Political Parties
Federalist Party: approved of the new Constitution, wanted weaker state governments and strong central government, supported Hamilton's fiscal policy, many of its members advocated for the abolition of slavery.
Democratic-Republican Party: made up of Anti Federalists. Supported stronger state governments and weaker central government. Ridiculed Hamilton and his policy. Did not renounce slavery.
The main job of the Judicial Branch is to:
Interpret laws
House of Representatives and Senate.
What did John Adams and the framers originally want the presidents title to be.
(Today it is "Mr./Mrs. President)
"His Excellency"
"His Highness, the President of the United States of America, and Protector of the Rights of the Same"
What branch of government is defined in each of the following articles.
Article I, Article II, Article III
Must get all three to earn the points.
Article I: Legislative
Article II: Executive
Article III: Judicial
What are the symbols given to the current Republican and Democratic parties?
R: Elephant
D: Donkey
How many Supreme Court Justices do we currently have serving?
9.
Originally there were only 6.
What is gerrymandering?
The process of drawing legislative lines to benefit a member of Congress.
The bureaucracy.
What Supreme Court case that we discussed involves unequal representation across the state.
Baker v. Carr (1962)
Define BOTH appellate and original jurisdiction:
Appellate: Case has already been heard. The plaintiff files an appeal for the case to be heard again at a higher court.
Original: The case has never been heard. It will be heard for the first time.
What is a "filibuster?"
A member of Congress attempting to stall the passing of a bill.
Define the president's role as "Chief Diplomat"
President shapes foreign policy. Forms mutual relationships with foreign nations. Works out trade deals.
Explain the Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison (1803): Why is it important?
This case established judicial review with the Supreme Court. AKA the power to interpret laws and define them as constitutional/unconstitutional.
Name one of the third parties relevant today:
Libertarian and Green Party.
Alexander Hamilton wrote about the Judicial Branch and the judges included. He stated that this court must have "judicial Independence." What is "judicial Independence?"
The idea that the Supreme Court, although one of the three branches of government, is independent. The judges have life terms, they are not reliant on Congress to remain in their position. Their job is to interpret laws and that is it.
What is the difference, in terms of representation, between the House of Representatives and Senate?
The house is determined by population. They represent the people.
The Senate has equal representation for all states. They represent the state as a whole.
Define "swing state" and give an example:
ALSO
Define "safe state" and give an example:
Swing state: the election could go either way. It is up for grabs. (Pennsylvania, Ohio, Arizona, Wisconsin, Florida)
Safe state: always leans towards one party. (Texas, California, New York, Montana)
What is "discretionary jurisdiction?"
The power of the Supreme Court to decide what cases they would like to hear.
What caused the Whig Party to emerge?
They did not approve of Andrew Jackson "King Andrew"
Explain the "duel court system"
The United States has a court system at two different levels. The state level and the federal level. There are several type of courts that all hold different forms of jurisdiction. Plaintiff must start at the lowest level and work their way up.
Why is party control in either the House or Senate (or BOTH) important?
Depending on the political party of the president, this control makes it easy to either pass bills with ease or make it difficult for the other party.
Example: Joe Biden is the current president. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He, along with other democrats, would like to control Congress in order to pass bills with ease. When the Republican Party members take control of a part or whole Congress, it becomes difficult for the Democrats and Joe Biden to pass bills into law.
Explain how the Electoral College works:
This is the process of selecting our president.
Each state holds its own election.
We take popular vote from each state.
Whoever wins that state receives the electoral votes.
Candidate needs 270 to win.
list the qualifications required to become the president as defined in Article II Section I of the U.S. Constitution.
1. Natural born citizen
2. 35 years of age
3. Have been a U.S. resident for at least 14 years.