Final Gov Exam Review
12/12/2007 6:39:00 PM
Federalist # 10 James Madison reflected the view of many of the framers of the U.S. Constitution when he wrote o Such democracies have been found incompatible with personal security, or the rights of property l and have in general been as short in their lives, as they have been violent in the deaths" o Madison feared that empowering citizens to decide policy directly would be dangerous to freedom, minorities and property and would result o No. 10 addresses the question of how to guard against "factions," groups of citizens with interests contrary to the rights of others or the interests of the whole community. In today's discourse the term special interest often carries the same connotation. Madison argued that a strong, large republic would be a better guard against those dangers than smaller republics--for instance, the individual states. Democracy Government by the people both directly or indirectly with free and frequent elections Direct Democracy Government in which citizens vote on laws and select officials directly Representative democracy Government in which the people elect those who govern and pass laws, also called a Republic Constitutionalism The set of arrangements including checks and balances, federalism, separation of powers, rule of law, due process, and a bill of rights that requires and explain before they act or make laws. We then hold them politically and legally accountable for how they exercise powers. Popular consent The idea that a just government must derive its powers from the consent of the people it governs. Articles of Confederation The first governing document of the confederated states, drafted in 1777, ratified in 1781 and replaced by the present Constitution in 1789. Annapolis Convention
A convention held in September 1786 to consider problems of trade and navigation attended by five states and important because it issued the call to Congress and the states for what became the Constitutional Convention. Bicameralism The Principle of a two-house legislature. Virginia Plan Initial proposal at the constitutional Convention made by the Virginia delegation for a strong central government with a bicameral legislature dominated by the big states. New Jersey Plan Proposal at the Constitutional Convention made by William Patterson of New Jersey for a central government with a single house legislature in which each state would be represented equally. Connecticut Compromise Compromise agreement by states at the Constitutional Convention for a bicameral legislature with a lower house in which representation would be based on population and an upper house in which each state would have two senators Three fifth compromise Compromise between northern and southern states at the Constitutional Convention that three fifths of the slave population would be counted for determining direct taxation and representation in the House of Representatives Federalist Supporters of ratification of the constitution and of a strong central government Anti-Federalist Opponents of ratification of the constitution and of a strong central government The Federalist Papers Essays promoting ratification of the Constitution, published anonymously by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison in 1787 1788 Separation of Powers
Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law the executive applying and enforcing the law and the judiciary interpreting the law. Judicial Review The power of a court to refuse to enforce a law or a government regulation that in the opinion of the judges conflicts with the U.S. constitution or in a state court, the state constitution Writ of Mandamus Court order directing an official to perform and official duty The U.S. Constitution adopted in 1789, is the worlds oldest. It has lasted because it is adaptable and flexible. IT both grants and limits governmental power. The Constitutions separation of powers distributes authority among three braches of government: the legislative, executive and judicial. Checks and balances limit the power of each branch. Political parties may sometimes overcome the separation of powers, especially if the same party controls both houses of and Congress the presidency. Typically this is not the case, however, and a divided government intensified checks and balances. Presidential power, which has increased over time, has sometimes overcome restraints the constitution imposes on it. Judicial Review is the power of the courts to strike down acts of Congress, the executive Branch, and the states as unconstitutional. The Supreme Court's power of judicial review was established n the 1803 case of Marbury v. Madison
Political Socialization The process by which we develop our political attitudes values and beliefs Demographics The study of the characteristics of populations
Adversary system A Judicial system in which the court of law is a neutral arena where two parties argue their differences Original Jurisdiction The authority of a court to hear a case "in the first instance" Appellate Jurisdiction The authority of a court to review decisions made by lower courts Senatorial Courtesy Presidential Custom of submitting the names of prospective appointees for approval to senators from the states in which the appointees are to work. Writ of Certiorari A formal writ used to bring a case before the Supreme Court Amicus Curiae Brief Literally, a "friend of the court" brief, filed by an individual or organization to present arguments in addition to those presented by the immediate parties to a case. Opinion of the Court An explanation of a decision of the Supreme Court or any other appellate court. The Federal Judiciary was designed as a powerful check on Congress and the Presidency. Although Article III is the shortest article in the Constitution, it established the Supreme Court and provided a short list of cases that the Court could Address. The Federal Judicial System was expanded under the Congress's Article I power to create lower courts.
Due Process Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials Due Process Clause Clause in the fifth amendment limiting the power of the national government, similar clause in the Fourthteenth Amendment prohibiting
state governments from depriving any person of life, liberty or property with out due process of the law. Racial Gerrymandering The drawing of election districts so as to ensure that members of a certain race are a minority in the district. Ruled Unconstitutional in Gomillion v. Lightfoot (1960) Plasticity. Constants: constitutional and other legal powers Variable o The character, personality, and energy of the president and of those around him o Force of circumstance: what happens on his watch o Party control of Congress o Media Coverage Huge aspect of a Presidential Priming Sets you up for what issues are going to be important Framing Essentially when how they set up the news story How you look at a situation Agenda Setting Its not a problem unless the media says it is Ex: 1992 First Bush, o Coverage came out about starving children in Somalia Then we went into Somalia Campaigns and Court question Decisions by the United States Supreme Court have enveloped the Court in Considerable Political Controversy o Brown v. Board of Education On May 17th 1954 a unanimous bench, through an opinion by Eisenhower appointee Chief Just ice Earl Warren, declared racially segregated public schools unconstitutional. Leaping far ahead of the official civil rights positions of
Democrats and Republicans, the Court called for revolutionary change in the pattern of education for 8 million white and 2.5 million black public school students. The change would occur not only in seventeen southern states but also the District of Columbia. The case was politically controversial because if segregation in public schools was incompatible with the Constitution, as the court said it was, than any other form of race based public policy was by implication intolerable. Never had the court before touched so many Americans in matters of child rearing and association. Brown endowed racial discrimination with unprecedented saliency in national politics and in no small measure energized the modern civil rights movement in all its dimensions, from continued legal attacks on racism to the direct action of marches, sit ins and other forms of mass demonstrations. ......
12/12/2007 6:39:00 PM
12/12/2007 6:39:00 PM