UNIT ONE
Democracy and the Constitution
Democracy and the Constitution
the process of influencing the actions and policies of government
politics
a body of voters in a given area who elect a representative or senator
constituency
fundamental rights and freedoms protected from infringement by the government
civil liberties
the belief that individuals should be responsible for themselves and for the decisions they make
individualism
linkage institution
the rules and institutions that make up our system of policymaking
government
the intentional use of redistricting to benefit a specific interest or group of voters
gerrymandering
the piecemeal process through SCOTUS has affirmed that almost all of the protections within the Bill of Rights also apply to state governments
selective incorporation
the principle that no one, including public officials, is above the law
rule of law
a constitutionally required process for selecting the president through states of electors chosen in each state, who are pledged to vote for a nominee in the presidential election
Electoral College
a democratic system with elected representatives in which the Constitution is the supreme law
constitutional republic
the branch of government charged with putting the nation's laws into effect
executive branch
laws criminalizing conduct that was legal at the time it occurred
ex post facto laws
the sum of individual attitudes about government, policies, and laws
public opinion
super PAC
a design of government that distributes powers across institutions in order to avoid making one branch too powerful on its own
separation of powers
powers not laid out in the Constitution but used to carry out presidential duties
informal powers
the right to remain silent and to have an attorney present during questioning; these rights must be given by police to individuals suspected of criminal activity
Miranda Rights
a set of beliefs about the desired goals and outcomes of a process of government
political ideology
a meeting where delegates officially select their party's nominee for the presidency
national convention
the sharing of power between the national government and the states
argument by Hamilton that the federal judiciary would be unlikely to infringe upon rights and liberties but would serve as a check on the other two branches
Fed. No 78
a policy designed to address the consequences of previous discrimination by providing special consideration to individuals based upon their characteristics such as race or gender
affirmative action
an ideology favoring very little government regulation and intervention beyond protecting private property and individual liberty
libertarianism
interacting with government officials in order to advance a group's public policy goals
lobbying
constitutional amendment that provides that persons born in the US are citizens and prohibits states from denying persons due process or equal protection under the law
Fourteenth Amendment
the practice of letting a previous legal decision stand
stare decisis
the intentional refusal to obey a law to call attention to its injustice
civil disobedience
government use of taxes and spending to attempt to lower unemployment, support economic growth, and stabilize the economy
fiscal policy
the concentration of ownership of the media into fewer corporations