1. Act
Legislation that has passed both houses of
Congress, has been signed into law by the
president, or passed despite his veto, and
therefore becomes law
2. Amendment
A change to a constitution (e.g., U.S.
Constitution, Florida Constitution)
A series of essays written to oppose
and defeat the proposed U.S.
Constitution
A group of people in the early United
States who opposed ratification of the
U.S. Constitution because they feared
a strong national government and a
lack of protection for individual rights
The power to hear appeals of cases
which have been tried in lower courts
3. Anti-Federalist Papers
4. Anti-Federalists
5. Appellate jurisdiction
6. Appointment
7. Appointment confirmation
Job or duty that is given to a person
The process of the Senate approving the
president’s choices for certain positions
within the government
8. Armed forces
The nation’s military (Air Force, Army,
Coast Guard, Marines, National Guard
and Navy)
A numbered chapter or section of a
contract, treaty, or constitution
9. Article
10. Bicameral
11. Bill
12. Bill of Rights
having two chambers (e.g. the two houses
of Congress, the Senate and the House of
Representatives)
A proposal for a law
The first ten amendments to the U.S.
Constitution
13. Cabinet
People appointed by the president to head
executive departments of government and
act as official advisers to the president
14. Caucus
A meeting to select a candidate or
promote a policy
A principle of the federal government,
according to the U.S. Constitution, that
allows each branch of government to
limit the power of the other branches
15. Checks and balances
16. Chief Justice
17. City commissioner or council
member
18. Coining money
19. Committee selection
the head justice; the Chief Justice is “first
among equals”
A member of the governing body of a city
The power of the legislative branch to
print money (coins and bills) for use
How representatives and senators are
chosen for their assigned committees
20. Concurrent powers
Powers shared by the national, state,
and/or local government
21. Conference committee
A temporary panel composed of House
and Senate members, which is formed for
the purpose of reconciling differences in
legislation that has passed both chambers.
Conference committees are usually
convened to resolve differences on major
and controversial legislation.
People public officials are elected to
represent
22. Constituents
23. Constitutional government
A form of government based on a
written set of laws that all citizens
agree to; in this form of government,
the constitution is the highest law of the
land
24. County commissioner or council
member
25. Court order
A member of the governing body of a
county
a formal statement from a court that orders
someone to do or stop doing something
26. Declaration of war
The power of Congress to vote to go to
war with another country
Method of protecting oneself
The powers specifically named and
assigned to the federal government or
prohibited to be exercised by the states
under the U.S. Constitution, also
known as enumerated powers
Referring to something at home, not
foreign
The power of Congress to pass all laws
they deem necessary and proper for
carrying out its enumerated powers
(also known as implied powers)
The powers specifically named and
assigned to the federal government
or prohibited to be exercised by the
states under the U.S. Constitution, also
known as delegated powers
The branch of government that
enforces the laws made by the
legislative branch
27. Defense
28. Delegated powers
29. Domestic
30. Elastic clause
31. Enumerated powers
32. Executive branch
33. Executive order
an order that comes from the U.S.
President or a government agency and
must be obeyed
like a law
34. Federal government
35. Federalism
36. Federalist Papers
37. Federalists
38. Foreign relations
39. Home rule
40. How a bill becomes a law
The national level of government; the
government of the United States
a system of government in which
power is divided and shared between
national, state, and local governments
A series of essays written to explain
and defend the proposed U.S.
Constitution
A group of people in the early United
States who favored the establishment
of a strong national government and
who worked for ratification of the U.S.
Constitution
The power of the executive branch to
decide on the United States’ dealings
with other countries in order to achieve
national goals
Self-government by citizens at the local
level
The process of how a proposed law (“bill”)
moves through Congress and the
president in order to become a law
41. Immigration
The movement of people from one
country to another country
42. Impeach
To bring formal charges of wrongdoing
against a public official (such as the U.S.
President)
43. Implied powers
Powers not written in the U.S.
Constitution but are necessary and
proper in order for the federal
government to carry out the expressed
powers; Article 1, Section 8, Clause 18
gives Congress the power to
do what it deems “necessary and
proper” to carry out the delegated
powers
Ensure, to make sure
44. Insure
45. Judgment
46. Judicial branch
47. Judicial review
A formal decision given by a court
The branch of government that
interprets the laws made by the
legislative branch
The power of the judicial branch to
review the actions of the executive and
legislative branches and determine
whether or not they are unconstitutional
(this includes laws passed by
Congress); the U.S.
Supreme Court case Marbury v.
Madison established this power
48. Jurisdiction
The right and power for courts to hear a
case, interpret and apply the law
49. Justice
A system of establishing what is legal
and illegal by fair rules
50. Law
A rule established by government or other
source of authority to regulate people’s
conduct or activities
51. Legislative branch
The branch of government that creates
laws
A government that has been limited in
power by a constitution, or written
agreement
The government of a municipality (city)
or county
52. Limited government
53. Local government
54. Majority leader
55. Majority party
56. Majority vote
57. Marbury v. Madison
58. Mayor
59. Minority leader
60. Minority party
61. Naturalization laws
62. Necessary and proper clause
63. Nominate
64. Ordain
65. Ordinance
A position where a Member of Congress is
elected by the majority party to serve as
the
chief spokesperson for that party and to
manage and schedule the business of
either house
The political party with the most elected
members
More than half (50%) of the votes
U.S. Supreme Court case that
established judicial review
The head of government for a city or town
A position where a member of Congress is
elected by the minority party to serve as
the chief spokesperson for the party and to
support the majority party in managing and
scheduling the business of either house
the political party second in the number of
elected members
Laws made by Congress that people
from other countries must follow in
order to become legal citizens of the
United States
The power of Congress to make laws
they view as necessary and proper to
carry out their enumerated powers;
also known as the elastic clause
To suggest a person for a position or office
To establish something by law
A law enacted by a city or county affecting
local affairs such as traffic, noise, and
animal control
66. Original jurisdiction
The power of a court to be the first to
hear a case on a specific topic
67. Pardon
The formal act of forgiving someone or
excusing a mistake
68. Posterity
69. Preamble
Future generations
The introduction to the U.S.
Constitution
70. President pro Tempore of the
Senate
The person who presides over the Senate
when the Vice President is not present
71. Presidential appointment
The power of the U.S. President to choose
members of his or her cabinet,
ambassadors to other nations, and other
officials in his or her administration
72. Presidential appointments
The power of the U.S. President to
choose members of his or her cabinet,
ambassadors to other nations, and
other officials in his or her
administration
The process of formally approving
something; ratification of the U.S.
Constitution
To confirm by expressing consent or
approval
To control, govern, or direct according
to rule
To officially cancel or overturn
Powers that are not granted to the
federal government that belong to (are
reserved for) the states and the people,
see Tenth
Amendment
73. Ratification
74. Ratify
75. Regulate
76. Rescind
77. Reserved power
78. School board
The group of persons elected to manage
local public schools
79. Separation of powers
The structure of the federal
government, according to the U.S.
Constitution, that sets up three
branches with their own distinct powers
and responsibilities
80. Speaker of the House
An office identified in Article I, Section 2 of
the U.S. Constitution; the leader of the
U.S. House of Representatives, usually the
highest ranking member of the majority
party
A permanent committee established under
the standing rules of both houses of
Congress that focuses specific subject
81. Special committee
82. Special interest groups
83. Standing Committee
84. State government
85. State Legislator
86. State Representative
87. State Senator
88. Statute
89. Summary judgment
90. Supremacy Clause
91. Tenth Amendment
92. Trade
93. Tranquility
94. U. S. Representative
95. U. S. Senator
96. U.S. Congress
97. U.S. House of Representatives
98. U.S. Senate
areas (e.g. Special Committee on Aging)
a group of people who are concerned with
a particular issue and who try to influence
legislators to act in their favor, also known
as an interest group
Permanent committee that focuses on
specific subject areas (e.g. Education and
the
Workforce Committee)
The government of an individual state
A member of the Florida House of
Representatives (state representative) or
Florida Senate (state senator)
A member of the lower house of a state
legislature (the Florida House of
Representatives)
A member of the upper house of a state
legislature (the Florida Senate)
A law enacted at the state level
A judgment decided by a trial court without
that case going to trial; a summary
judgment is an attempt to stop a case from
going to trial
The clause that states that the U.S.
Constitution is the supreme law of the
land, and that national laws are
supreme over state laws, found in
Article VI (six)
The final amendment in the Bill of
Rights, it states: ”The powers not
delegated to the United States by the
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the
States, are reserved to the States
respectively, or to the people.”
To buy and sell goods or services
Peace
a member of the U.S House of
Representatives; representatives are
elected in districts throughout each state
A member of the U.S. Senate elected to
represent an entire state, there are two
senators per state
The national legislative body of the
U.S., consisting of the Senate, or upper
house, and the House of
Representatives, or lower house
The lower house of the U.S. Congress
The upper house of the U.S. Congress
99. U.S. Supreme Court
The highest of the United States; it sits
at the top of the federal court system
Something formed by combining parts,
such as states into one country
100.
Union
101.
Veto
A decision by an executive authority such
as a president or governor to reject a
proposed
law or statue
102.
103.
Welfare
Writ of certiorari
Well-being
The procedure to see if the U.S. Supreme
Court will hear a case; a writ of certiorari is
issued when a higher level court agrees to
hear an appeal of an inferior court’s
decision