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POLS1000
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Government | the formal vehicle through which policies are made and affairs of state are conducted. |
| Monarchy | A form of government in which power is vested in hereditary kings and queens who govern in the interest of all. |
| Totalitarianism | A form of government in which power resides in a leader who rules according to self-interest and without regard for individual rights and liberties. |
| Oligarchy | A form of government in which the right to participate depends on the possession of wealth, social status, military position, or achievement. |
| Democracy | A system of government that gives power to the people, whether directly or through elected representatives. |
| Direct democracy | A system of government in which members of the polity meet to discuss all policy decisions and then agree to abide by majority rule. |
| Indirect democracy | A system of government that gives citizens the opportunity to vote for representatives who work on their behalf. |
| Republic | A government rooted in the consent of the governed; a representative or indirect democracy. |
| Political culture | Commonly shared attitudes, beliefs, and core values about how government should operate. |
| Personal liberty | A key characteristic of U.S. democracy. Initially meaning freedom from governmental interference, today it includes demands for freedom to engage in a variety of practices without governmental interference or discrimination. |
| Political equality | The principle that all citizens are the same in the eyes of the law. |
| Popular consent | The principle that governments must draw their powers from the consent of the governed. |
| Majority rule | The central premise of direct democracy in which only policies that collectively garner the support of a majority of voters will be made into law. |
| Popular sovereignty | The notion that the ultimate authority in society rests with the people. |
| Natural law | A doctrine that society should be governed by certain ethical principles that are part of nature and, as such, can be understood by reason. |
| Political ideology | The coherent set of values and beliefs about the purpose and scope of government held by groups and individuals. |
| Conservative | One who favors limited government intervention, particularly in economic affairs. |
| Social conservative | One who believes that the government should support and further traditional moral teachings. |
| Liberal | One who favors greater government intervention, particularly in economic affairs and in the provision of social services. |
| Moderate | A person who takes a relatively centrist or middle-of-the-road view on most political issues. |
| Statist | One who believes in extensive government interference in personal and economic liberties. |
| Libertarian | One who believes in limited government interference in personal and economic liberties. |
| Politics | The study of who gets what, when, and how--or how policy decisions are made. |
| American dream | An American ideal of a happy, successful life, which often includes wealth, a house, a better life for one;s children, and for some, the opportunity to grow up to be president. |
| Mercantilism | An economic theory designed to increase a nation's wealth through the development of commercial industry and a favorable balance of trade. |
| Stamp Act Congress | Meeting of representatives of nine of the thirteen colonies held in New York City in 1765, during which representatives drafted a document to send to the king that listed how their rights had been violated. |
| Committees of Correspondence | Organizations in each of the American colonies created to keep colonists abreats of developments with the British; served as powerful molders of public opinion against the British. |
| First Continental Congress | Meeting held in Philadelphia from September 5 to October 26, 1774, in which fifty-six delegates (from every colony except Georgia) adopted a resolution in opposition to the Coercive Acts. |
| Second Continental Congress | Meeting that convened in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, at which it was decided that an army should be raised and George Washington of Virginia was named commander in chief. |
| Declaration of Independece | Document drafted largely by Thomas Jefferson in 1776 that proclaimed the right of the American colonies to separate from Great Britain. |
| Articles of Confederation | The compact between the thirteen original colonies that created a loose league of friendship, with the national government drawing its powers form the states. |
| Confederation | A type of government in which the national government derives its powers from the states; a league of independent states. |
| Constitution | A document establishing the structure, functions, and limitations of a government. |
| Virginia plan | The first general plan for the Constitution offered in Philadelphia. Its key points were a bicameral legislature, as well as an executive and a judiciary chosen by the national legislature. |
| New Jersey Plan | A framework for the Constitution proposed by a group of small states. Its key points were a one-house legislature with one vote for each state, a Congress with the ablility to raise revenue, and a Supreme Court with members appointed for life. |
| Great Compromise | The final decision of the Constitutional Convention to create a two-house legislature, with the lower house elected by the people and with powers divided between the two houses. It also made national law supreme. |
| Three-Fifths Compromies | Agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention stipulating that each slave was to be counted as three-fifths of a person for purposes of determining population for representation in the U.S. House of Representatives. |
| Separation of Powers | A way of dividing the power of government among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, each staffed separately, with equality and independence of each branch ensure by the Constitution. |
| Checks and balances | A constitutionally mandated structure that gives each of the three branches of government some degree of oversight and control over the actions of the others. |
| Federal system | System of government in which the national government and state governments share power and derive all authority from the people. |
| Enumerated powers | The powers of the national government specifically granted to Congress in Article I, section 8 of the Constitution. |
| Necessary and proper clause | The final paragraph of Article I, section 8, of the Constitution, which gives Congress the authority to pass all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out the enumerated powers specified in the Constitution; also called the elastic clause. |
| Implied powers | The powers of the national government derived from the enumerated powers and the necessary and proper clause. |
| Full faith and credit clause | Section of Article IV of the Constitution that ensures judicial decrees and contracts made in one state will be binding and enforceable in any other state. |
| Supremacy clause | Portion of Article IV of the Constitution mandating that national law is supreme to (that is, supersedes) all other laws passed by the states or by any other subdivision of government. |
| Federalists | Those who favored a stronger national government and supported the proposed U.S. Constitution; later became the first U.S. political party. |
| Anti-Federalists | Those who favored strong state governments and a weak national government; opposed ratification of the U.S. Constitution. |
| The Federalist Papers | A series of eighty-five political essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in support of ratification of the U.S. Constitution. |
| Bill of Rights | The first ten amendments in the U.S. Constitution, which largely guarantee specific rights and liberties. |
| Federal system | System of government in which the national government and state governments share power and derive all authority from the people. |
| Unitary system | System of government in which the local and regional governments derive all authority from a strong national government. |
| Enumerated powers | The powers of the national government specifically granted to Congress in Article I, section 8 of the Constitution. |
| Implied powers | The powers of the national government derived from the enumerated powers and the necessary and proper clause. |
| Tenth Amendment | The final part of the Bill of Rights of defines the basic principle of that defines that basic principles of American federalims in stating that the powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people. |
| Reserved powers | Powers reserved to the states by the Tenth Amendment that lie at the foundation of a state's right to legislate for the public health and welfare of its citizens. |
| Concurrent powers | Powers shared by the national and state governments. |
| Bill of attainder | A law declaring an act illegal without judicial trial. |
| Ex post facto laws | Law that makes an act punishable as a crime even if the action was legal at the time it was committed. |
| Full faith and credit clause | Section of Article IV of the Consitution that ensures judicial decrees and contracts made in one state will be binding and enforceable in any other state. |
| Privileges and immunities clause | Part of Article IV of the Constitution guaranteeing that the citizens of each state are afforded the same rights as citizens of all other states. |
| Extradition clause | Part of Article IV of the Constitution that requires states to extradite, or return, criminals to states where they have been convicted or are to stand trial. |
| Interstate compacts | Contracts between states that carry the force of law; generally now used as a tool to address multistate policy concerns. |
| Dillon's Rule | A premise articulated by Judge John F. Dillon in 1868 which states that local governments do not have any inherent sovereignty and instead must be authorized by sate governments that can create or abolish them. |
| Gibbon v. Ogden (1824) | The Supreme Court upheld broad congressional power to regulate interstate commerce. The Court's broad interpretation of the Constitution's commerce clause paved the way for later rulings upholding expansive federal powers. |
| Barron v. Baltimore (1833) | The Supreme Court ruled that the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment did not apply to the actions of states. This decision limited the Bill of Rights to the actions of Congress alone. |
| Dual federalism | The belief that having separate and equality powerful levels of government is the best arrangements, often referred to as layer-cake federalism. |
| Nullification | The right of a state to declare void a federal law. |
| Dred Scott v Sandford (1857) | The Supreme court concluded that the U.S. Congress lacked the constitutional authority to bar slavery in the territories, This decision narrowed the scope of national power, while it enhanced that of the states. |
| 16th Amendment | Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that authorized Congress to enact a national income tax. |
| 17th Amendment | Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that made senators directly elected by the people, removing their selection from state legislatures. |
| Cooperative Federalism | The intertwined relationship between the national, state, and local governments that began with the New Deal, often referred to as "marble-cake" federalism. |
| New Deal | The name given tot he program of "Relief, Recovery, Reform" begun by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 to bring the United States out of the Great Depression. |
| Categorical grant | Grant that appropriate federal funds to states for a specific purpose. |
| New Federalism | A federal-state relationship proposed by Reagan administration during the 1980s; hallmark is returning administrative powers to the state governments. |
| Block grant | A large grant given to a state by the federal government with only general spending guidelines. |
| Programmatic request | Federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. |
| Preemption | A concept that allows the national government to override state or local actions in certain policy areas. |
| Progressive federalism | A pragmatic approach to federalism that views relations between national and state governments as both coercive and cooperative. |
| Civil liberties | The personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge by law, constitution, or judicial interpretation. |
| Civil rights | The government-protected rights of individuals against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by governments or individuals. |
| Bill of Rights | The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which largely guarantee specific rights and liberties. |
| 9th Amendment | Part of the Bill of Rights that makes it clear that enumerating rights in the Constitution or Bill of Rights does not mean that others do not exist. |
| 10th Amendment | The final part of the Bill of Rights that defines the basic principle of American federalism in stating that the powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people. |
| Due process clause | Clause contained in the 5th and 14th Amendment; over the years, it has been construed to guarantee a variety of rights to individuals. |
| Substantive due process | Judicial interpretation of the 5th and 14th Amendments' due process clauses that protects citizens from arbitrary or unjust state or federal laws. |
| Incorporation doctrine | An interpretation of the Constution holding that the due process clause of the 14th Amendment requires state and local governments to guarantee the rights stated in the Bill of Rights. |
| Selective incorporation | A judicial doctrine whereby most, but not all, protections found in the bill of Rights are made applicable to the states via the 14th Amendment. |
| Fundamental freedoms | Those rights defined by the Court as essential to order, liberty, and justice and therefore entitled to the highest standard of review. |
| 1st Amendment | Part of the Bill of Rights that imposes a number of restrictions on the federal government with respect to civil liberties, including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. |
| Establishment clause | The first clause of the First Amendment; it directs the national government not to sanction an official religion. |
| Free exercise clause | The second clause of the First Amendment; it prohibits the U.S. government from interfering with a citizen's right to practice his or her religion. |
| Lemon test | 3-part test created by the Supreme Court for examining the constitutionality of religious and establishment issues. |
| Prior restraint | Constitutional doctrine that prevents the government from prohibiting speech or publication before the fact; generally held to be in violation of the First Amendment. |
| Clear and present danger test | Test articulated by the Supreme Court to draw the line between protected and unprotected speechl the Court looks to see "whether the words used" could "create a clear and present danger that they will bring about substantive evils" that Congress seeks "to |
| Direct incitement test | Test articulate by the Supreme Court in 1969 holding that the First Amendment protects advocacy of illegal action unless imminent lawless actions is intended and likely to occur. |
| Symbolic speech | Symbols, signs,and other methods of expression generally considered to be protected by the First Amendment. |
| Libel | False written statement that defames a person's character. |
| Slander | Untrue spoken statements that defame the character of a person. |
| Fighting words | Words that "by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of peace." Fighting words are not subject to the restrictions of the First Amendment. |
| Ex posto facto laws | Law that makes an act punishable as a crime even if the action was legal at the time it was committed. |
| Bill of attainder | A law declaring an act illegal without a judicial trial. |
| 4th Amendment | "The right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause." |
| 5th Amendment | It provides for indictment by a grand jury and protection against self-incrimination, and prevents the national government from denying a person life, liberty, or property without the due process of law. |
| Miranda rights | Statements required of police that inform a suspect of his or her constitutional rights protected by the 5th Amendment, including the right to an attorney provided by the court if the suspect cannot afford one. |
| Double jeoporady clause | Part of the 5th Amendment that protects individuals from being tried twice for the same offense in the same jurisdiction. |
| Exclusionary rule | Judicially created rule that prohibits police from using illegally seized evidence at trial. |
| 6th Amendment | The right to speedy and public trials, impartial juries, trials in the state where the crime was committed, notice of the charges, and the right to confront and obtain favorable witnesses, and the right to counsel. |
| 8th Amendment | "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted." |
| Right to privacy | The right to be left alone; a judicially created principal encompassing a variety of individual actions. |
| Civil rights | The government-protected rights of individuals, against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by governments or individuals. |
| 13th Amendment | One of the three Civil War Amendments; specifically bans slavery in the United States. |
| Black Codes | Laws denying most legal rights to newly freed slaves; passed by southern states following the Civil War. |
| 14th Amendment | 1 of the 3 Civil War Amendments; guarantees equal protection and due process of the law to all U.S. citizens. |
| Equal protection clause | Section of the 14th Amendment that guarantees all citizens receive "equal protection of the laws." |
| 15th Amendment | 1 of the 3 Civil War Amendments; specifically enfranchised newly freed male slaves. |
| Jim Crow laws | Laws enacted by southern states that required segregation in public schools, theaters, hotels, and other public accommodations. |
| Poll tax | A tax levied in many southern states and localities that had to be paid before an eligible voter could cast a ballot. |
| Grandfather clause | The idea that "If my grandfather could vote, I can vote". |
| Suffrage movement | The drive for voting rights for women that took place in the United States from 1890 to 1920. |
| 19th Amendment | Amendment to the Constitution that guaranteed women the right to vote. |
| Civil Rights Act of 1964 | Wide-ranging legislation passed by Congress to outlaw segregation in public facilities and discrimination in employment, education and voting. |
| Equal Rights Amendment | Proposed amendment to the Constitution that states, "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex." |
| Suspect classification | Category or class, such as race, that triggers the highest standard of scrutiny from the Supreme Court. |
| Strict scrutiny | A heightened standard of review used by the Supreme Court to determine the constitutional validity of a challenged practice. |
| Equal Pay Act of 1963 | Legislation that requires employers to pay men and women equal pay for equal work. |
| Title IX | Provision of the Education Amendments of 1972 that bars educational institutions that receive federal funds from discriminating against female students. |
| Affirmative Action | Policies designed to give special attention or compensatory treatment to members of a previously disadvantaged group. |
| Bicameral legislature | A two-house legislature. |
| Apportionment | The process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial law. |
| Bill | A proposed law |
| Impeachment | The power delegated to the House of Respresentatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice preside, or other "civil officers", "including federal judges with treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. |
| Incumbency | Already holding an office. |
| Redistricting | The process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as wells as population shifts within a state. |
| Gerrymandering | The drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district. |
| Majority party | The political party in each house of Congress with the most members. |
| Minority party | The political party in each house of Congress with the second most members. |
| Party Caucus (or conference) | A formal gathering of all party members. |
| Speaker of the House | The only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the Constitution the chamber's most powerful position; traditionally a member of the majority party. |
| Majority leader | The head of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate is second in authority to the Speaker if the House and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member. |
| Minority leader | The head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Representatives or the Senate. |
| Whip | Party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, makes vote counts on key legislation, summaries of bills, and acts as a communications link within a party. |
| President pro tempore | The official chair of the Senate usually the most senior member of the majority party. |
| Standing committee | Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next. |
| Joint committee | Standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies. |
| Conference committee | Special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate. |
| Select (or special) | Temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose. |
| Seniority | Time of contiuous service on a committee. |
| Markup | A session in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor. |
| Hold | A procedure by which a senator ask to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor.. This request signals leadership that a member may have objections to the bill and should be consulted before further action is taken. |
| Filibuster | A formal wa of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate. |
| Cloture | Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate. |
| Veto | The formal, constitutional authority of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress, thus preventing them from becoming law without further congressional action. |
| Pocket veto | If Congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill passed by both houses of Congress, the bill is considered vetoed without the president's signature. |
| Reconcilliation | A procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours, thereby ending threat of a filibuster. |
| Pork | Legislation that allows representatives to bring money and jobs to their districts in the form of public works programs military bases, or other programs. |
| Programmatic requests | Federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. |
| War Powers Resolution | Passed by Congress in 1973; requires the authorization of Congress to deploy troops overseas and limits the time of their deployment. |
| Congressional review | A process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations by a joint resolution of legislative disapproval. |
| Senatorial courtesy | A process by which presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering their objection. |
| Trustee | Role played by an elected representative who listen to constituents' opinions and then uses his or her best judgment to make a final decision. |
| Delegate | Role played by an elected representative who votes the way his or her constituents would want, regardless of personal opinions. |
| Politico | An elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate, depending on the issue. |
| Logrolling | Vote trading voting to support a colleague's bill in return for a promise of future support. |
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