What philosophe argued in favor of a three branch
government?
Montesquieu
Who was the first to introduce the idea of natural
rights that should be protected?
John Locke
What document defined the first gov’t of the U.S.?
Articles of Confederation
What were three key weaknesses of this
document?
no executive, no power to tax, coin money, regulate trade, pay for a military
Identify three of the men who stood out as early leaders of
the Constitutional Convention.
George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Wilson, James Madison
Which section of the Constitution establishes its
purpose? Who did it say the Constitution would serve?
The Preamble, the people
How many articles does the Constitution have? What do
the first three cover?
7, the 3 major branches
What is the “supremacy clause”?
Makers it clear that the Constitution is the
supreme law of the land
In what kinds of circumstances is a
presidential veto likely to be overridden by Congress?
The opposition party has strong majority’s in both houses, the bill in question has strong bipartisan
support, these are amplified if the President is a lame duck
What is the last section of the Constitution made up of?
Why is this so important?
Amendments, which allow the Constitution to be changed – makes it a
flexible “living” document
The Constitution is based on rule of the people, also
known as ______.
Popular sovereignty
What is the name for federal spending on local projects
members of Congress want in order to win favor from their
constituents?
pork barrel spending
How does the Constitution handle the question of
political parties?
It doesn’t, parties have emerged and reshaped
their coalitions (who supports them) over time
What is divided government? What are some consequences?
When the White House is in one party’s hands and the opposition
controls one or both houses of Congress; delayed nomination
approval, trouble getting legislation/budgets passed, etc.
Who can exert more influence over the legislative
process, an individual member of the House, or an individual Senator? Why?
Senator, more informal proceeding in Senate &
rules allowing for filibusters, cloture, etc.
What is the name for the process by which Congress
holds the Executive branch, and all bureaucratic agencies,
accountable?
Congressional (or legislative) oversight
What is cooperative federalism?
When national and state governments both work on common policy areas (law enforcement, immigration,
etc.)
When do senators use a motion for cloture? What
kind of majority do you need for a cloture motion?
to end a filibuster; 3/5 or 60% (60 senators makes
you “filibuster proof”)
When the federal government cedes more specific policy making
powers to the state governments it is called
_____.
devolution (power being passed down)
What is a block grant? A categorical grant?
Block grant is money given to state by fed with a general purpose,
categorical is money given with a specifically designed purpose and
guidelines
In general, all bills pertaining to revenue and other monies
must originate where?
House of Reps
What is an entitlement program? What are the two
biggest examples?
Government program that provides benefits to a
specific group of people; Social Security and Medicare
What is the name for a system in which power is divided between national and state governments?
federalism
Why did the founders choose a federalist approach?
Even though the weak union of the A of C failed, they still
feared putting too much power in the hands of the central
gov’t
What is the primary purpose of separation of powers?
Limit overall power of central gov’t by dividing
powers between branches
What is judicial review? What case established it?
The power of the courts to declare laws invalid if they violate the Constitution,
Marbury v. Madison
When federal and state gov’ts work together on a
project, it is known as _________ federalism.
Cooperative
Define the concept of limited gov’t.
The Constitution limits gov’t by specifically listing the powers it does and does
not have
Which branch did the founders believe would be the most
powerful? Why did they fear its power?
Congress, bad experiences with Parliament
In what list are most of the specific powers of Congress found? What two areas do
most of these relate to?
The enumerated powers, finance and defense
What gives Congress the power to make all laws
“necessary and proper”?
Elastic clause
What was the key outcome of McCulloch v. Maryland?
Broad interpretation of the elastic clause
What gov’t role was a part time job for much of the first 100 years of our history? When did Congress
first start meeting in continuous session?
Working in congress, mid 20th century
The federal gov’t providing funding to state
governments is an example of ________ federalism.
Fiscal
What is the primary point Madison makes about
factions in Federalist #10?
They happen naturally, but can be controlled by
institutions
How many bills are introduced in Congress each
year?
About 10,000
Which branch was expected to execute acts of Congress and
protect against mass movements to redistribute
wealth?
The Executive branch
What are three specific powers given to the
President?
Commander in Chief, appoints cabinet members, grant pardons, make treaties
appoints judges and ambassadors, etc.
Why was Washington so careful about the discharge
of his duties?
Fearful of setting precedents, which is how most presidential powers
have been established
In what way do we have a “dual court” system in the
U.S.?
We have both Federal and State courts, each of whom has different
jurisdictions
What is the only way to overrule the Supreme Court
on a constitutional issue?
Amend the Constitution
Whys is the process of amending the Cons such a
great example of Federalism?
All amendments must meet stringent approval
requirements at federal and state levels, balancing
interests
Which branch most often takes exception to the growing power of the
President?
Legislative
Who has the power to create new courts? Do they use
this power often?
Congress, no
Who must the Supreme Court count on to make sure that its
decisions are adequately enforced?
Executive Branch
Which early plan became the basis for the new
constitution? Who was its primary author?
The Virginia Plan, James Madison
Which plan was devised to represent the needs of the
small states?
The New Jersey Plan
Why did the New Jersey Plan want to keep the unicameral
legislature?
Because it made representation equal for all states, regardless of size
A legislature made up of reps from single member districts usually leads to a
____ party system.
Two
After the New Jersey Plan was rejected, what question deadlocked the Convention?
Whether representation should be equal for all states or
determined by population
What was the name of the compromise that resolved this issue? What did it do?
Connecticut Compromise, provided for 2 houses - the House (by population) & the Senate (equal for all states)
What issue was resolved by the 3/5 Compromise? How
did it resolve the issue?
How to count slaves in a state’s population, 1 slave = 3/5 of a free man (for both representation and taxes)
What 2 groups quickly formed during the debate
over ratification
Federalists (for the Cons.) and Anti Federalists (against the Cons.)
Identify two reasons the Anti-Federalists opposed the
new Constitutions.
Drafted in secret, the convention had overstepped
it’s bounds, main reason: had no Bill of Rights
What famous Patriot was opposed to the Constitution because it lacked a bill of
rights? What was his argument?
Patrick Henry, if people are not explicitly given rights the government will take
them away
Why did the federalists argue that a Bill of Rights
was unnecessary?
because most of the states already had them in their
constitutions
The right of members of Congress to send mail to their constituents
at the gov’ts expense is called____. Why is this an advantage for
incumbents?
Franking, constant PR at no expense to themselves
What did the federalists promise in order to move the
Constitution toward ratification?
that a Bill of Rights would be the first order of
business for the new gov’t
Which Constitutional clause has been used most often to
expand the power of the national gov’t? How?
Commerce clause; so many things fall under the purview of regulating
commerce
What did John Jay and Alexander Hamilton do to try and assure ratification in New
York?
They wrote The Federalist Papers
Who served as the first President and Vice President of
the United States?
George Washington and John Adams
Which branch did the framers intend to have the
most power?
The legislative branch (Congress)
How many sessions is each term of congress divided into? How long does a modern session last?
2, January to November
What is the age requirement for serving in the House?
The citizenship requirement?
25 years of age, 7 years a citizen
How many representatives currently serve in the
House? How are these reps divided between the states?
435, by population
Who has the power to cast the tie-breaking vote in the
Senate?
The Vice President
How long is the term of office in the house?
2 years
What organization determines the population of
each state? How often is this done?
The Census Bureau, every ten years
Who is in charge of redistricting a state after the
census?
The legislature of each state
Identify the two main ways that state legislatures have
traditionally abused this power.
creating districts of unequal population and gerrymandering
What is gerrymandering?
it’s when districts are drawn to benefit a specific
political party
What did the “one person-one vote” decision require?
that all districts contain approximately 600,000
people, assuring equal power for each vote
What is the age requirement to be a senator? The
citizenship requirement?
30 years of age, 9 years a citizen
How long is the term of office for a senator? What portion of the senate is up for reelection every two
years?
6 years, 1/3 is up for reelection
What is censure?
a formal vote that disapproves of a member’s
behavior
Describe the average member of congress in terms of age, ethnicity, profession and gender.
over 50, white, lawyer and male
What percentage of incumbents won reelection
between 1945-1990?
90%
Identify two reasons why incumbents are generally
more successful in winning reelection.
money from PACs, gerrymandering, voter recognition, franking
privileges
When did the tide begin to turn against incumbents?
the “Voter Revolution” of 1994
Identify the three House leaders chosen by the
majority party.
Speaker, majority leader, majority whip
What are two of the main powers of the Speaker?
assigning bills to committees, presiding over House
debates, playing a key role in the calendaring of bills
What do the party leader and whip do, respectively?
leader sets the agenda and priorities, whip maintains
party discipline
What is the primary role of congressional committees?
to closely evaluate proposed bills, hold hearings on them, and decide whether they go
on to the full house or senate
Which committee controls the proceedings of the house and
gives final consent to the calendar?
the Rules Committee
Who appoints Justices & Ambassadors? Who
approves them?
President, Senate
Who has the power to negotiate treaties and
enforce the laws?
President
Who has the power to declares laws/acts unconstitutional?
Judicial Branch/Supreme Court
Who has the power to tax, regulate trade and coin
money?
Congress
Who is commander in Chief of the armed forces and also in
charge of federal departments (Defense, Treasury, State, etc.)
the President
Who has the power to declare war, raise an army,
and approve treaties?
Congress
What branch has used many precedents over time to add
to its powers?
executive branch
What are two ways the President can try to influence Congress?
veto, call special session, make State of the Union
Address
What are two powers Congress has over the
President?
approve treaties, cabinet officials, & judges, veto
override, control the budget
What percentage of bills actually become laws?
roughly 5%
Which amendment states that powers not granted to the federal government nor prohibited to the states are reserved to the states
or the people?
Tenth
What is the basic procedure for amending the
Constitution?
Amendments originate in Congress (2/3 support) and then must be passed by ¾ of the state legislatures
What type of representative system often leads to
domination by two major political parties?
Single representative system – in which each
geographical district has only one representative
How has the Supreme Court ruled on the use of the
legislative veto?
Unconstitutional, violates separation of powers
Who is responsible for drawing the boundaries for
Congressional districts? When is this done?
State legislatures (or their designees), every 10 years
after census
What type of congressional committee helps reconcile
differences in bills passed by the House and Senate?
Conference committee
The power of Congress most frequently contested in the
courts relates to what activity?
The power to regulate interstate commerce
What is a plurality election?
An election involving more than two candidates in which the person who receives the
most votes is the winner
What primary weakness of the Articles of Confederation
that was effectively dealt with by the new Constitution
in 1787?
Providing the nation with a strong national government