The Founding
The main disagreement between The Federalist and Anti-Federalist was around this issue.
The size or power of the federal government.
Brown v Board of Education (1954) ended this practice.
A Bicameral Legislature
The vast majority of criminal cases, more than 90%, end in what?
A plea bargain
Presidential Elections are decided not by popular vote, but by what?
The Electoral College or Electoral Votes
The Declaration of Independence
This amendment gave Women in the U.S. the right to vote (suffrage).
The Nineteenth (19th) Amendment
Members in the House of Representatives have ____ year terms, while those in the Senate have _____ year terms.
Members in the House of Representatives have 2-year terms, while those in the Senate have 6-year terms.
Recently, Presidents have been able to expand their power in many ways. List at least two methods that have been used to expand the power of the executive branch.
1) Going Public
2) Regulatory Review
3) Executive Orders
States can give an advantage in Congress to their preferred political party through redistricting. This process is called what?
Gerrymandering
The Three-Fifths (3/5ths) Compromise
The First Amendment guarantees these Civil Liberties. Name at least three.
1) Freedom of Religion
2) Freedom of Speech
3) Freedom of the Press
4) Freedom of Assembly/Petition
5) Freedom of Association
In Congress, bringing charges against an elected official (sometimes the President) is called ________.
Impeachment
The Republican Party can trace back its historical roots to the ________ while The Democratic Party can trace back its historical roots to the _________.
The Republican Party can trace back its historical roots to the Federalists while The Democratic Party can trace back its historical roots to the Anti-Federalists.
The Virginia Plan inspired the establishment of _________ while the New Jersey Plan inspired the establishment of ___________. This agreement was called _______________.
The Virginia Plan inspired the establishment of The House of Representatives, while the New Jersey Plan inspired the establishment of The Senate. This agreement was called The Great Compromise (or The Connecticut Compromise).
The Ninth Amendment guarantees these types of rights. Additionally, name at least two court cases that involve The Ninth Amendment.
It guarantees unenumerated rights. Court cases include: Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), Roe v. Wade (1973), Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (2021), Lawrence v. Texas (2003), Obergefell v. Hodges (2015).
Incumbents have many advantages in elections. Name at least two of them.
1) Incumbents have greater access to funding and donors
2) Incumbents have better name recognition
3) Incumbents have a proven track record in Congress
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) and Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) were huge setbacks to the civil rights movement. Identify the effect or result of both of these Supreme Court cases.
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)- Controversial Supreme Court ruling, stating that people of African descent could not be citizens of the United States and thus could not sue.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) - Controversial Supreme Court ruling that allowed Louisiana to segregate public spaces under the “separate but equal” rule.
Describe Duverger's law
The theory that single-member district plurality voting systems always lead to only two successful political parties.
The Articles of Confederation were flawed for these reasons. List at least 3.
1) The national government could not collect taxes
2) The national government could not establish a national military, which led to Shay's Rebellion.
3) States had to voluntarily comply with national law
4) To change national law, The Articles required a unanimous vote from the states.
The Civil War Amendments include The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments. Summarize the rights each of these amendments guarantee.
Thirteenth Amendment: Abolition of slavery
Fourteenth Amendment: Equal protection under the law
Fifteenth Amendment: Guarantees the right to vote for all races of men
Briefly define fiscal policy and monetary policy.
Fiscal policy deals with how the government collects taxes and how it spends money.
Monetary policy deals with regulating the economy through the manipulation of the money supply (interest rates). Monetary policy is handled by The Federal Reserve.
Briefly describe the differences between the judicial philosophies of originalism, textualism, and living constitutionalism.
Originalists make decisions based on the intent of either the founders or Congress when writing the law.
Textualists make decisions based on the ordinary meaning of the law or what the law literally says, and thus disregard any historical context.
Living Constitutionalists make decisions based on the values of the Constitution, and thus believe the law can be applied based on the needs of the people at that time.
If someone wants the government to regulate the economy but not social policy they would be called a ______.
If someone wants the government to stay out of the economy and social policy they would be called a ________.
If someone wants the government to stay out of the economy but to regulate social policy they would be called a _________.
Finally, if someone wants the government to heavily regulate the economy to provide public goods they would be called a ________.
If someone wants the government to regulate the economy but not social policy, they would be called a liberal.
If someone wants the government to stay out of the economy and social policy, they would be called a libertarian.
If someone wants the government to stay out of the economy but to regulate social policy, they would be called a conservative.
Finally, if someone wants the government to heavily regulate the economy to provide public goods, they would be called a socialist.