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65 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
“Big tent” party
a political coalition, that accommodates people who have a wide range of beliefs, principles, or backgrounds
“Revolving door”
Interest groups
1st Amendment
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
10th Amendment
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Amicus Curiae Brief
A document filed by an individual or group that is not a party to a legal case, which provides information that aids the court in its deliberations
Baron de Montesquieu
Talked about republic, republic had to be small and couldn’t be sustainable
Bill of attainder
An act by legislature convicting someone of a crime and imposing a punishment without a trial before a court
Checks and Balances
The principle of the US constitution that gives each of the three major branches of government the means to control partially the power exercised by another, largely to resist encroachments on its own powers.
Citizenship rights
•Freedom to express yourself.
•Freedom to worship as you wish.
•Right to a prompt, fair trial by jury.
•Right to vote in elections for public officials.
•Right to apply for federal employment.
•Right to run for elected office.
Citizenship duties
•Support and defend the Constitution.
•Stay informed of the issues affecting your community.
•Participate in the democratic process.
•Respect and obey federal, state, and local laws.
•Respect the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others.
•Participate in your local community.
•Freedom to pursue “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
•Pay income and other taxes honestly, and on time, to federal, state, and local authorities.
•Serve on a jury when called upon.
•Defend the country if the need should arise.
Civil case/criminal case
Case in which the government prosecutes an individual for violating a criminal statue, such as law against violence, theft, corporate fraud, or drug trafficking.
Civil disobedience
the refusal to obey certain laws or governmental demands for the purpose of influencing legislation or government policy, characterized by the employment of such nonviolent techniques as boycotting, picketing, and nonpayment of taxes.
Jim Crow laws
Laws passed in the South in the 1870s and 1880s that mandated the segregation of the races in virtually all social relations.
Coattail effect
The tendency for a popular candidate for higher office to draw vote for other candidates of the same party
Commerce clause
A provision in Article 1, Section 8, of the Constitution that empowers Congress to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the states, and with Indian tribes.
Democratic-Republican Party
One of the two original major parties, which included James Madison and Thomas Jefferson. It became dominate after the fall of the Federalist. In the 1820s, elements of the part formed the Democratic Party we know today.
Civil liberties
The basic right to be free from unequal treatment based on certain protected characteristics (race, gender, disability, etc.) in settings such as employment and housing.
Civil rights
concern basic rights and freedoms that are guaranteed -- either explicitly identified in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, or interpreted through the years by courts and lawmakers.
Direct lobbying
Meetings or communications between interest groups representatives and the officials whom they are trying to persuade
Due process of law
Procedural protections that the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments require government to follow before depriving anyone of life, liberty, or property. Include at least fair notice and an opportunity to contest charges before a neutral tribunal.
Election of 1800
Switch in political party power without conflict
Establishment Clause
Provision of the First Amendment that prohibits Congress from making a law “respecting an establishment of religion”
Ex post facto law
A law that makes an act criminal after it was committed or increases the penalty after the fact.
Exclusionary Rules (how do they work/what do they cover)
The rule imposed by the Supreme Court that prohibits the use in court of evidence improperly obtained no matter how relevant to demonstrating guilt.
FDR’s court-packing plan
Proposed to increase the size of the Supreme Court by up to six additional members
Federalist Party
One of the first two major parties, which included John Adams and Alexander Hamilton. It dominated American politics in the early years but fell into rapid decline at the start of the nineteenth century.
Free exercise clause
Congress shall not make a law to restrict religion
Grassroots
Public support
Grasstops
Legislator support
Incorporation doctrine
The judicial doctrine that the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in effect incorporated most of the specific rights in the Bill of Rights against the states
Initiative
A proposed state law or constitutional amendment that appears on the ballot for a popular vote in enough registered voters sign petitions so requesting
Interest group
An organization that seeks to influence public policy.
Special interest group
An unfavorable way to characterize interest groups
Judicial review
review by a court of law of actions of a government official or entity or of some other legally appointed person or body or the review by an appellate court of the decision of a trial court
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
Judicial self-restraint
Judicial activism will not be a problem because the justices will restrain them by judgment
Judiciary Act of 1789
The law passed by the First Congress that crated a three-tiered federal court structure
Legislative referendum
A vote that takes place when a state legislature sends messages to the people for their approval
Lemon test
The legal test promulgated by the Supreme Court in 1971 that held that a law that rises establishment clause issues many withstand challenge only if:
•It has a secular legislative purpose
•Its main effect neither advances not inhibits religion, and
•It does not foster an excessive government entanglement with religion
Lobbyist/in-house/contract
An individual whose job is to influence policymakers on behalf of an interest group
Miranda Warnings
The warnings required by the Supreme Court that police must give when arresting a suspect; particularly the right to remain silent and to have the assistance of an attorney.
Mootness
The doctrine that the court will not decide a case if the dispute has been resolved or rendered irrelevant by the subsequent events
Necessary and proper clause
The final clause of Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution which empowers Congress to make all laws “ necessary and proper” for carrying out the federal government’s duties.
New Deal Coalition
• The voter support base of the Democratic Party, which took from during Franklin Roosevelt’s administration.
Realignment
Shift in voting preferences
Partisan polarization
The movement of parties away from each other and toward more extreme issue positions.
Policy interest group
an interest group that purports to seek goals that benefit the broader public, not just its own members
economic interest group
an interest group, such as a union or business, that explicitly pursues its own material welfare.
Political Questions (judiciary)
The doctrine that the courts should not decide issues that the Constitution has given over to the discretion of the Congress or the president.
Popular referendum
A process whereby people may gather signatures to enable the voters to accept or reject measures that the legislature has passed
Precedents
The body of court decisions on similar matters to an issues before the courts
Progressives
Members of a political reform movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who combated political corruption, promoted government efficiency, and worked to empower average citizens.
Recall elections
Special elections in which voters in some states may oust officeholders before their regular terms expire.
Reconstruction
End of the civil war – election of 1872 North still had military control over the South. Rebuilding the south after the civil war.
Republican Party
One of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP (Grand Old Party).
Right-to-work laws
Interest groups, state can make a law that says that you can’t have a union shop
Ripeness
The doctrine that the courts will not hear cases brought prematurely - that is, before the dispute is well developed and ready, or ripe, for adjudication.
Segregation
A term referring to the separation of the races in housing, the use of public accommodations, employment, or education.
Separation of Powers
An essential principle of the first American state constitution and the US Constitution according to which the legislative, executive, and judicial powers of government are assigned to three distinct institutions
Standing to sue
The legally protectable stake or interest that an individual has in a dispute that entitles him to bring the controversy before the court to obtain judicial relief.
Stare Decisis
Let the decision stand
Strict construction (Constitution)
A method of interpreting the Constitution that claims to follow closely the actual words of the document as originally understood by those who wrote and ratified it.
US Court of Appeals
A court to which appeals are made on points of law resulting from the judgment of a lower court.
US District Courts
The basic trial courts in the federal system, where the typical federal case begins
Writ of certiorari
Supreme court decide if they want to hear the case, it’s the paper they put out