AP GOPO MOST IMPORTANT CONCEPTS
Unit 1: Constitutional Underpinnings and Federalism
Vocabulary
government vs. politics
reserved powers
Antifederalists vs. Federalists
hyperpluralism
single-issue groups
block grant vs. categorical grant
individualism
supremacy clause
checks and balances vs separation of
powers
judicial review
unitary governments (system)
limited government
writ of habeas corpus
linkage institutions
Government Actions
majority rule vs. minority rights
Americans with Disabilities Act (1990)
mandates
Welfare Reform Act (1996)
natural rights
10th Amendment
New Jersey Plan vs. Virginia Plan
Government actions
Bill of Rights
constitution
democracy
devolution
double jeopardy
dual federalism vs. cooperative
federalism
elastic clause (necessary and proper
clause)
elitism (elite and class theory)
enumerated (expressed or delegated)
powers vs. implied powers
factions
federalism
fiscal federalism
pluralism (pluralist theory)
policy agenda
policy gridlock
popular sovereignty (consent of the
governed)
Federalist Papers
Gibbons v. Ogden
Great Compromise (Connecticut
Compromise)
Marbury v. Madison
McCulloch v. Maryland
public policy
republic (representative democracy)
Analyze

Direct democracy vs. representative democracy (republic)

Formal vs. informal amendment process to the Constitution

How the balance of power between the states and federal government has changed over time, and by what means this has
occurred

Part of national government most closely tied to citizens in original Constitution

Powers unique to the House or Senate

Problems of the Articles of Confederation and how these were addressed in the Constitution

Why framers wanted a bicameral legislature

Aspects of federalism (the different types and how they work)

Margins required by different actions of Congress

Core values of U.S. political culture

Challenges to democracy that we discussed in class

Elements of the policymaking process
Unit 2: Civil Rights and Liberties
Vocabulary
affirmative action
Voting Rights Act of 1965
bill of attainder
Fourteenth Amendment
citizenship clause
Nineteenth Amendment
civil liberties vs. civil rights
Baker v. Karr
clear and present danger test
Barron v. Baltimore
cruel and unusual punishment
Brown v. Board of Education
De jure vs. de facto segregation
Engel v. Vitale
due process clause
Gideon v. Wainwright
equal protection clause
Gitlow v. New York
establishment clause vs. free exercise clause
Griswold v. Connecticut
ex post facto law
Grutter v. Bollinger
exclusionary rule
Lemon v. Kurtzman
libel
Mapp v. Ohio
Miranda warnings
Miranda v. Arizona
plea bargaining
New York Times v. Sullivan
prior restraint
Oregon v. Smith
probable cause
Planned Parenthood v. Casey
right to privacy (how implied in 1st, 4th, 9th Amendments)
Plessy v. Ferguson
selective incorporation (incorporation doctrine)
Reynolds v. U.S.
self-incrimination
Roe v. Wade
strict scrutiny
Roth v. U.S.
symbolic speech
Schenck v. U.S.
Government actions
Texas v. Johnson
th
th
rd
th
th
Amendments that expand suffrage (15 , 19 , 23 , 24 , 26 )
Tinker v. Des Moines
Bill of Rights (Amendments 1-10)
Weeks v. U.S.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Unit 3: Public Opinion, Political Parties & Interest Groups
Vocabulary
party platform
coalition
political action committee (PAC)
critical election
political culture
demographics/demography
political efficacy
divided government
political ideology
electioneering
political participation
exit poll
political party
free-rider problem
political socialization
gender gap
public interest lobbies
interest group
public opinion
litigation
random sampling
lobbying
sampling error
minority majority
single-issue groups
party dealignment (party neutrality) vs. party realignment
ticket splitting (split-ticket voting)
party eras
winner-take-all system vs. proportional representation
party identification
Analyze

Trends in voting behavior (turnout rates, split-ticket voting, party loyalties, demographics, etc.)

Decline in trust—correlation with increase in investigative journalism

Political activities of citizens

Link between political action, party identification, and socioeconomics

Influences in political socialization

Decline in party identification – causes and effects

Types, characteristics, and impact of primaries

Reasons for two-party system/Challenges for third parties

Critical elections – 1800, 1860, 1932, 1968, 1980 – know party realignment

Party identification and voting

Party coalitions Interest Groups

Methods used by interest groups to influence the political process

Reasons for rise of interest groups

Goals and functions of parties and interest groups and how the two differ

Purpose and functions of PACs

Techniques used by interest groups – lobbying, grassroots mobilization, litigation

Regulation of interest groups

How interest groups and political parties support each other
Unit 4: Campaigns, Elections and Mass Media
Vocabulary
PAC vs. Super PACs
527 group v. 501(c) group
plurality election
battleground states (swing states)
policy voting vs. retrospective voting
campaign contributions
presidential primary vs. general election
campaign strategy
press conferences
caucus (state party) vs. primary
referendum
civic duty
selective exposure vs. selective perception
closed primary vs. open primary
single-member district
Electoral College
soft money vs. hard money
frontloading
sound bites
horse-race journalism
superdelegates
independent expenditures
trial balloons
initiative
investigative journalism
invisible primary
Government actions
legitimacy
Buckley v. Valeo
mandate theory of elections
Citizens United v. FEC
mass media
Federal Communication Commission (FCC)
media chains
Federal Election Campaign Act
media event
Federal Election Commission
narrowcasting
McGovern-Fraser Commission
national party convention
Motor Voter Act
nomination
Analyze

Reasons for low voter turnout in the U.S.

News media influence on policy

Direct and indirect elections

Electoral college and presidential campaign strategy

Reasons why the electoral college has not been abolished

How electoral college helps to reinforce two-party system

Balance vice president candidate provides to ticket in presidential elections
Unit 5: Congress
Vocabulary
bill
caucus (congressional)
bicameral legislature
cloture
casework
committee chair
conference committees
legislative oversight
congressional redistricting
logrolling
delegate role of representation (instructed delegates) vs.
majority leader
trustee role of representation
minority leader
filibuster
politico role of representation
franking privilege
pork barrel
gerrymandering
seniority system
House Rules committee
Speaker of the House
House Ways and Means Committee
standing committees vs. select committees
incumbent
whips
joint committees
Analyze

Role legislative oversight has over the power of the president and bureaucracy

Incumbency advantage and why it occurs

Differences between Senate and House (number of members, term in office, size of constituency, qualifications, level of
policy knowledge, media coverage, prestige, and partisanship, rules for debate)

Congressional checks and balances

Unique jurisdiction of each chamber/special formal powers Constitution provides

Leadership roles in Congress

Founding Fathers’ intent for the legislative process

Committee membership and policy specialization

Majority party advantages

Reasons for greater competition for Senate seats

Types of committees and differences between them

Importance of the committee system
Unit 6: The President and the Bureaucracy
Vocabulary
standard operating procedures
veto
administrative discretion
bureaucracy
street-level bureaucrats
executive order
regulation
iron triangle
command-and-control policy
policy agenda
incentive system
independent regulatory agency
deregulation
independent executive agency
Government actions
line-item veto
executive agreement
executive privilege
lame-duck period
issue network
impeachment
pocket veto
presidential coattails
22nd Amendment
25th Amendment
War Powers Resolution
Pendleton Civil Service Act
Hatch Act
Federal Election Campaign Act
United States v. Nixon
Korematsu v. United States
government corporation
Analyze

Sources of presidential power (formal and informal)

How/why presidential power has increased in the post-World War II era

Presidential control/lack of control of the cabinet

Pros and cons of using cabinet members as advisors

Presidential influence on legislation

Presidential influence on the judiciary

How party polarization limits president’s influence on policymaking

Pros and cons of the line-item veto (why does the president not have one?)

How the veto power affects the President’s relationship with Congress

Impeachment process

How executive agreements circumvent the formal approval process of treaties

Roles of the president v. Congress in terms of foreign policy

Lame-duck period, and how this limits presidential influence

How new cabinet-level departments are formed

Council of Economic Advisors, Office of Management Budget and National Security Council – areas of responsibility

Advantages bureaucrats have over the president in areas of policymaking

White House staff – who are they, and how are they chosen?

Congressional oversight of the bureaucracy

How independent regulatory agencies differ from other bureaucratic entities
Unit 7: The Judiciary
Vocabulary
amicus curiae brief
appellate jurisdiction vs. original jurisdiction
class action suits
courts of appeal
district courts
judicial activism vs. judicial restraint
judicial implementation
judicial review
(written) opinion
Originalism (original intent theory)
precedents
political questions
rule of four
senatorial courtesy
solicitor general
standing to sue
stare decisis
statutory construction
Supreme Court
writ of certiorari
Analyze

District courts vs. courts of appeal (compare/contrast three levels of federal judicial system)

Central issues and impact of the Marshall, Warren, Burger, Rehnquist and Roberts’ Courts

Supreme Court Justices term length (amount of time and Founding Father’s reasoning)

Who establishes the federal court system and number of judges?

Nomination and approval process for federal judges

Selection process for the Supreme Court’s caseload

Original intent theory vs. “living constitution” theory
Unit 8: Public Policy (Economic, Domestic and Foreign)
Vocabulary
monetary policy
domestic policy vs. foreign policy
Government groups
fiscal policy
Federal Reserve System
entitlement programs
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
deficit
Secretary of State
tax expenditures
Secretary of Defense
incrementalism
Joint Chiefs of Staff
uncontrollable expenditures
Central Intelligence Agency
budget resolution
House Ways and Means Committee
reconciliation
Senate Finance Committee
authorization bill
Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
appropriations bill
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
continuing resolutions
United Nations (UN)
mixed economy
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
unemployment rate
Government actions
inflation
Keynesian economic theory
supply-side economics
means-tested programs
poverty line
feminization of poverty
interdependency
revenues
national debt
social welfare policies
progressive tax
Sixteenth Amendment
Medicaid
Medicare
Social Security Act of 1935
Clean Air Act of 1970
Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974
Welfare Reform Act of 1996
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
Affordable Care Act of 2009
American recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
Analyze

Area of policy which President has stronger control over than Congress

Federal budgetary process (from proposal to approval)

Fiscal Policy vs. Monetary Policy

Executive and Legislative branches’ role in fiscal policy

Importance of the Federal Reserve’s independence

Entitlement programs vs. means-tested programs

Concerns with entitlement programs and how they are considered uncontrollable expenditures

Consequences of running a budget deficit and the accumulation of national debt