Constitution
Federalism
Interest Groups
Elections
Political Parties
100
Constitutional division of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive applying and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law.
What is Separation of powers?
100
Views the Constitution as giving a limited list of powers—primarily foreign policy and national defense—to the national government, leaving the rest to the sovereign states. Each level of government is dominant within its own sphere.
What is Dual federalism (layer cake federalism)?
100
A collection of people who share a common interest or attitude and seek to influence government for specific ends.
What is Interest group?
100
A national meeting of delegates elected at primaries, caucuses, or state conventions who assemble once every four years to nominate candidates for president and vice president, ratify the party platform, elect officers, and adopt rules.
What is National party convention?
100
A meeting of local party members to choose party candidates for public office and to decide the platform.
What is Caucus?
200
Trial or punishment for the same crime by the same government; forbidden by the Constitution.
What is Double jeopardy?
200
Stresses federalism as a system of intergovernmental relations in which all levels of government are involved in a variety of issues and programs
What is Cooperative federalism (marble cake federalism)?
200
A person who is employed by and acts for an organized interest group or corporation to try to influence policy decisions and positions in the executive and legislative branches.
What is Lobbyist?
200
Electoral system used in electing the president and vice president, in which voters vote for electors pledged to cast their ballots for particular party’s candidates.
What is Electoral college?
200
Election in which voters choose party nominees.
What is a primary (direct primary)?
300
The clause in the Constitution (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.
What is Commerce clause?
300
Clause in the Constitution that states that “Congress should have the power to make all laws necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers. . . .”
What is “Necessary and proper” clause?
300
The political arm of an interest group that is legally entitled to raise funds on a voluntary basis from members, stockholders, or employees to contribute funds to candidates or political parties.
What is Political action committee (PAC)?
300
A commission created by the 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act to administer election reform laws.
What is Federal Election Commission (FEC)?
300
Primary election in which only persons registered in the party holding the primary may vote.
What is a Closed primary?
400
Essays promoting ratification of the Constitution, published anonymously by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison in 1787 and 1788.
What is The Federalist Papers?
400
Chief Justice Marshall established the right of Congress to pass laws that are “necessary and proper” to conduct the business of the U.S. government. Here, the court upheld Congress’ power to create a national bank.
What is McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819
400
Unlimited amounts of money that political parties previously could raise for party-building purposes. Now largely illegal except for limited contributions to state and local parties for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts.
What is Soft money?
400
A close contest; by extension, any contest in which the focus is on who is ahead and by how much rather than on substantive differences between the candidates.
What is the "Horse race"?
400
A small political party that rises and falls with a charismatic candidate or, if composed of ideologies on the right or left, usually persists over time; also called a third party.
What is a Minor Party?
500
A court order requiring explanation to a judge why a prisoner is being held in custody.
What is Writ of habeas corpus?
500
The Supreme Court said that, in matters of interstate commerce, the “Supremacy Clause” tilts the balance of power in favor of federal legislation.
What is Gibbons v. Ogden, 1824?
500
A theory of government that holds that open, multiple, and competing groups can check the asserted power by any one group.
What is Pluralism?
500
An election during periods of expanded suffrage and change in the economy and society that proves to be a turning point, redefining the agenda of politics and the alignment of voters within parties.
What is Realigning election (Party Realignment)?
500
Governance divided between the parties, as when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress.
What is Divided government?