WGU C181: Survey of United States Constitution and Government STUDY GUIDE Already Passed

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WGU C181: Survey of United States Constitution and Government STUDY GUIDE Already Passed Democratic socialism ✔✔A socialist form of government that guarantees civil liberties such as freedom o... f speech and religion. Citizens determine the extent of government activity through free elections and competitive political parties. Government ✔✔The legitimate use of force within specified geographical boundaries to control human behavior. Communism ✔✔A political system in which, in theory, ownership of all land and productive facilities is in the hands of the people (in effect, to the government), and all goods are equally shared. The production and distribution of goods are controlled by an authoritarian government. Laissez faire ✔✔An economic doctrine that opposes any form of government intervention in business. Social equality ✔✔Equality in wealth, education, and status. Police power ✔✔The authority of a government to maintain order and safeguard citizens' health, morals, safety, and welfare. Rights ✔✔The benefits of government to which every citizen is entitled. Public goods ✔✔Benefits and services, such as parks and sanitation, which benefit all citizens but are not likely to be produced voluntarily by individuals.Socialism ✔✔A form of rule in which the central government plays a strong role in regulating existing private industry and directing the economy, although it does allow some private ownership of productive capacity. Freedom ✔✔The power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Capitalism ✔✔The system of government that favors free enterprise (privately owned businesses operating without government regulation). Globalization ✔✔The process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. Conservatives ✔✔Those who are willing to use government to promote order but not equality. Order ✔✔The rule of law to preserve life and protect property. Communitarians ✔✔Those who are willing to use government to promote both order and equality. Democracy ✔✔A system of government in which, in theory, the people rule, either directly or indirectly. Responsiveness ✔✔A decision-making principle, necessitated by representative government, which implies that elected representatives should do what the majority of people want. Substantive democratic theory ✔✔The view that democracy is embodied in the substance of government policies rather than in the policymaking procedure.Democratization ✔✔A process of transition as a country attempts to move from an authoritarian form of government to a democratic one. Universal participation ✔✔The concept that everyone in a democracy should participate in governmental decision making. Interest group ✔✔An organized group of individuals that seeks to influence public policy; also called a lobby. Minority rights ✔✔The benefits of government that cannot be denied to any citizen by majority decisions. Autocracy ✔✔A system of government in which the power to govern is concentrated in the hands of one individual. Procedural democratic theory ✔✔A view of democracy as being embodied in a decision-making process that involves universal participation, political equality, majority rule, and responsiveness. Participatory democracy ✔✔A system of government where rank-and-file citizens rule themselves rather than electing representatives to govern on their behalf. E-government ✔✔Online communication channels that enable citizens to easily obtain information from government and facilitate the expression of opinions to government officials. Oligarchy ✔✔A system of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of a few people. Executive branch ✔✔The law-enforcing branch of governmentJudicial branch ✔✔The law-interpreting branch of government. Judicial review ✔✔The power to declare congressional (and presidential) acts invalid because they violate the Constitution. Electoral college ✔✔A body of electors chosen by voters to cast ballots for president and vice president. Confederation ✔✔A loose association of independent states that agree to cooperate on specified matters. Enumerated powers ✔✔The powers explicitly granted to Congress by the Constitution. Articles of Confederation ✔✔The compact among the thirteen original states that established the first government of the United States. Bill of Rights ✔✔The first ten amendments to the Constitution. They prevent the national government from tampering with fundamental rights and civil liberties, and emphasize the limited character of national power. Supremacy clause ✔✔The clause in Article VI of the Constitution that asserts that national laws take precedence over state and local laws when they conflict. Federalism ✔✔The division of power between a central government and regional governments. Categorical grants ✔✔Grants-in-aid targeted for a specific purpose by either formula or project. Home rule ✔✔The right to enact and enforce legislation locally.Redistricting ✔✔The process of redrawing political boundaries to reflect changes in population. Sovereignty ✔✔The quality of being supreme in power or authority. Block grants ✔✔Grants-in-aid awarded for general purposes, allowing the recipient great discretion in spending the grant money. Restraint ✔✔A requirement laid down by an act of Congress, prohibiting a state or local government from exercising a certain power. Project grants ✔✔Categorical grants awarded on the basis of competitive applications submitted by prospective recipients to perform a specific task or function. Direct action ✔✔Unconventional participation that involves assembling crowds to confront businesses and local governments to demand a hearing. Direct primary ✔✔A preliminary election, run by the state government, in which the voters choose each party's candidates for the general election. Recall ✔✔The process for removing an elected official from office. Referendum ✔✔An election on a policy issue. Terrorism ✔✔Premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents. Progressivism ✔✔A philosophy of political reform based on the goodness and wisdom of the individual citizen as opposed to special interests and political institutions.Initiative ✔✔A procedure by which voters can propose an issue to be decided by the legislature or by the people in a referendum. It requires gathering a specified number of signatures and submitting a petition to a designated agency. Unitary executive ✔✔A belief that the president's inherent powers allow him to overrule congressional grants of independent authority to agencies. Executive Office of the President ✔✔The president's executive aides and their staffs; the extended White House executive establishment. Inherent powers ✔✔Authority claimed by the president that is not clearly specified in the Constitution. Typically, these powers are inferred from the Constitution. Divided government ✔✔The situation in which one party controls the White House and the other controls at least one house of Congress. Veto ✔✔The president's disapproval of a bill that has been passed by both houses of Congress. Congress can override a veto with a two-thirds vote in each house. Electoral mandate ✔✔An endorsement by voters. Presidents sometimes argue they have been given a mandate to carry out policy proposals. Cabinet ✔✔A group of presidential advisers; the heads of the executive departments and other key officials. Legislative liaison staff ✔✔The people who act as the communications link between the White House and Congress, advising the president or cabinet secretaries on the status of pending legislation.Delegation of powers ✔✔The process by which Congress gives the executive branch the additional authority needed to address new problems. Solicitor general ✔✔The third highest official of the U.S. Department of Justice, and the one who represents the national government before the Supreme Court. Federal question ✔✔An issue covered by the U.S. Constitution, national laws, or U.S. treaties. Class action ✔✔A procedure by which similarly situated litigants may be heard in a single lawsuit. Amicus curiae brief ✔✔A brief filed (with the permission of the court) by an individual or group that is not a party to a legal action but has an interest in it. Common, or judge-made, law ✔✔Legal precedents derived from previous judicial decisions. U.S. district courts ✔✔Courts within the lowest tier of the three-tiered federal court system; courts where litigation begins. Original jurisdiction ✔✔The authority of a court to hear a case before any other court does. Criminal cases ✔✔Court cases involving a crime, or violation of public order. Senatorial courtesy ✔✔A norm under which a nomination must be acceptable to the home state senator from the president's party. Civil cases ✔✔Court cases that involve a private dispute arising from such matters as accidents, contractual obligations, and divorce. Docket ✔✔A court's agenda.Rule of four ✔✔An unwritten rule that requires at least four justices to agree that a case warrants consideration before it is reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court. Concurrence ✔✔The agreement of a judge with the Supreme Court's majority decision, for a reason other than the majority reason. U.S. Court of Appeals ✔✔Courts within the second tier of the three-tiered federal court system, to which decisions of the district courts and federal agencies may be appealed for review. Appellate jurisdiction ✔✔The authority of a court to hear cases that have been tried, decided, or reexamined in other courts. Dissent ✔✔The disagreement of a judge with a majority decision. Precedent ✔✔A judicial ruling that serves as the basis for the ruling in a subsequent case. Judgment ✔✔The judicial decision in a court case. Miranda warnings ✔✔Statements concerning rights that police are required to make to a person before he or she is subjected to in-custody questioning. Strict scrutiny ✔✔A standard used by the Supreme Court in deciding whether a law or policy is to be adjudged constitutional. To pass strict scrutiny, the law or policy must be justified by a "compelling governmental interest," must be narrowly tailored, and must be the least restrictive means for achieving that interest. Free-expression clauses ✔✔The press and speech clauses of the First Amendment.Public figures ✔✔People who assume roles of prominence in society or thrust themselves to the forefront of public controversy. Ex post facto laws ✔✔Laws that declare an action to be criminal after it has been performed. Good faith exception ✔✔An exception to the Supreme Court exclusionary rule, holding that evidence seized on the basis of a mistakenly issued search warrant can be introduced at trial if the mistake was made in good faith, that is, if all the parties involved had reason at the [Show More]

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