Help
Options
Didn't know it?
click below
click below
Knew it?
click below
click below
Don't Know
Remaining cards (0)
Know
retry
shuffle
restart
0:00
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Normal Size Small Size show me how
POLS 1101 Exam 1
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| the right to make decisions and implement them | authority |
| making a deal on something | bargaining |
| presidential advisors that control the major departments and agencies of the federal government. Chosen by the president and approved by the Senate | cabinet |
| alliance of unlike-minded individuals or groups to achieve a common goal. Ex: lobbying, legislating, campaigning for elections | coalition |
| action taken by like-minded individuals to achieve a common goal | collective action |
| Goods that are produced and free for anyone to consume | collective/public goods |
| coming to an agreement, both sides have to give up something | compromise |
| difference between what a person wants and what the leader of the group actually decides to do. People pay conformity costs when the collective decision produces outcomes that don’t best serve their interests. | conformity costs |
| Outlines the formal rules of government and the limits placed on their powers | constitution |
| Organizing a group to achieve a common goal. Prerequisite for effective collective action | coordination |
| Government system where citizens vote on legislation themselves rather than giving that power to a representative (like a mayor/president) | direct democracy |
| when individuals receive the benefits of something without paying for it, leaving them no motivation to contribute | free-rider problem |
| the institutions and procedures that rule the people | government |
| direct democracy approach where a proposal is placed on an election ballot when the required registered voters have signed a petition | initiative |
| form of government where the chief executive is chosen by the majority party or by a coalition of parties in legislature | parliamentary government |
| process where individuals and groups reach agreement on a course of common or collective action, even when they disagree on the ways of getting there | politics |
| an officeholder’s actual influence with other officeholders, which leads to influence over the government’s actions | power |
| individuals choices in economics, religious values, ethnic identity, etc. | preferences |
| a situation where 2+ people could all benefit from working together but don’t trust each other so refuse to cooperate | prisoner's dilemma |
| benefits and services that the owner has full control of their use | private goods |
| preventing overuse of a common resource by making people pay for it | privatize |
| the ability to set the choices available to others | agenda control |
| approach to direct democracy where a state legislature proposes a change to the state’s laws/constitution that all the people vote on | referendum |
| rules to limit access to a common resource and penalizing those who violate them | regulation |
| political system where people vote for leaders to make decisions for them | representative government |
| form of democracy where power lies with elected representatives | republic |
| distribution of power across different groups. (ex. USA has congress, the president, supreme court) | separation of powers |
| when group members overuse a common resource and destroy it | tragedy of the commons |
| cost of doing political business, includes the time and effort to compare preferences, negotiate, and make decisions | transaction costs |
| form of government where ruling power overuses its authority and grants little to no popular control | tyranny |
| the difference in how citizens want their agents to do and what the agents actually do | agency loss |
| someone who makes and implements decisions on behalf of someone else | agent |
| a loosely organized group that opposed ratification of the constitution because they believed it would jeopardize individual freedom and states’ rights. After ratification, the Antifederalists were able to bring the first 10 amendments/Bill of Rights | antifederalists |
| the compact among the original 13 states that formed the basis of the first national government before the Constitution was created | articles of confederation |
| legislature composed of 2 houses or chambers (ex. Congress is broken into House and Senate) | bicameral legislature |
| the first 10 amendments to the U.S. constitution | bill of rights |
| constitutional mechanism that gives each branch some oversight/control over the others (ex. Presidential veto) | checks and balances |
| the authority of one person to dictate the actions of another | command |
| Article 1, Section 8 of the constitution that gives Congress the authority to regulate commerce with other nations and between states | commerce clause |
| political system where states and regional governments keep ultimate authority except for powers that they delegate to a central government | confederation |
| allowing someone to perform an action on another person’s behalf | delegation |
| body of electors in each state who are chosen by voters and formally elect the president and vice president. Each state has the same amount of electoral votes as they do representatives in Congress | electoral college |
| a group of people with common interests who are against other groups with competing interests | faction |
| temporary power granted to the president by congress to negotiate international trade agreements | fast-track authority |
| a group of people who supported the constitution and later formed the 1st major political party in the U.S. (Hamilton, Madison, Adams) | federalists |
| decision made during the constitutional convention (1787) that the number of House members per state depends on population, and that each state gets 2 members in Senate | great compromise |
| a legislative “traffic jam” often precipitated by divided government. Neither side is willing to compromise, the government accomplishes little, and federal operations may come to a halt | gridlock |
| power given by a state to a locality to enforce legislation and manage its own affairs (also applies to Britain’s administration of the American colonies) | home rule |
| authority of a court to declare legislative and executive acts unconstitutional and invalid | judicial review |
| the result of legislative vote trading (you support my idea, I support yours) | logroll |
| decision reflects the preferences of more than half of voters (main process of democracy) | majority rule |
| group that wanted to replace the Articles of Confederation with a stronger form of government, believed that the U.S. needed more central power rather than state control (Hamilton, Madison) | nationalists |
| Article I, Section 8 of the constitution, grants Congress the authority to make all laws that are “necessary and proper” and to execute those laws | necessary and proper clause |
| William Paterson’s (NJ) proposal for reforming the Articles of Confederation and giving more power to the states, wanted each state to have equal representation in Congress | New Jersey plan |
| allows a state to void any federal law that could be deemed unconstitutional | nullification |
| political system where all significant groups freely compete with each other for influence over the government’s decisions | pluralism |
| the person with the most votes wins, even if it isn’t more than half | plurality |
| citizens give authority to their agents in government but are able to take back that authority | popular sovereignty |
| someone who possesses decision-making authority, can delegate their authority to agents | principal |
| a revolt by farmers in Massachusetts who were angry about high taxes and debt (1786), showed that the Articles of Confederation were too weak, convinced leaders to hold the Constitutional Convention → led to constitution | shay's rebellion |
| majority of 50% plus 1 | simple majority |
| rules that protect states and limit what the national government can do, wanted balance between states and the federal government | states' rights |
| Article VI of the constitution, declares that national laws are “supreme” and takes precedence over any state/local laws | supremacy clause |
| majority larger than 51%, required for extraordinary legislative actions (ex. Amending the constitution) | super majority |
| Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution, instructs the president to “take care” in making sure that laws are executed | take care clause |
| power of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress, can be overridden by ⅔ vote in each house | veto |
| James Madison’s plan to fix the Articles of Confederation with a stronger national government, proposed the 3 branches, favored big states | virginia plan |
| decides who votes and the minimum # of votes required to accept a proposal/elect someone | voting rule |
| encourage employees to disclose information about government actions that are illegal, wasteful, or corrupt by protecting their job status. Often provide generous awards for recovering resources | whistleblower laws |
| an amount of money given to a state government to the federal government, specifies the general category the money has to go to (education, healthcare, etc.) | block grant |
| set of education standards that outlines what students should know and be able to do in each grade | common core |
| states compete so aggressively that they end up hurting themselves (ex. State offers a huge tax break to attract businesses then other states do the same → they all lose revenue) | cutthroat competition |
| system of government where the federal and state governments each have their own specific areas of power | dual federalism |
| allows congress to make all laws which are necessary and proper to do their jobs, even if the law isn’t listed in the constitution | elastic clause |
| powers given to congress in Article I, Section 8 → taxation, coinage of money, regulation of commerce, supplying the national defense | enumerated powers |
| public goods/bads made as by-products of private activity production (ex. Air pollution is a by-product of driving a car) | externality |
| system of government where power is divided between a central government and several smaller governments (ex. Federal and states) | federalism |
| funds given by Congress to state local governments for specific purpose | grants-in-aid |
| grant of money given to states by the federal government where they match each dollar spent in a specific area (ranges from $1-$4) | matching grant |
| shifting to the national government responsibilities that are traditionally exercised by the states | nationalization |
| laws passed by congress that override state or local policies, derives from supremacy clause | preemption legislation |
| when states compete to provide a minimum level of services (ex. Welfare spending) or regulation (ex. Tax incentives for corporations) | race to the bottom |
| system where the national and state government share in providing citizens with a set of goods | shared federalism |
| any powers the constitution doesn’t give to the federal government belongs to the states/the people, protects states’ rights by keeping some powers out of federal control | 10th amendment |
| system of government where a single government unit holds all the power of the nation (compare to federal government) | unitary government |
| policies/programs designed to expand opportunities and membership for minorities and women | affirmative action |
| laws enacted by southern legislatures after the Civil War that prevented former enslaved people from voting/having certain jobs/etc/ | black codes |
| legal protection from government interference with personal rights/freedoms (assembly, speech, religion) | civil liberties |
| powers/privileges given to citizens by the Constitution and courts that allow them to make claims upon the government, protects individuals from discriminatory treatment from the government | civil rights |
| segregation that results from practice rather than the law (ex. neighborhoods are mostly 1 race so schools end up segregated) | de facto segregation |
| segregation enacted into law and imposed by the government (ex. Jim Crow laws) | de jure segregation |
| the 1850s law compelling northerners to honor southerners’ property claims to slaves, passed in return for the South’s agreeing to admit California as a free state (and lose its ability to block legislation in the Senate) | fugitive slave law |
| states that only people whose grandfather votes before Reconstruction could vote, unless they passed a literacy or wealth test (used to put down blacks) | grandfather clause |
| violent crime directed against an individual and their property solely because of their race/religion/gender/etc. | hate crime |
| series of laws in the late 19th century south to execute segregation | jim crow laws |
| legal barrier used to exclude blacks from voting | literacy test |
| political convention used to select a candidate to run in an upcoming election | nominating convention |
| tax imposed on people when they register to vote, became unconstitutional with passing of the 24th amendment | poll tax |
| specific shares of college admissions/contracts/jobs/etc. set aside for groups who experienced past discrimination | quotas |
| practice of separating whites and blacks into unequal schools, hospitals, restaurants, etc. | segregation |
| doctrine that separate but equal facilities for blacks and whites are constitutional under the 14th amendment | separate but equal doctrine |
| women who campaigned in the early 20th century for the right of women to vote | suffragists |
| permitted political parties to exclude blacks from voting in primary elections | white primary |
| constitutional and legal protections from government interference with personal rights and freedoms (assembly, speech, religion) | civil liberties |
| rule used to distinguish whether speech is protected or not under the 1st amendment (ex. Threats or other illegal action words are not protected) | clear and present danger test |
| rule that the courts must ask whether the gravity of the ‘evil’ compared to its probability justifies invasion of free speech and is necessary to avoid the danger | clear and probably danger test |
| supreme court set rules for what counts as legally obscene (if it is only meant to be sexual and has no real value) | community standards |
| criminal penalties not considered appropriate that involve torture or can result in death when the death penalty hasn’t been ordered | cruel and unusual punishments |
| protects citizens from arbitrary action by the national and state governments | due process clause |
| guarantees all citizens equal protection of the laws | equal protection clause |
| prohibits the national government from establishing a national religion | establishment of religion clause |
| prohibits the police from using at trial evidence obtained by illegal search and seizure | exclusionary rule |
| 2nd clause of the 1st amendment, forbids the national government from interfering with exercising religion | free exercise clause |
| category of unprotected speech that encourages, urges, or stirs up imminent lawless action or violence | incitement |
| extension of the guarantees of the Bill of Rights to state and local governments through its various interpretations of the 14th amendment | incorporation |
| rules to make sure that state laws don’t support/favor religion. Laws must have a non-religious purpose, not help/hurt religion, avoid too much government involvement with religion | lemon test |
| police required to inform suspects that they have a right to remain silent and right to have a lawyer | miranda rule |
| used to root out policies that preferred religious groups over nonreligious groups engaged in a similar activity | neutrality test |
| publicly offensive acts or language, usually in sexual nature | obscenity |
| judicially created rights based on various guarantees of the Bill of Rights (ex. Right to privacy) | penumbras |
| part of the 14th amendment, states can’t pass laws that take away the basic rights of U.S. citizens | priveleges and immunities clause |
| supreme court slowly applies parts of the Bill of Rights to the states (14th amendment) | selective incorporation |
Created by:
emilycawley