Constitution

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What are the first 10 amendments called?

Bill of Rights

ratify

approve

amendment

change or addition

compromise

each side giving up a little to get a workable plan

checks and balances

each branch making sure other branches weren't getting too much power

apportionment

changing boundaries of voting districts so they all have about the same amount of people

Domestic Tranquility

peace within our country

impeachment

charging a govn't official of wrong doing

Pro Tempore

termporary

Franking Privilege

free mail for congressmen

Elastic Clause

stretching the Constitution to allow for future laws

Popular Sovereignty

people vote

suffrage

to vote

Writ of Habeous Corpus

written statement explaining to the court what a prisoner is being charged with

Bill of Attainder (illegal)

to declare a person guilty of a crime with no trial

Ex Post Facto Law (illegal)

a laew wich punishes you for an act that wasn't illegal when you did it

Appropriation Bill

any bill dealing with money

concurrent powers

powers shared by state and federal governments

veto

to refuse to sign a bill into law

List the levels of laws in order from highest.

US Constituion; US Supreme Court Decisions; State consitutions; State Court Decisions; City charters (Ordinances); City municipal)Court Decisions

How many votes in Congress can override the President's veto?

2/3

1st Amendment

Freedom of religion, press, speech, petition, assembly

2nd Amendment

Right to bear arms

4th Amendment

Search and Seizures

5th Amendment

Don't have to testify against yourself in a court of law

6th Amendment

Due Process - prompt trial, imparital jury, lawyer, witnesses

12th Amendment

Election of President and Vice President on separate ballots

13th Amendment

Freed Slaves

14th Amendment

Gave citizenship to former slaves (Civil Rights)

15th Amendment

Gave the vote to black males (former slaves)

16th Amendment

income tax

18th Amendment

prohibition

19th Amendment

women got vote

21st Amendment

repeal prohibition

26th Amendment

18 year olds got vote

Who takes over if the President dies?

Vice President

Who is the head of the Senate?

Vice President

Who is the head of the House of Representatives?

Speaker of the House

Who is the head of the Supreme Court?

Chief Justice

What is the Introduction to the Constitution called?

Preamble

How long is one term of a Senator?

6 years

How old must he be to run?

How long is one term of a Representative?

2 years

How old must he be to run?

How long is a Supreme Court Justice in office?

life

How old must a president be?

How long is one term for a President?

4 years

How many amendments are there total?

Know the powers of government under the Aricles of Confederation and the Constitution.

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Why did some states hesitate ratifying the Articles of Confederation?

because some states claimed western lands and others didn't

What convinced states to finally sign the Articles of Confederation?

All states agreed to give up their western claim

Explain the Land Ordinance of 1785.

(blank)

Explain the Northwest Ordinance.

(blank)

Where did the leaders meet to discuss the problem of the Articles of Confederation?

Philadelphia

What did the meeting to discuss the problem of the Articles of Confederation accomplish?

got rid of Articles of Confederation and wrote Constitution

What was the meeting to discuss the problems of the Articles of Confederation called?

Constitutional Convention

Describe the New Jersey Plan.

1 house; each state would send equal representatives

Describe the Virginia Plan.

2 houses; upper house chosen by people directly; lower house chosen by people of upper house; number of representatives based on state's population

Explain the Great Compromise.

Congress consists of Senate (2 Senators per state) and House of Representatives ( # of reps based on state's population)

Explain the 3/5 compromise.

each slave in the South would count as 3/5 fo a person or every 5 slaves equalled 3 people

Explain the compromise the delegates ofthe Constitutional Convention made over trade.

Trade would be regulated by Congress; they could regulate foreign trade, but slave trade couldn't be touched for 20 years

Explain the Electoral College and show how it works.

# of Rep. + # of Senators = number of Electors

What were the first two political parties.

Federalists; Anti-Federalists

What did Federalists believe in?

for passage of Constitution

What did Anti-Federalists believe in?

Against passage of Constitution until delegates agreed to add Bill of Rights

How many branches of government are there?

What are the branches of governement and what does each branch do?

Executive - carries out (enforces) laws; Legislative - makes laws; Judicial - interprets laws

Name the powers of the Legislative Branch.

pass laws, tax, borrow money, coin money, approve treaties, naturalization laws, bankruptcy laws,regulate trade between US and foreign countries, regulate trade between states (more)

Name the powers fo the Executive Branch.

make treaties, appoint cabinet, appoint Sup. Ct. Justices; appoint ambassadors, request laws, veto, head of political party, appoint cabinet, pardon prisoners for Fed. crimes, Commander in Chief of Army and Navy, issue executive orders

How does a bill usually become a law?

Both houses pass with Simple Majority and signed by President