Political Science Chapters 1-6

a political system in which one person or group has absolute control over the apparatus of government, and in which popular input in government is minimal or nonexistent

goods and services that are enjoyed by all citizens and unlikely to be provided by any organization other than government

individual and collective efforts to influence the workings of government

a form of gov't in which the people rule; can take place directly, through participation by the people in actual lawmaking, or indirectly through free elections in which the people choose representatives to make laws on their behalf

a form of gov't in which a single person rules with effectively unlimited power

a form of democracy in which the people themselves make the laws and set the policies adopted by the gov't

a form of democracy in which the people, through free elections, select representatives to make laws on their behalf and set policies adopted by the gov't

a form of democracy in which there is a foundational document (U.S. Const.) that describes the structure, powers, and limits of gov't

a political system in which the head of the executive branch is selected by some form of popular vote and serves a fixed term of office

a political system in which the head of the executive branch is selected by members of the legislature rather than by popular vote

the values and beliefs of citizens toward the political system and toward themselves as actors in it

a question regarding the factors responsible for a particular outcome

a relationship between the factors such that change in one is accompanied by change in the other

a relationship between variables such that change in the value of one is directly responsible for change in the value of other

a relationship between variables that reflects correlation but not causation

the dominant political culture in the U.S., marked by a set of beliefs in individualism, democracy, liberty, property, and religion, tied together by the value of equality

the belief that gov't should leave people free to do as they please and exercise their natural rights to the maximum extent possible

the belief that people should be able to acquire, own, and use goods and assets free from gov't constraints, as long as their acquisition and use does not interfere with the rights of other individuals

a belief that individuals should be free to choose and practice their religious faith and that government should not establish any particular religion as the official or preferred religion

the idea that the scope of the government activities should be narrow and that gov't should act only when the need is great and other sectors of society are unable to meet the need

the individual or institution in a political system whose decisions are binding and cannot be overturned by other individuals or institutions

the view that the needs of the community are of higher priority in government than the needs of the individual, even if the result is a restriction of the individual liberties

the view that not all groups in society are deserving of equal rights and opportunities

the view that group identity influences political beliefs and that because groups are naturally diverse in their beliefs, the idea of a shared or dominant political culture merely reflects the imposition of a dominant group's beliefs on subordinate groups

a view that emphasizes the importance of individual choice and responsibility, the private sector, and the free market, in which government's primary obligations are to defend the country militarily, protect individuals from crime, and ensure that people fulfill contracts entered into freely

document announcing the intention of the colonies to separate from Great Britain based on shared grievances about the treatment of the colonists by the British government

a shared sense of understanding and belonging among a people that they are different and separate from other peoples with particular characteristics and that they have a right to self-gov't over a defined territory

argued for a two-house legislature, with representation based on a state's population; the lower house would be elected directly by the people, and that house would then select the members of the upper house

called for, among other things, equal representation of the states in a single-house legislature

a system in which people elect representatives to make policy and write laws, in contrast to direct democracy in which the people do these activities themselves

an election in which voters select other individuals who directly vote for candidates for a particular office; U.S. Senate and presidential elections were of this type in the Constitution, but Senate elections are now direct elections

a clause in the Const. that declares the national laws and treaties have supremacy over state laws and treaties

a clause in the Const. stating that states are to treat their citizens and the citizens of other states equally

a clause in the Const. stating that states are to honor the official acts of other states

a loose grouping of independent political units, such as states or countries, whos main purpose is to govern the relationship between those units

tenth amendment guarantee to state governments of any powers other than those granted to the national gov't or those specifically prohibited for the states

a theory of the founding of the American government that argues states were sovereign units that joined together in the new national government but did not give up their status as sovereign, independent governments

having the ultimate authority to make decisions within one's borders, without interference by other gov'ts

the theory that states have the right to nullify national laws to which they object and believe violate the U.S. Const.

a theory of the founding of the American gov't that sees the Const. more as the joining together of the people than the joining together of the states

movement advocating measures to destroy political machines and instead have direct participation by voters in the nomination of candidates and the establishment of public policy

a process in which a proposal for legislation is placed on the ballot and voters can either enact or reject the proposal without further action by the governor or legislature

a process in which voters can petition for a vote to remove officials between elections

a document that, like a constitution, specifies the basic policies, procedures, and institutions of a local government

a district created by state government for establishing a local government responsible for implementing a variety of state laws and for providing general governmental services

local governments created for narrowly defined purpose and with a restricted source of revenue

a local gov't with authority to pass laws and provide services as long as those laws or services are not provided by a special district or otherwise otherwise prohibited under state law

a form of federalism in which the national and state governments have distinct areas of authority and power, and individuals have rights as both citizens of states and citizens of the US

the idea that both the national and state governments have sovereignty, but over different policy areas and functions

the protection of public safety, health, welfare, and morality by a government

a form of federalism in which the national and state gov'ts share many functions and areas of authority

the specifically listed duties the US Const. assigns to congress

functions and actions that Congress could perform in order to implement and exercise its enumerated powers

an order from the federal gov't that requires state gov'ts to take a certain action

a law requiring certain actions without appropriating the necessary funds to carry them out

legislation that declares or mandates certain actions off-limits for state gov'ts

a technique of persuasion in which the federal gov't offers resources to states that agree to take certain actions

funds provided by the federal gov't to a state or local gov't for a specific, defined purpose

funds provided by the federal gov't to a state or local gov't in general support of a broad gov't function such as education or transportation

a process in which the authority over a gov't program's rules and implementation is largely transferred from a higher-level gov't to a lower-level gov't

the principle that state gov'ts cannot be sued by private parties in federal court unless they consent to the suits or Congress has constitutionally provided an exemption that allows suits to be filed

individual rights and freedoms that gov't is obliged to protect, normally by not interfering in the exercise of these rights and freedoms

procedural safeguards that gov't officials are obligated to follow prior to restricting rights of life, liberty, and property

the application, through the 14th amendment, of the civil liberties protections in the Bill of Rights to state gov'ts

the process by which protections in the Bill of Rights were gradually applied to the states, as the Supreme Court issued decisions on specific aspects of the Bill of Rights

gov't intervention to prevent the publication of material it finds objectionable

a free speech standard that took as its starting point a presumption that gov't restrictions on speech were reasonable and constitutional, thus leaving the burden of proof to those objected to the restriction

used in free speech cases, this standard permitted gov't restrictions on speech if public officials believed that allowing the speech created a risk that some prohibited action would result

a free speech standard in which the Supreme Court allowed restrictions on speech if the danger espoused by the speech was sufficiently evil, even if that evil was unlikely to occur

the idea, endorsed by the Supreme Court, that protections of first amendment rights predominates over other rights

used by the Supreme Court in free exercise of religion cases, this two-part test first determined whether a gov't action or law was a burden on religious practice and, if it was, whether a compelling gov't interest was at stake that would make the burden constitutionally acceptable

the Supreme court's most recent approach to deciding free exercise of religion cases, this test declares that a gov't law or action with a neutral intent and application is constitutional, even if it burdens religion and there is no compelling gov't interest at stake

evidence gathered illegally cannot be introduced into trial and convictions cannot be based on this evidence

ruling that requires police, when arresting suspects, to inform them of their rights, including the right to remain silent and have an attorney present during questioning

an interpretation of the due process clause in the 14th amendment that says the clause's guarantee of "life, liberty, and property" provides a means to discover new rights not mentioned elsewhere in the Const., and that these rights would exist at both the national and state levels of government

guarantees of equal opportunities, privileges, and treatment under the law that allow individuals to participate fully and equally in American society

clause in 14th amendment stating that states are not to deny any person equal treatment under the law

supreme court decision declaring that neither slaves or the descendants of slaves could be U.S. citizens

Supreme Court interpretation of the equal protection clause holding that the clause prohibited unfair discriminatory actions by gov't, not private individuals

system of laws that separated the races in schools, public accommodations, and other aspects of daily life

Supreme Court decision to uphold gov't policies that required segregated facilities for blacks and whites

Supreme Court doctrine that laws or policies requiring segregated facilities for the races are constitutionally acceptable as long as the facilities are of equal quality

Supreme Court ruling that in public education, mandatory separation of children by race leads to inherently unequal education; overturned the separate but equal doctrine

racial segregation that occurs because it is written into law, policy, or government procedures

racial segregation that results not because of explicit law, policy, or procedures, but from patterns of behavior that have the effect of segregating the races

fee assessed on each person who wishes to vote; prohibited by the 24th amendment in 1964

efforts to reach and attract applicants for jobs, college admissions, and business contracts from traditionally underrepresented groups, ranging from extensive publicity and outreach to quota plans

Supreme Court decision that a rigid quota plan for admissions violates the Constitution's equal protection guarantee, but race could be considered a "plus factor" in college admissions to increase student body diversity

strategy of breaking law nonviolently in order to protest a law one considers unjust and draw attention to one's cause

primary elections in souther states in which only white voters were allowed to participate

legislative districts in which district boundaries are drawn in a manner to ensure that a majority of the district residents are members of minority groups, intended to increase the probability of minorities being elected

law enforcement investigation of individuals at least in part because of their race or ethnicity rather than direct evidence of wrongdoing