just going to keep adding on vocabs
Terms : Hide Images
| 35468515 | power | the ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person's intentions | |
| 35468516 | authority | the right to use power | |
| 35468517 | legitimacy | political authority conferred by law or by a state or national constitution | |
| 35468518 | democracy | the rule of many | |
| 35468519 | direct democracy | a government in which all or most citizens participate directly (aka participatory democracy) | |
| 35468520 | representative democracy | a government in which leaders make decisions by winning a competitive struggle for a popular vote | |
| 35468521 | elite | persons who possess a disproportionate share of power of some valued resource, like money or power | |
| 35468522 | Marxist view | view that the government is dominated by capitalists | |
| 35468523 | power elite view | view that the government is dominated by a few top leaders, most of whom are outside of government | |
| 35468524 | bureaucratic view | view that the government is dominated by appointed officials | |
| 35468525 | pluralistic view | the belief that competition among all affected intrests shapes public policy | |
| 35468526 | hyperpluralism | groups are so strong that government is weakened. Extreme, exaggerated form of pluralism | |
| 35468527 | unalienable | a human right based on nature or God | |
| 35468528 | Articles of Confederation | a weak constitution that governed America during the Revolutionary War | |
| 35468529 | Constitutional Convention | meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 that produced a new constitution | |
| 35468530 | Shay's Rebellion | a 1787 rebellion in which ex-Revolutionary War soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes | |
| 35468531 | Virginia Plan | proposal to create a strong national government | |
| 35468532 | New Jersey Plan | proposal to create a weak national government | |
| 35468533 | Great Compromise | plan to have a popularly elected House based on state population and a state-elected senate, with two members for each state | |
| 35468534 | republic | a government in which elected representatives make the decision | |
| 35468535 | judicial review | the power of the courts to declare laws unconstitutional | |
| 35468536 | federalism | government authority shared by national and state government | |
| 35468537 | checks and balances | authority shared by three branches of government | |
| 35468538 | enumerated powers | powers given to the national government alone | |
| 35468539 | reserved powers | powers given to the state government alone | |
| 35468540 | concurrent powers | powers shared by the national and state government | |
| 35468541 | seperation of powers | constitutional authority is shared by three different branches of government | |
| 35468542 | faction | a group with a distinct political interest | |
| 35468543 | Federalists | those who favor a stronger national government | |
| 35468544 | Antifederalists | those who favor a weaker national government | |
| 35468545 | coalition | an alliance of factions | |
| 35468546 | habeas corpus | an order to produce an arrested person before a judge | |
| 35468547 | bill of attainder | a law that declares a person, without a trial, to be guilty of a crime | |
| 35468548 | ex post facto law | a law that makes an act criminal although the act was legal when it was committed | |
| 35468549 | Bill of Rights | the first 10 amendments to the Constitution | |
| 35468550 | amendment | a new provision in the Constitution that has been ratified by the states | |
| 35468551 | line-item veto | an executive's ability to block a particular provision in a bill passed by the legislature | |
| 35468552 | devolution | the effort to transfer responsibility for many public programs and services from the federal government to the states | |
| 35468553 | block grants | money from the national government that states can spend within broad guidelines determined by Washington | |
| 35468554 | "necessary and proper" clause | section of the Constitution allowing Congress to pass all laws "necessary and proper" to its duties, and which has permitted Congress to exercise powers not specifically given to it (enumerated) by the Constitution | |
| 35468555 | nullification | the doctrine that a state can declare null and void a federal law that, in the state's opinion, violates the Constitution | |
| 35468556 | dual federalism | doctrine holding that the national government is supreme in its sphere, the states are supreme in theirs, and two spheres should be kept seperate | |
| 35468557 | police power | state power to enact laws promoting health, safety, and morals | |
| 35468558 | initiative | process that permits voters to put legislative measures directly on the ballot | |
| 35468559 | referendum | procedure enabling voters to reject a measure passed by the legislature | |
| 35468560 | recall | procedure whereby voters can remove an elected official from office | |
| 35468561 | grants-in-aid | money given by the national government to the states | |
| 35468562 | categorical grants | federal grants for specific purposes, such as building an airport | |
| 35468563 | revenue sharing | federal sharing of a fixed percentage of its revenue with the states | |
| 35468564 | conditions of aid | terms set by the national government that states must meet if they are to receive certain federal funds | |
| 35468565 | mandates | terms set by the national government that the states must meet whether or not they accept federal grants | |
| 37727599 | political culture | a coherent way of thinking about how politics and government ought to be carried out | |
| 37727600 | civic duty | a belief that one has an obligation to participate in civic and political affairs | |
| 37727601 | civic competence | a belief that one can affect government policies | |
| 37727602 | class consciousness | a belief that you are a member of an economic group whose interests are opposed to people in other such groups | |
| 37727603 | orthodox | a belief that morality and religion ought to be decisive importance | |
| 37727604 | progressive | a belief that personal freedom and solving social problems are more important than religion | |
| 37727605 | political efficacy | a belief that you can take part in politics (internal efficacy) or that the government will respond to the citizenry (external efficacy) | |
| 37727606 | internal efficacy | the ability to understand and take part in politics | |
| 37727607 | external efficacy | the willingness of the state to respond to the citizenry | |
| 39266716 | public opinion | how people think or feel about particular things | |
| 39266717 | poll | a survey of public opinion | |
| 39266718 | random sample | method of selecting from a population in which each person has an equal probability of being selected | |
| 39266719 | sampling error | the difference between the results of random samples taken at the same time | |
| 39266720 | exit polls | polls based on interviews conducted on Election Day with randomly selected voters | |
| 39266721 | political socialization | process by which background traits influence one's political views | |
| 39266722 | elite | people who have a disproportionate amount of some valued resource | |
| 39266723 | gender gap | difference in political views between men and women | |
| 39266724 | political ideology | more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue | |
| 39266725 | political elites | persons with a disproportionate share of political power | |
| 41742195 | norm | a standard of right or proper conduct | |
| 41742901 | voting-age population | citizens who are eligible to vote after reaching the minimum age requirement | |
| 41742902 | registered voters | people who are registered to vote | |
| 41742903 | literacy test | a requirement that citizens pass a literacy test in order to register to vote | |
| 41742904 | poll tax | a requirement that citizens pay a tax in order to register to vote | |
| 41742905 | grandfather clause | a clause in registration requirements to vote if they or their ancestors had voted before 1867 | |
| 41742906 | white primary | the practice of keeping blacks from voting in the southern states' primaries through arbitary use of registration requirements and intimidation | |
| 41742907 | Australian ballot | a government-printed ballot of uniform dimensions to be cast in secret that many states adopted around 1890 to reduce voting fraud assocated with party-printed cast in public | |
| 41742908 | activists | people who tend to participate in all form of politics | |
| 44175878 | political party | a group that seeks to elect candidates to public office | |
| 44175879 | mugwumps | (aka progressives) Republican party faction in the 1890's to the 1910s, composed of reformers who opposed patronage | |
| 44175880 | critical period | (aka realignment period) periods when a major, lasting shift occurs in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties | |
| 44175881 | split ticket | voting for candidates of different parties for various offices in the same election | |
| 44175882 | straight ticket | voting for candidates who are all of the same party | |
| 44175883 | office-bloc ballot | a ballot listing all candidates of a given office under the name of that office; also called a "Massachusetts" ballot | |
| 44175884 | party-column ballot | a ballot listing all candidates of a given party together under the name of that party; also called an "Indiana" ballot | |
| 44175885 | national convention | a meeting of party delegates held every four years | |
| 44175886 | national committee | delegates who run party affairs between national conventions | |
| 44175887 | congressional campaign committee | a party committee in Congress that provides funds to members and would-be members | |
| 44175888 | national chairman | day-to-day manager elected by the national committee | |
| 44175889 | superdelegates | party leaders and elected officials who become delegates to the national convention without having to run in primaries or caucuses | |
| 44175890 | political machine | a party organization that recruits members by dispensing patronage | |
| 44175891 | ideological party | a party that values principled stands on issues above all else | |
| 44175892 | solidary incentives | the social rewards (sense of pleasure, status, or companionship) that lead people to join political organization | |
| 44175893 | sponsored party | a local or state political party that is largely supported by another organization in the community | |
| 44175894 | personal following | the political support provided to candidate on the basis of personal popularity and networks | |
| 44175895 | two-party system | an electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections | |
| 44175896 | plurality system | an electoral system in which the winner is the person who get the most votes, even if he or she does not receive a majority; used in almost all American elections | |
| 44175897 | caucus | a meeting of party members to select delegates backing one or another primary candidate | |
| 50461714 | incumbent | the person already holding an elective office | |
| 50461715 | coattails | the alleged tendency of candidates to win more votes in an election because of the presence at the top of the ticket of a better-known candidate, such as the president | |
| 50461716 | political action committee | also known as the PAC, a committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations | |
| 50461717 | malapportionment | drawing the boundaries of legislative districts so they are unequal in population | |
| 50461718 | gerrymandering | drawing the boundaries of legislative districts in bizarre or unusual shapes to favor one party | |
| 50461719 | sophomore surge | an increase in the voters congressional candidates usually get when they first run for reelection | |
| 50461720 | position issues | an issue about which the public is divided and rival candidates or political parties adopt different policy positions | |
| 50461721 | valence issue | an issue about which the public is united and rival candidates or political parties adopt similar positions in hopes that each will be thought to best represent those widely shared beliefs | |
| 50461722 | general election | an election held to choose which candidate will hold office | |
| 50461723 | primary election | an election held to choose candidates for office | |
| 50461724 | closed primary | a primary election in which voting is limited to already registered party members | |
| 50461725 | open primary | a primary election in which voters may choose in which party to vote as they enter the polling place | |
| 50461726 | blanket primary | a primary election in which each voter may vote for candidates from both parties | |
| 50461727 | runoff primary | a second primary election held when no candidate wins a majority of the voters in the first primary | |
| 50461728 | independent expenditures | spending by political action committees, corporations, or labor unions that is done to help a party or candidate but is done independently of them | |
| 50461729 | soft money | funds obtained by political parties that are spent over party activities, such as get-out-the-vote drives, but not on behalf of a specific candidate | |
| 50461730 | 527 organizations | organizations that, under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code, raise and spend money to advance political causes | |
| 50461731 | prospective voting | voting for a candidate because you favor his or her ideas for handling issues | |
| 50461732 | retrospective voting | voting for a candidate because you like his or her past actions in office | |
| 53135217 | interest group | an organization of people sharing a common interest or goal that seeks to influence the making of public policy | |
| 53135218 | incentive | something that value one cannot get without joining an organization | |
| 53135219 | solidary incentives | the social rewards (sense of pleasure, status, or companionship) that lead people to join political organizations | |
| 53135220 | material incentives | money or things valued in monetary terms | |
| 53135221 | purposive incentive | a benefit that comes from serving a cause or principle | |
| 53135222 | ideological interest groups | political organizations that attract members by appealing to their political convictions or principles | |
| 53135223 | public-interest lobby | a political organization whose goals will principally benefit nonmembers | |
| 53135224 | social movement | a widely shared demand for change in some aspect of the social or political order | |
| 53135225 | political cue | a signal telling a legislator what values are at stake in a vote, and how that issue into fit into his or her own political views on party agenda | |
| 53135226 | ratings | assessments of a representative's voting record on issues important to an interest group | |
| 53135227 | blog | series, or log, of discussion items on a page of the World Wide Web | |
| 53135228 | sound bite | a radio or video clip of someone speaking | |
| 53135229 | equal time rule | an FCC rule that if a broadcaster sells time to one candidate, it must sell equal time to other candidates | |
| 53135230 | trial balloon | information leaked to the media to test public reaction to a possible possibility | |
| 53135231 | loaded language | words that imply a value judgement, used to persuade a reader without having made a serious argument | |
| 53135232 | routine stories | media stories about events that are regularly covered by reporters | |
| 53135233 | feature stories | media stories about events that, though public, are not regularly covered by reporters | |
| 53135234 | insider stories | media stories about events that are not usually made public | |
| 53135235 | selective attention | paying attention only to those news stories with which one already agrees | |
| 53135236 | adversarial press | the tendency of the national media to be suspicious of officials and eager to reveal unflattering stories about them` | |
| 53135237 | background | a public official's statement to a reporter that is given on condition that the official not be named | |
| 57160049 | bicameral legislature | a lawmaking body made up of 2 chambers or parts | |
| 57160050 | filibuster | an attempt to defeat a bill in the Senate by talking indefinitely, thus preventing the Senate from taking action to the bill | |
| 57160051 | marginal districts | political districts in which candidates elected to the House of Representatives win in close elections, typically by less than 55% of the vote | |
| 57160052 | safe district | districts in which incumbents win by margins of 55% or more | |
| 57160053 | conservative coalition | an alliance between Republican and conservative Democrats | |
| 57160054 | majority leader | the legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House or in the Senate | |
| 57160055 | minority leader | the legislative leader elected by party member holding a minority of seats in the House or the Senate | |
| 57160056 | whip | a senator or representative who helps the party leader stay informed about what party members are thinking | |
| 57160057 | party polarization | a vote in which a majority of Democratic legislators oppose a majority of Republican legislators | |
| 57160058 | caucus | an association of congress members created to advance a political ideology or a regional, ethnic, or economic interest | |
| 57160059 | standing committee | permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject areas | |
| 57160060 | select committee | congressional committees appointed for a limited time and purpose | |
| 57160061 | joint committee | committees on which both senators and representatives serve | |
| 57160062 | conference committees | a joint committee appointed to resolve differences in the Senate and House versions of the same bill | |
| 57160063 | public bill | a legislative bill that deals with matters of general concern | |
| 57160064 | private bill | a legislative bill that deals only with specific, private, and personal, or local matters | |
| 57160065 | simple resolution | an expression of opinion either in the House or Senate to settle procedural matters in either body | |
| 57160066 | concurrent solution | an expression of opinion without the force of law that requires the approval of both the House and the Senate, but not the the president | |
| 57160067 | joint solution | a formal expression of congressional opinion that must be approved by both houses of Congress and by the president; constitutional amendments need not to be signed by the president | |
| 57160068 | multiple referral | a congressional process whereby a bill may be referred to several committees | |
| 57160069 | sequential referral | a congressional process by which a Speaker may send a bill to a second committee after the first is finished acting | |
| 57160070 | discharge petition | a device by which any member of the House, after a committee has had the bill for thirty days, may petition to have it brought to the floor | |
| 57160071 | closed rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on debate; forbids a bill from being amended on the floor | |
| 57160072 | open rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that permits a bill to be amended on the floor | |
| 57160073 | restrictive rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that permits certain kinds of amendments but not others to be made into a bill on the floor | |
| 57160074 | quorum | the minimum number of members who must be present for business to be conducted in Congress | |
| 57160075 | quorum call | a roll call in either house of Congress to see whether the minimum number of representatives required to conduct business is present | |
| 57160076 | cloture rule | a rule used by the Senate to end or limit debate | |
| 57160077 | double-tracking | a procedure to keep the Senate going during a filibuster in which the disputed bill is shelved temporarily so that the Senate can get on with other business | |
| 57160078 | voice vote | a congressional voting procedure in which members shout "yea" in approval or "nay" in disapproval, permitting members to vote quickly or anonymously on bills | |
| 57160079 | division vote | a congressional voting procedure in which members stand and are counted | |
| 57160080 | teller vote | a congressional voting procedure in which members pass between two tellers, the "yeas" and the "nays" second | |
| 57160081 | roll-call vote | a congressional voting procedure that consists of members answering "yea" or "nay" to their names | |
| 57160082 | pork-barrel legislation | legislation that gives tangible benefits to constituents in several districts or states in the hope of winning their votes in return | |
| 57160083 | franking privilege | the ability of members to mail letters to their constituents free of charge by substituting their facsimile signature for postage | |
| 57163984 | divided government | one party controls the White House and another party controls one or both houses of Congress | |
| 57163985 | unified government | the same party controls the White House and both houses of Congress | |
| 57163986 | gridlock | the inability of the government to act because rival parties control different parts of the government | |
| 57163987 | electoral college | the people chosen to cast each state's voters in a presidential election. Each state can cast one electoral vote for each senator and representative it has. The District of Columbia has 3 electoral votes, even though it cannot elect a representative or senator | |
| 57163988 | pyramid structure | a president's subordinates report him through a clear chain of command headed by a chief of staff | |
| 57163989 | circular structure | several of the president's assistances report directly to him |
