Chapter 1 - Why Government? Why Politics?
Key Vocabulary Terms
aristocracy
a "good variation" of a form of government that emphasizes
leadership by a few, such as a "government of the few best and
brightest" (p. 16)
authority
"the right to make other people do what you want" (p. 15)
citizen
"a member of the political community" (p. 16)
direct democracy
a form of government in which "voters choose public policies
themselves" (p. 17)
government
"the institutions and processes that make and implement
authoritative decisions for a society" (p. 2)
justice
"generally understood to mean that an individual is treated fairly.
Politically, justice usually means that an individual is treated fairly
by the government" (p. 4)
legitimacy
"the appropriate ability to make others do what you want, the
legal right to make others comply with demands" (p. 15)
monarchy
a "good variation" of a form of government that emphasizes
leadership by one (p. 16)
oligarchy
a "bad variation" of a form of government that emphasizes
leadership by a few, such as a "government of the rich or
powerful" (p. 16)
personal liberty
"generally considered an individual's right to make decisions
about his or her own life without government restrictions, limits,
or interference" (p. 13)
politics
according to Harold Lasswell, "the determination of 'who gets
what, when, how.' This definition focuses on politics as the
allocation of scare resources...David Easton defined politics as 'the
authoritative allocation of values for a society'" (p. 11)
polity
an organized political community (p. 16)
power
"the ability to make another person do what you want, to force
others to do what you want" (p. 14)
public good
a good "that once provided, cannot be limited to those who have
paid for it" (p. 10)
representative democracy
(republic)
a form of government in which "individuals do not directly govern
themselves. Voters elect representatives who, as government
officials, make laws for the people" (p. 17)
social contract theory
"people create governments by entering into written or unwritten
agreements to live together under a particular form of
government" (p. 7)
tyranny
a "bad variation" of a form of government that emphasizes
leadership by one (p. 16)
Chapter 2 - The U.S. Constitutional Government
Key Vocabulary Terms
Bill of Rights
"the first ten amendments to the Constitution" (p. 39)
checks and balances
"a Madisonian system...designed to prevent the concentration of
power in the hands of one individual or one institution" (p. 36)
Coercive Acts
passed by Parliament in 1774, the Coercive Acts "allowed Britain
to blockade Boston Harbor and placed 4,000 more soldiers in
Boston" (p. 29)
confederation
"political power is decentralized because the central (or national)
government is weak and the state or regional governments are
strong" (p. 32)
constitution
"a governing document that sets forth a country's basic rules of
government and politics" (p. 22)
federalism
"a geographic division of power between the national
government and the state governments" (p. 36)
mercantilism
"the theory that the government controls and directs economic
activity, particularly foreign trade, in order to maximize the state's
wealth" (p. 28)
Mutiny Act
this act of 1765 "forced colonists to either provide barracks for
British soldiers or house them in their homes" (p. 28)
republican system
of government
"a republic is a type of democracy. It is an indirect democracy.
Elected representatives make public policy for the people. The
people control government by electing government officials"
(p. 36)
rule of law
"the principle that governmental authority is exercised only in
accordance with public laws that are adopted and enforced
according to established procedures" (p. 23)
separation of powers
"a functional division of power among the legislative, executive,
and judicial branches of government" (p. 36)
Seven Years War
lasting from 1756-1763, "the long and expensive war with the
French and Indians [that] ended with the British in control of most
of North America" (p. 28)
Shays' Rebellion
"in the fall of 1786 and winter of 1787, Daniel Shays, a
Revolutionary War veteran, lead around 1,500 supporters on an
armed march to stop mortgage foreclosures...Shays and his
supporters marched on the government to demand it provide
them with some relief from the bad economic conditions" (p. 33)
Sugar Act
this act of 1764 "taxed sugar, wine, coffee, and other products
commonly exported to the colonies" (p. 28)
Stamp Act
this act of 1765 "required all printed documents to bear a stamp"
(p. 28)
triangle trade
a "mercantilist arrangement" where "slaves were brought to
America from Africa; sugar, cotton, and tobacco were exported to
England; and manufactured goods, textiles, and rum were sent to
Africa to pay for slaves" (p. 28)
Townshend Acts
enacted by Parliament in 1767, the Townshend Acts "imposed
duties on many products including tea" (p. 29)
Chapter 3 - Congress
Key Vocabulary Terms
appropriations
"the budget," controlled by the House of Representatives (p. 53)
conference committees
"committees [that] are created to reconcile differences between
the House and Senate versions of a bill. The conference
committee is made up of members from both the House and
Senate who work to reach compromises between similar pieces of
legislation passed by the House and the Senate" (p. 62)
constituency service
"helping constituents solve problems that they may have with the
government" (p. 57)
delegate
a theory of representation that states "that members of Congress
should act as instructed delegates of their constituents.
According to this theory, elected representatives are not free
agents: representatives have a political obligation to do what
their constituents want" (p. 56)
enumerated powers
powers "that are specifically mentioned. Enumerated powers are
sometimes called delegated powers because they are powers that
the Constitution actually delegates to government" (p. 53)
impeachment
"the formal charging of a government official with treason,
bribery, other high crimes and misdemeanors" (p. 53)
implied powers
powers "that are not specifically mentioned by which can be
logically implied to flow from those that are enumerated" (p. 53)
joint committees
"committees [that] have members from the House and Senate
and are concerned with specific policy areas" (p. 62)
legislative oversight
"Congress oversees the administration of the laws by conducting
hearings to determine how public policy is being implemented, to
determine whether the president is implementing the laws the
way Congress intended, or to determine whether the law needs
to be changed based on information about how it is working,
especially whether it is working well or not" (p. 57)
majority party
"the party with the most seats" (p. 63)
minority party
"the party with the second number of seats" (p. 63)
necessary and proper
clause
this clause in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution "has been
interpreted to mean that Congress can make 'all laws which shall
be necessary and proper' to achieve its enumerated powers"
(p. 54)
politico
a theory of representation that "suggests that representatives are
rational actors whose voting behavior reflects the delegate or
trustee theory of representation depending on the situation"
(p. 56)
President pro tempore
"the official chair of the Senate, is a largely honorary position
awarded to the most senior senator of the majority party" (p. 64)
select or special
committees
"temporary committees that serve only for a very specific
purpose. These committees conduct special investigations or
studies and report back to whichever chamber established the
committee" (p. 62)
Speaker of the House
"the most powerful position in the House of
Representatives...which is the only leadership position in the
House that is created by the Constitution. The Speaker is a
member of the majority party and is elected by their party to
oversee House business, interact with the Senate and the
President, and is the second in line of presidential succession"
(p. 64)
standing committees
"the permanent committees that focus on specific areas of
legislation" (p. 62)
trustee
a theory of representation that states "that members of Congress
should do what they think is in the best interest of their
constituents. According to this theory, elected representatives
are free agents: they can vote according to what they think is
right or best regardless of public opinion in the district" (p. 56)
Chapter 4 - The Presidency
Key Vocabulary Terms
delegated powers
also known as the enumerated powers, these powers "are
actually mentioned or enumerated in the Constitution in Article II"
(p. 75)
Electoral College
the mechanism through which the president and vice president
are elected. After the general election, each state's slate of
electors meet to choose the president and vice president. Each
state has a number of electoral votes equal to the number of U.S.
House Representatives and U.S. Senators that represent them in
Congress (p. 87-89)
imperial presidency
a term "used to refer to presidents who are too strong, too
powerful for our own good" (p. 72)
implied powers
powers "that are not actually mentioned in the Constitution, but
which are logically related to them" (p. 75)
primary election
"an election to determine who will be the political party's
candidate for office" (p. 86)
rule of law
"the principle that governmental authority is legitimately
exercised only in accordance with written, publicly disclosed laws
adopted and enforced in accordance with established procedure"
(p. 71)
Chapter 5 - The Judiciary
Key Vocabulary Terms
dispute resolution
this "function of courts is to settle disputes according to law. This
is a universal function associated with courts" (p. 106)
judicial activism
"a belief that it is appropriate for courts to play a broad role in the
government, that judges should be willing to enforce their view of
what the law means regardless of political opposition in the
legislative or executive branches" (p. 105)
judicial restraint
"a belief that it is appropriate for courts to play a limited role in
the government, that judges should be very hesitant to overturn
decisions of the political branches of government, and that judges
should wherever possible defter to legislative and executive
actions" (p. 105)
judicial review
"the power of the courts to review the actions of government
officials to determine whether they are constitutional" (p. 103)
law interpretation
"deciding what the law means when there is a disagreement
about what a law means, conflicting provisions of a law, or even
conflicts between two laws" (p. 107)
legitimacy
"an issue throughout the nation's history. The problem is that in
democratic political systems there is a preference for policy
making by elected government officials but federal judges are
appointed to life terms. This makes the federal judiciary an
undemocratic government institution" (p. 96)
precedent
"a legal system where judges are expected to use past decisions
as guides when deciding issues that are before the court" (p. 105)
Chapter 6 - Federalism
Key Vocabulary Terms
confederation
also known as a confederal system, it "is a political system where
the constituent units (the states, provinces, or regional
governments) are more powerful than the central (or national)
government. Power is decentralized. The central government is
comparatively weak, with fewer powers and governing
responsibilities than the units" (p. 123)
Cooley Doctrine
developed by the Supreme Court "to decide whether a matter
was for local or national regulation. According to the Cooley
Doctrine, subjects that are 'in their nature national, or admit only
of one uniform system, or plan of regulation, may justly be said
to...require exclusive legislation by Congress.' Subjects that are
not national and require local diversity of regulation are left to the
states" (p. 131)
cooperative federalism
"describes the national and state governments as sharing power
over areas of public policy" (p. 132)
delegated powers
"Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution lists powers granted to
Congress. The list of powers delegated to Congress includes the
power to coin money, tax, regulate interstate commerce, and
raise and support armies" (p. 125)
dual federalism
"a theory of federalism that describes both the federal
government and the state governments as co-equal sovereigns"
(p. 131)
federalism
"a two-tiered system of government in which power is divided
between a national (or central) government and subnational units
(states, provinces, or regional governments)" (p. 121)
interposition
"a political doctrine that a state can interpose itself between the
people of the state and the federal government when the federal
government exceeds its authority" (p. 134)
power problem
a debate about "how much power to centralize in the national
government and how much power to leave decentralized with the
states" (p. 130)
reserved powers
"all other powers - those not delegated to the national
government, or prohibited to the states - were to be reserved (or
left with) the states or the people...The reserved powers are
dictated by the 10th Amendment" (p. 125)
states' rights
"a belief that a policy is the responsibility of a state government,
not the national or federal government" (p. 134)
unitary system
"a political system with one level of government. Power
concentrated in one central government. The central government
has sovereignty or the highest governing authority. The central
government may create local or regional units to help govern but
these units are "creatures" of the national or unitary government"
(p. 123)
Chapter 7 - The Media, Politics and Government
Key Vocabulary Terms
commercial media
"in the 1830s, the partisan press changed to a commercial press
with the emergence of [what] came to be called the penny press.
Advances in printing technology allowed newspapers to be
produced at a far cheaper rate...The reduced cost of producing
newspapers made news profitable" (p. 144)
watchdog role
when "journalists...investigate and publicize wrongdoing" (p. 146)
Chapter 8 - Public Opinion
Key Vocabulary Terms
delegate model
"public opinion is the principal source of government legitimacy
because government power is only properly exercised when it is
based on public opinion" (p. 164)
gender gap
"the gender difference in party identification" (p. 168)
marketplace of ideas
"the ability to pick and choose from among the competing
ideologies and parties the way that consumers are able to pick
and choose from among the competing sellers of goods and
services" (p. 172)
public opinion
"the aggregate of public attitudes or beliefs about government or
politics" (p. 164)
republic
"an indirect democracy...whereby the public selects individuals to
represent their interests in government decisions" (p. 165)
trustee model
"based on the trustee model of representation, where a
government official is not obligated to do what the people want,
but can decide what is best. A representative is considered a
trustee whose better access to information or good judgment
may justify the representatives beliefs, actions, or votes differ
from public opinion at any moment in time. The trustee is not
required to do what public opinion polls indicate that the people
want" (p. 165)
Chapter 9 - Political Ideology
Key Vocabulary Terms
anarchism
"the Greek origin of the term means 'without rulers.' Anarchists
oppose all forms of government because governments by
definition have the power to coerce individuals to join a
community or require obedience to laws...Anarchists believe that
government is not necessary because people can use their
capacity for reasoning to decide whether to freely and voluntarily
agree to live in orderly and just societies without government
requiring them to do so" (p. 195)
classical liberalism
"rooted in the ideas of the English philosopher John Locke...[it]
originated as a political theory that limited government. During
much of the 20th century classical liberalism was actually
considered conservative because it was associated with the
defense of property rights and the free market, and opposition to
government regulation of the economy and the expansion of the
social welfare state" (p. 192)
communism
"an extreme version of socialism. It takes the socialist idea of
equality, and the government's responsibility to achieve it in the
economic, political, and social sectors to the point where there is
no distinction between a private sector and a public sector.
Communism is totalitarian in the sense that it advocates total
government power over society" (p. 195)
environmentalism
"a movement whose members advocate protecting the natural
environment" (p. 197)
feminism
"a social or political movement that strives for equal rights for
women. It is a multi-faceted movement that has political,
economic, social, legal, and cultural components" (p. 196)
fundamentalism
"a movement within a religious domination - a movement that
reacts against modernity by advocating a return to the basics or
the fundamentals of a particular faith" (p. 197)
ideology
"a belief system that consists of a relatively coherent set of ideas,
attitudes, or values about government and politics, and public
policies that are designed to implement the values or achieve the
goals" (p. 183)
liberal
"a person who believes in individual liberty" (p. 191)
libertarianism
"a simpler ideology than either conservatism or liberalism. Simply
stated, libertarians value freedom and believe that individuals and
groups can organize life with only minimal government.
Libertarians have a positive view of human nature. The belief that
government threatens freedom - that more government means
less freedom" (p. 193)
modern conservatism
"a much stronger advocate for change...modern conservatism
advocates major, even radical or revolutionary change. However,
the change is usually described as radical change from the liberal
status quo, change that will bring the country back to the basics"
(p. 188)
socialism
"the belief that economic power is the basis of political power and
that economic equality is essential for political equality. The
belief that economic inequality causes political inequality provides
the socialist justification for using government to actively promote
equality through extensive government regulation or even
government control of the economy" (p. 194)
terrorism
"the use of violence or the threat of violence to intimidate or
coerce a people, principally for political purposes" (p. 198)
traditional conservatism
"to conserve by preserving, keeping, or protecting traditional
beliefs, values, customs, or ways of doing things. Traditional
conservatives defend the status quo against radical or
revolutionary change or the assumption that all change is reform
(good change)" (p. 188)
Chapter 10 - Political Participation
Key Vocabulary Terms
"air" campaigns/"air" war
"campaigns that rely heavily on the mass media" (p. 226)
caucus
used in some states (such as Iowa) instead of a presidential
primary to "narrow the field of [presidential] candidates by
demonstrating a candidate's appeal among party supporters"
(p. 217)
civic duty model
"describes non-material, non-rational incentives for voting.
According to the civic duty model, a person votes out of a sense of
responsibility to the political unit, or a commitment to democratic
government and the obligations and duties as well as the rights of
citizens to maintain self-government" (p. 208)
closed primaries
"primary elections where voters are required to register with a
specific party before the election and are only able to vote in the
party's election for which they are registered" (p. 213)
individual explanations
these explanations "focus on an individual's motivations" to vote
or not vote (p. 208)
open primaries
"primary elections [that] allow anyone who is eligible to vote in
the primary election to vote in its primary" (p. 213)
political efficacy
"the belief that one's participation matters, that one's decision to
vote really makes a difference" (p. 209)
rational choice model
"developed by Anthony Downs, who argued that individuals are
self-interested actors who use a cost-benefit analysis to
determine whether it is in their self-interest to vote" (p. 208)
presidential primary
an election that selects "the presidential candidate for each party"
(p. 216)
system explanations
these explanations "focus on aspects of the political system that
affect voter turnout" (p. 209)
voter fatigue
"apathy that the electorate can experience when they are
required to vote too often in too many elections" (p. 210)
voter registration
"the requirement that a person check in with some central
registry in order to be allowed to vote in an election" (p. 210)
voter turnout
"the proportion of the voting-age public that participates in an
election" (p. 207)
Chapter 11 - Political Parties
Key Vocabulary Terms
Duverger's Law
"a principle that a plurality election system tends to produce a
stable, two-party system" (p. 239)
multi-party systems
"systems with more than two parties" (p. 240)
nomination process
a function of political parties. "In the past, party leaders in the
U.S. exerted a great deal of control over the party's candidate for
office. Party leaders and activists chose their party's nominee.
Today, however, party control over nominations has been
weakened by the increased use of primary elections to choose
party candidates" (p. 235)
one-party system
in this system, "only one political party is legally allowed to hold
power. Although minor parties may sometimes be allowed in a
one-party system, the minor party is legally required to accept the
leadership of the dominant party. In a one-party system, the
dominant party is usually closely identified with the government"
(p. 237)
political party
"an organization of people with shared ideas about government
and politics who try to gain control of government in order to
implement their ideas" (p. 233)
two-party system
in this system, "there are two major political parties that are so
strong that it is extremely difficult for a candidate from any party
other than the two major parties to have a real chance to win
elections. In a two-party system, a third-party is not likely to have
much electoral success" (p. 238)
Chapter 12 - Interest Groups
Key Vocabulary Terms
agenda building
"the process by which new issues are brought to the attention of
political decision-makers" (p. 265)
economic interest groups
"the greatest number of interest groups is economic interest
groups including business, trade and other associations, labor,
and professional associations" (p. 255)
grassroots lobbying
"a term for efforts to mobilize local support for an issue position
the group has taken" (p. 262)
interest group
"a collection of individuals or organizations that share a common
interest and advocate or work for public policies on behalf of the
members' shared interests" (p. 252)
lobbyists
individuals paid "to represent the organization [interest group] to
the public and the government. Professional lobbyists can either
work directly for the interest group or they can be employees of
public relations or law firms who are hired by the group for a
specific campaign" (p. 263)
political action
committee (PAC)
"a political arm of a business, labor, trade, professional, or other
group. PACs are legally authorized to raise voluntary funds from
employees or members of the group to contribute to a party or
candidate" (p. 264)
program monitoring
"when individuals or groups keep track of the government's
actions to determine whether and how a bureaucracy or other
administrative agency is implementing legislation" (p. 265)
public interest group
an interest group "that advocates for an issue that primarily
benefits the members of the group" (p. 253)
Chapter 18 - Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
Key Vocabulary Terms
accommodation reading
"the government can 'accommodate' or support religious belief as
long as an official religion is not declared" (p. 417)
civil liberties
"constitutional guarantees that protect individual freedom from
government power" (p. 413)
civil rights
"legal claims that are generally provided in statutory law
(legislation) rather than the Constitution. They typically are
claims to equal treatment rather than freedom" (p. 414)
content neutrality
"the principle that the government is supposed to be neutral
toward political and religious beliefs" (p. 421)
de facto segregation
"segregation that results 'by fact.' De facto segregation results
from private actions" (p. 429)
de jure segregation
"segregation 'by law.' De jure segregation includes segregation
that results from any government policy or official actions"
(p. 429)
establishment clause
from the First Amendment, "Congress shall make no
law...respecting the establishment of religion" (p. 416)
free exercise clause
from the First Amendment in regards to religion, "Congress shall
make no law...prohibiting the free exercise thereof" (p. 416)
Lemon test
developed by the Supreme Court "to help guide decisions about
when government support for religion violates the Establishment
Clause" (p. 417)
reasonableness test
a test used by the Supreme Court "to determine whether a
generally applicable law that substantially burdened freedom of
religion was constitutional" (p. 422)
separate but equal
doctrine
in Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court "held that states could
by law require racial segregation as long as the law did not treat
one race better than another" (p. 428)
strict scrutiny test
a test used by the Supreme Court "which required the
government to have a compelling reason for burdening freedom
of religion" (p. 422)
wall of separation
"the government cannot establish a religion as the official religion
of the country, establish religious belief...as the official position of
the country, or support or oppose a particular denomination or
religion in general" (p. 416-417)