TERMS TO COME TO TERMS WITH FOR THE FINAL
Time, Place and Manner Clause
Citizens United vs. FEC
Bundling
PAC
Super PACs
527 groups
Super Tuesday
Electoral College
Winner-Takes-All
Proportional representation
Primary election
Incumbency advantage
Reapportionment
Gerrymandering
Caucus
Partisanship
Interest group
Special interest group
Public interest group
Lobbyist
Pluralism
Demosclerosis
Power Elite Theory
Iron triangle of Bureaucracy
Revolving door
Reverse lobbying
Amicus curae brief
Political parties
Party machine
Nonpartisan election
Vanishing marginal
Hyperpluralism
Third political parties
Straight ticket voting
Split ticket voting
Base voters
Party platform
Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act
Lobbyist
Congressional caucus
Conference committee
Constitutional powers of congress
Legislative hold
Filibuster
Cloture
trustee vs. delegate
congressional leadership
King of the Hill Rule
president pro tempore
earmark
markup session
types of floor action
constitutional powers of president
expressed powers
delegate powers
inherent powers
imperial president
Watergate
veto vs. overriding veto
executive order
executive privilege
going public
3 steps of rise and fall of president
role of the Vice President
cabinet
Executive Office of President
spoils vs. merit system
bureaucracy
whistleblower
Freedom of Information Act
judicial system
constitutional powers of Supreme Ct.
Marbury v. Madison
judicial review
judicial activism vs. restraint
common law
precedent
civil law
criminal law
amicus curiae brief
rule of four
majority opinion
concurring opinion
dissenting opinion
stare decisis
Lochner Era
strict scrutiny vs. rational base
U.S. vs. Nixon
Bush vs. Gore
National Federation v. Sebelius
STUDY QUESTIONS FOR THE FINAL EXAMINATION
1. Discuss the influence of money in elections.
2. Explain the difference between a PAC and a SuperPAC.
3. What was the argument presented in Citizen’s United vs. FEC?
4. Identify and explain the four keys to a successful campaign for congress.
5. What is a specific idea you have to reform elections?
6. Explain step by step how the electoral college works.
7. What is the purpose of a primary?
8. What is the difference between reapportionment and gerrymandering?
9. Describe the three stages of a presidential campaign.
10. What is negative campaigning and why do candidates rely so heavily on it?
11. Describe the evolution of the two-party system in the United States.
12. What is the difference between a public interest group and a special interest group? Give
an example of each.
13. What is lobbying?
14. Explain the difference between pluralist theory and power elite theory.
15. What is the Iron Triangle of Bureaucracy?
16. Explain the five major jobs of political parties.
17. What is the purpose of a Third Party in the U.S.?
18. Describe the three key aspects of public involvement that party identification shapes.
19. What is the party platform?
20. What is the Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act?
21. Examine and discuss the internal workings of Congress.
22. What is the difference between a filibuster and cloture?
23. What is the difference between a trustees and delegate?
24. Describe the leadership structure of the House and the Senate.
25. Explain step by step how a bill becomes a law.
26. Explain the evolution of the executive branch.
27. What is imperialism? Which president is famous for calling himself the imperial
president?
28. Explain the difference between expressed powers, delegated powers, and inherent powers
of the president.
29. Describe two of the jobs of the president.
30. What is meant by going public?
31. Describe the role of the Vice President in the executive branch and in congress.
32. Explain two of the agencies in the Executive Office of the President and what they do.
33. Explain the difference between the merit system and the spoils system.
34. What is a whistleblower?
35. Describe the evolution of the judicial branch.
36. Explain how the judicial branch is organized.
37. What did the case Marbury v. Madison entail and what precedence did it set?
38. Explain the difference between judicial activism and judicial restraint.
39. What is the difference between common law, civil law, and criminal law? Give an
example of each.
40. What is the rule of four and how is it related to a writ of certiorari?
41. What is the difference between a majority opinion, a concurring opinion, and a dissenting
opinion?
42. What is meant by stare decisis?
43. What was the Lochner era?
44. What did the case U.S. vs. Nixon entail and what precedence did it set?
45. What did the case Bush vs. Gore entail and what precedence did it set?
46. What did the case National Federation vs. Sebelius entail and what precedence did it set?
47. What are the five stages of achieving policy responses?
48. What is the Federal poverty line?
49. What is an entitlement program?
50. Describe the three goals of American Foreign Policy.