determined by the subject matter of the case and the parties involved in it.

Front 19

How to Overturn a Supreme Court Decision

Back 19

can be overturned by changing the Constitution

Front 20

President as a Legislator

Back 20

The President proposed much of the legislative agenda and spells out the details of the programs that are enacted into law.

Front 21

President vs. Congress

Back 21

President has used executive power to encroach upon Congress's power and Congress has attempted to pass legislation to limit the power of the President.

Front 22

Congress vs. Supreme Court

Back 22

the Constitution gives Congress the power to create lower federal courts and limit the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court

Front 23

Supreme Court vs. President

Back 23

Some court decisions need a President to carry them out; the President can choose not to.

Front 24

Two ways to ratify amendment

Back 24

An amendment can be proposed and ratified by a two-thirds vote of each house of Congress or the amendment can be proposed by having a national convention and having 2/3 of the states accept the amendment.

Front 25

Succession to the Presidency in 1841 (the death of President Harrison)

Back 25

John Tyler took over the Presidency but he was only an acting President, not actually president.

Front 26

25th Amendment

Back 26

Vice President becomes President after President dies.

Front 27

President's power over foreign/domestic affairs

Back 27

The president has the power to make executive agreements between him/herself and the head of state of another country. The president, domestically, can only request legislation from Congress.

Front 28

Judicial Restraint

Back 28

Belief that the Court should avoid taking initiative on social and political questions in their rulings.

Front 29

Judicial Activism

Back 29

The belief that the court should use their rulings to play a role in shaping national policies.

Front 30

Why have a Bill of Rights?

Back 30

Added because anti-federalists believed that unless people's rights were explicitly stated, they were not guaranteed.

Front 31

Limits of Freedom of Speech

Back 31

Prohibits:

1) slander

2) giving away military secrets/endangering the nation

3) Violent overthrows and attempts

Front 32

Fourth Amendment

Back 32

Requires officers to have a specific reason, approved by Court, on why they need to conduct a search. If evidence is found in an illegal search, it is not counted.

Front 33

Protections under 5th Amendment

Back 33

1) No one can be tried without a grand jury.

2) A person who is found innocent of a crime may not be charged again for the same offense (double jeopardy)

3) No one can be forced to testify against themselves.

4) Government cannot deprive anyone of life, liberty, or property.

Front 34

8th Amendment

Back 34

Protection against cruel and unusual punishment- capital punishment does not qualify.

Front 35

Civil War Amendments

Back 35

Guarantees the rights of citizens by prohibiting states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property.

Front 36

Line of succession to Presidency (25th amendment)

Back 36

President --> Vice President --> Speaker of the House --> President Pro Tempore of the Senate --> Secretary of State

Front 37

Expressed Powers

Back 37

powers explicitly stated in the Constitution by the Founding Fathers (the power to tax, defense rules, etc.)

Front 38

Implied Powers

Back 38

the powers that the national government requires to carry out laws, etc- while not explicitly stated, they are built upon expressed powers.

Front 39

Inherent Powers

Back 39

the power that the government can express simply because they are a government (control immigration)

Front 40

Reserved Powers

Back 40

the powers the Constitution reserves strictly for the states.

Front 41

Concurrent Powers

Back 41

the powers that both the state and national level have; each conducts on its own independent agenda.

Front 42

Three things National government must do for the states

Back 42

1) guarantee the states a Republican form of government

2) protection from invasion and domestic violence

3) territorial boundaries will be respected.

Front 43

Enabling Act

Back 43

when signed by the president, those interested in becoming a state are enabled to prepare a Constitution, submit it to Congress, and have Congress vote whether to accept the new state.

Front 44

Conditions for admission as a state

Back 44

Congress can require certain conditions for a state to be accepted but those changes do not have to be upheld once the territory becomes an official state.

Front 45

"Full Faith and Credit" Clause

Back 45

the obligation for each state to recognize public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state.

Front 46

Extradition

Back 46

The surrender of an individual by one state to another where that individual is sought for trial or punishment.

Front 47

Interstate compacts

Back 47

An agreement among two or more states; the Constitution requires most of these agreements be approved by Congress.

Front 48

States Rights vs. National Position

Back 48

States rights- action should be taken at the lower level; more individual

National position- action should be unified and taken from the top level.