The Constitution ● The Articles of Confederation ● The Constitutional Convention ● Key Concepts in the Constitution ● Summary of the Constitution ● The Debate over Ratification ● Creation of the Constitution ● The Amendment Process and Bill of Rights ● The Continental Congress Federalism ● Concepts of Federalism ● Federal-State Relations ● Recent Trends in Federalism Congress ● The Powers of Congress ● The Organization of Congress ● How a Bill Becomes a Law ● The Two Houses of Congress The President ● The Functions of the President ● Organization of the Executive Branch ● The Vice President and Presidential Succession ● The Executive Branch ● The Powers of the President The Judiciary ● The Federal Court System ● The Supreme Court in Operation ● The State Court System The Bureaucracy ● Controlling the Size of Bureaucracy ● The Functions of the Federal Bureaucracy ● The Structure of the Federal Bureaucracy ● Characteristics of a Bureaucracy ● The Growth of the Federal Bureaucracy Public Opinion ● Political Socialization ● Social Background and Political Values ● Political Ideology ● How Public Opinion Is Formed ● Public Opinion and How It's Measured The Mass Media ● The Functions of the Mass Media ● The Mass Media and Political Coverage ● The Evolution of the Mass Media ● The Structure of the Mass Media and Government Regulation Political Parties ● The Development of Political Parties ● Third Parties in American Politics ● The Structure of Political Parties ● The Strengths and Weaknesses of Political Parties ● The Functions of Political Parties Voting and Elections ● Obstacles to Voting ● Voter Turnout ● Voting Choices ● Getting Nominated and Campaigning for Office ● Electing Candidates to Office ● The Right to Vote Interest Groups ● Functions of Interest Groups ● Tactics of Interest Groups ● Regulation of Interest Groups ● Types of Interest Groups Civil Liberties ● The First Amendment: Freedom of the Press ● The Rights of Defendants ● Civil Liberties and the War on Terror Implied Rights ● Perspective on Civil Liberties ● The First Amendment: Freedom of Religion ● The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech Civil Rights ● Segregation in the United States ● Breaking Down Segregation ● The Civil Rights Movement ● Civil Rights for Minorities and Women ● Affirmative Action ● Slavery and Civil Rights Public Policy ● Politics and Policymaking ● Policymaking in Action ● The Policymaking Process Economic Policy ● The Federal Budget ● Taxation and Spending ● International Economic Policy ● The Goals of Economic Policy ● Theories of Economic Policy Foreign Policy ● Issues in Foreign Policy ● Background of American Foreign Policy ● Making Foreign Policy ● The Institutions of Foreign Policy