Unit 1 Gov

where the government is empowered by law from a starting point of having no power, or where governmental power is restricted by law, usually in a written constitution. It is a key concept in the history of liberalism.

Life, liberty, property and other rights that it is the government's responsibility to uphold. Made famous by John Locke.

is the principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, through their elected representatives (Rule by the People), who are the source of all political power. Stressed by the Declaration of Independence.

a political ideology centred on citizenship in a state organized as a republic under which the people hold popular sovereignty.

an implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits, for example by sacrificing some individual freedom for state protection. Theories of a social contract became popular in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries among theorists such as Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, as a means of explaining the origin of government and the obligations of subjects.

emphasizes the broad participation of constituents in the direction and operation of political systems

describes a political system where there is more than one center of power.

a small minority, consisting of members of the economic elite and policy-planning networks, holds the most power—and this power is independent of democratic elections.

a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president.

Where there would be bicameral (two house) legislature with the House of Representatives based on population and the Senate with 2 per state.

Slaves would be counted as 3/5 of a person for purposes of representation

Slave trade could not be banned until 1808, which it could

Presidents and other federal officials can be removed by having an impeachment with a simple majority in the House and a conviction after a trial in the senate with 2/3 of senators

The Federal Government provides significant funding to the states for programs like highways and medicaid

a requirement or an order from the central government that all state and local government must comply with. Like the Americans with Disabilities act requires elevators and ramps in all government buildings.

called conditional grants, are grants issued by the United States Congress which may be spent only for narrowly defined purposes.

a grant from a central government that a local authority can allocate to a wide range of services.

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.

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

the enumerated power of the government's right to regulate trade between the states. It has been used to allow the government to provide social security, medicare, medicaid, civil rights, and environmental regulation

A clause that has been interpreted in cases like McCulloch v. Maryland to allow the government to create institutions like a national bank or the IRS to implement constitutionally granted powers

powers granted specifically in the Constitution

are powers authorized by the Constitution that, while not stated, seem implied by powers that are expressly stated. ... Hamilton noted that the "general welfare clause" and the "necessary and proper clause" gave elasticity to the Constitution.

Case that stopped Maryland from taxing the National Bank out of existence. Claimed that bank was justified by the necessary and proper clause.

Case that ruled that the 1990 Gun-Free School Zones Act, forbidding individuals from knowingly carrying a gun in a school zone, unconstitutional because it exceeds the power of Congress to legislate under the Commerce Clause.

an authoritative commentary on the U.S. Constitution.

outbreak of violence before the Constitution may have made leaders more receptive to governmental change

A system of republican representation helps to limit the excesses of factionalism.

Foundation of popular sovereignty written by Jefferson

Blueprint of Government

Antifederalist document that argued for decentralized government to protect individual rights and broad voting rights

explains how constitutional provisions of separation of powers and checks and balances control abuses by majorities.

Opposed the Constitution and favored a weaker central government and smaller republics

Opposed the Constitution and favored a weaker central government and smaller republics

Articles' legislature

Constitution's Congress

a type of democracy founded on the principle of elected officials representing a group of people, as opposed to direct democracy

requires 2/3 of Congress for proposal or 2/3 of state legislatures for a Constitutional Convention and 3/4 of state legislatures or state conventions to ratify

When Government requires service without providing funds

Necessary and Proper Clause

Giving state governments greater discretion in deciding how to achieve the specific goals of welfare reform

Different levels of government are involved in common policy areas.

What is valid in one state is valid in another, like a driver's license or a marriage

powers that overlap between the state and federal government like taxation, building roads, and courts

a distribution of power between nation and state level where each has independent power and areas of influence

certain powers that only the national government has like taxes on imports, having a military, foreign policy, etc