First Weeks
What is a republic?
a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them.
In the context of Congressional Committees, what is a “chair?”
The person who runs the committee and usually gets news coverage for important things the committee is dealing with or doing.
Why do members of Congress, when voting on bills, pay particular attention to what constituents want?
Votes are on record and can be easily checked up on by constituents before an election.
Who is at the “top of the organizational pyramid” of the executive branch, and who is just below the top level?
The President and then the Vice-President
What is a written law called?
A statute
What are “fighting words?”
Speech that is so insulting that it is likely to result in a fight
The government is never allowed to censor the press before the publication of a story.
FALSE – They can do this in the name of national security, which is an exception to the no-prior-restraint rule.
How are civil RIGHTS different from civil liberties?
Civil rights refer to the ways that citizens treat each other (civil liberties are defined as the protection citizens should have against unfair treatment by the government, not by other citizens)
Where do tax laws have to start?
Any new law about taxes or how the government will spend money must start first in the House.
Who is allowed to propose a bill in Congress?
Any member of Congress.
Who is the automatic leader of his or her party?
The president
Which independent federal agency manages the nation’s banking and monetary policy?
Federal Reserve
The vast majority of cases start out in state courts, but where are most disputes, both civil and criminal, actually decided?
Settled out of court.
Are “fighting words” protected speech?
No
The Fourth Amendment only protects us from ________________ searches, not from all searches.
unreasonable
The Court pays special attention to discrimination against certain groups. What groups are those?
Religious, national, or racial minorities
What is the main job of the legislative branch?
Make the laws
Which executive branch official is authorized by the Constitution to preside at sessions of the Senate?
The Vice-President
List two requirements to be President of the U.S.
35 years old and a natural-born citizen
What are bureaucracies usually made up of?
Experts
What are civil liberties?
Limitations placed on the government.
What are the two main parts of freedom of religion?
The Establishment Clause and free exercise.
Warrants must be specific about two things. What are they?
What the police are trying to find and where they are allowed to look for it
Why does the Court pay special attention to these minority groups?
Because the majority can pass laws to disadvantage a group not in the majority. This means that the minority group needs special protection from the courts to protect it against the majority.
What is the main idea of having checks and balances?
Each branch of government has the power to limit the other two branches.
Where does most of the legislative work in Congress happen?
In committees
Who chooses the President?
The Electoral College
What is the main reason that we have bureaucracies even though people hate them?
They are efficient
Where can you find a detailed list of civil liberties?
The Bill of Rights.
What does no “establishment of religion” mean?
the U.S. cannot create an official church or write its laws based on religion.
What group in America does NOT have all the usual protections against searches?
Students
What is federalism?
The idea that government power will be divided between the federal (national) government and the state governments
Before a bill can go to the president, it must pass both the House and Senate. But what must be true in this case?
The exact same bill must have passed both the House and Senate.
What military power was given to Congress as a way to check presidential power?
The power to declare war
Why will the President, and especially Congress, often rely on bureaucrats to tell them how a policy will be implemented?
Because the bureaucrats are experts and have a lot of useful information about the issue involved
When was the Bill of Rights added to the Constitution?
1789
The First Amendment is designed to prevent anyone from censoring the press.
FALSE – it was written to prevent the government from censoring the press.
What does “due process” mean in its most basic sense?
Having a fair trial
Some responsibilities belong to both the federal and the state governments. One obvious example is ---.
Taxes
Why is the lawmaking process designed to be so cumbersome?
So we don’t get a lot of stupid or dangerous laws.
Why would Congress willingly give its lawmaking power to the President?
They want to avoid responsibility for unpopular policies
What principle of government means that the federal court system needs to be in a different branch from the executive and legislative branches?
Separation of powers
What is the primary reason why the U.S. government system provides for freedom of speech?
To allow the public to criticize the government
Newspapers that print untrue stories can be sued for libel.
TRUE – although lawsuits can become a form of censorship after the fact because of their “chilling effect.” This was tempered by the decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, which held that a newspaper must KNOW a story is true, or act with reckless disregard for the truth, in order for a libel suit to succeed.
What does it mean for someone to “plead the Fifth?”
They refuse to testify against themselves