AP Government Vocabulary

126547479	adversary system	disputants argue for their case in front of a neutral judge (opposite of inquisitorial system)
126547480	inquisitorial system	used in Europe, judges research case and search for the truth
126547481	affirmative action	government mandated programs that create special employment opportunities for victims of past discrimination
126547482	amicus curiae briefs	"friend of the court" briefs filed by qualified individuals or organizations to the court so the judge may consider their advice
126547483	appellate jurisdiction	the role of certain courts to hear appeals from lower courts
126547484	blanket primary	primary election in which voter may select a candidate from any party (like general elections)
126547485	block grants	federal money given to states with only general guidelines
126547486	budget resolution	guides government spending for the following fiscal year, must pass both houses of Congress in identical form
126547487	categorical grants	federal money given to states with more strict guidelines that states must follow
126547488	caucus	meeting of local party members to choose delegates to a national party convention
126547489	civil court	court in which lawsuits are heard
126547490	civil liberties	protection against government embodied in the Bill of Rights
126547491	civil rights	protections against discrimination by the government and individuals
126547492	civil service system	method of hiring federal employees based on merit
126547493	class action suit	a lawsuit filed on behalf of a group of people, and whose result affects that group of people as a whole (used by NAACP)
126547494	clear and present danger test	introduced by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, free speech can only be limited if it presents a clear and present danger to the public or leads to illegal actions
126547495	closed primary	primary election in which voting is restricted to registered members of a political party
126547496	cloture	a motion in the Senate to end debate, requires a three fifths majority of the Senate (used to stop filibusters)
126547497	conference committee	a committee of both houses of Congress to settle differences on versions of bills
126547498	congressional budget office	congressional agency of budget experts who assess president's budget plan and help create Congress' version of the federal budget
126547499	criminal court	court in which criminal trials are heard
126547500	delegated powers	Constitutional powers granted solely to the federal government
126547501	dealignment	trend in which voters act independently of party affiliation
126547502	divided government	presidency is controlled by one party and Congress is controlled by another
126547503	double jeopardy	the act of trying an individual a second time after he has been acquitted on the same charges, prohibited in the US
126547504	due process	established legal procedures for the arrest and trial of an accused criminal
126547505	earmark	a provision within legislation that appropriates money to a specific project, usually to benefit a small number of individuals or a region.
126547506	eminent domain	the power of the government to take away property for public use as long as there is a just compensation for property taken
126547507	entitlement programs	social insurance programs that allocate federal funds to all people who meet the conditions of the program
126547508	entitlements	federal spending that is entitled to certain people (social security, money to people who bought bonds from the government), part of mandatory spending
126547509	equal rights amendment	failed Constitutional amendment that would have guaranteed equal protection under the law for women
126547510	exclusionary rule	illegally obtained evidence cannot be used in trial
126547511	executive agreement	Presidential agreements made with foreign nations, do not require approval of Senate
126547512	executive privilege	right of president to withhold information when necessary for security reasons
126547513	ex post facto laws	laws that punish people for actions they did before they were illegal, not allowed in US
126547514	extradition	process by which governments return fugitives to the jurisdiction from which they have fled
126547515	fiscal year	twelve month period that starts October 1st when government budgets go into effect
126547516	freedom of information act 1974	act which declassified government documents for public use
126547517	front loading	pushing forward the date of primary elections
126547518	full faith and credit clause	clause that requires states to respect licenses, marriages, and other acts of state courts
126547519	gerrymandering	drawing district lines to benefit a certain party
126547520	Gideon v. Wainwright	Supreme Court case that established that a defendant must be provided a lawyer free of charge if the defendant cannot afford one
126547521	Gramm-Rudman-Holings Bill	set budget reduction targets to balance budget but failed to eliminate tax loopholes
126547522	Griswold v. Connecticut	Supreme Court case that established that the Constitution implicitly guarantees right to privacy
126547523	House rules committee	committee that determines rules of debate for each bill
126547524	impeachment	process by which a government official can be tried for high crimes and misdemeanors
126547525	indictment	a written statement of criminal charges brought against a defendant
126547526	inevitable discovery	exception to exclusionary rule if it is decided that the evidence could have been found legally
126547527	initiative	process by which voters may propose new laws
126547528	interest group	political group organized around a particular political goal or philosophy that tries to influence public policy
126547529	iron triangle	relationship between interest groups, committees, and agencies
126547530	joint committee	Congressional committee with members from both houses of Congress to investigate and research certain subjects
126547531	judicial activism	when the justices deviate from precedent or alters acts of the executive and legislative branches
126547532	judicial restraint	when justices show unwillingness to stray from precedent or overturn acts of the other branches
126547533	killer amendment	amendment proposed by opponents to a bill to decrease its chance of passage
126547534	legislative oversight	power of Congressional committees to investigate
126547535	line item veto	allows executive to veto parts of legislation, ruled unconstitutional by Supreme Court
126547536	Miranda v. Arizona	Supreme Court case that established that a suspect upon arrest must be read the rights to remain silent and to consult a lawyer
126547537	national convention	convention at which a political party announces its presidential nominee and reveals its party platform
126547538	National Security Council	presidential advisory board that consults presidents on matters of defense and foreign policy
126547539	objective good faith	exception to exclusionary rule that allows the evidence if the police believed they were acting within the limit of their warrant when they seized the evidence
126547540	open primary	primary election at which voters must chose the party primary they are voting in before the enter the voting booth
126547541	pardon	power of presidents and governors to cancel criminal punishment
126554169	pocket veto	if the president fails to approve a bill passed during the last ten days of congressional session, it does not become a law
126554170	political action committee	fundraising and donating groups of interest groups and corporations who wish to donate money to certain campaigns
126554171	pork barrel	budget items proposed by congressmen to benefit their constituents
126554172	president pro tempore	leader of the Senate when Vice President is unavailable
126554173	prior restraint	censorship of news material before it is made public
126554174	privileges and immunities clause	clause of Constitution that states that a state may not refuse police protectoin or access to its courts to U.S. citizens because they live in a different state
126554175	progressive income tax	type of tax that increases rates for people with higher incomes
126554176	quorum	minimum number of people required for the legislature to act
126554177	realignment	when a party undergoes a major shift in its electoral base and political agenda
126554178	reapportionment	process by which congressional districts are redrawn and seats redistributed
126554179	recall election	process through which voters can shorten an office holder's term
126554180	referendum	process through which voters may vote on new laws
126554181	regulatory agency	agency responsible for enforcing laws pertaining to a certain industry, writes guidelines for the industry and holds inspections
126554182	reserved powers	powers belonging solely to the states granted in the Tenth Amendment, include those not specifically denied in the Constitution
126554183	runoff election	elections held between the top two candidates when neither receive the minimum percentage of the vote, used in some states for primaries
126554184	sampling error	margin of error in public opinion poll
126554185	saving amendment	amendment to a bill to help it pass
126554186	Schenck v. United States	Supreme Court case that established the clear and present danger test
126554187	select committee	temporary committee of Congress created to investigate specific issues
126554188	selective incorporation	process by which the Supreme Court has applied the Fourteenth Amendment and Bill of Rights to state law
126554189	senatorial courtesy	tradition whereby the senator of a certain state is consulted before appointing federal justices to that state, and senators submit a list of nominees for the bureaucracy to the president.
126554190	reprieve	a postponement of punishment
126554191	shield law	law guaranteeing news reporters the right to protect the anonymity of their sources, none on the federal level
126554192	soft money	money contributed for the political party as a whole, not a specific candidate
126554193	split ticketing	choosing candidates of different parties for different offices on the same ballot
126554194	standing committee	a permanent congressional committee
126554195	supremacy clause	clause that requires conflicts between federal and state law to be resolved in favor of the federal law
126554196	unanimous consent decree	agreement passed by the Senate that established the rules under which a bill will be debated, amended, and voted upon
126554197	War Powers Act	law requiring the president to seek periodic approval from Congress when acting as Commander in Chief, not strongly enforced
126554198	writ of habeas corpus	a court order requiring an explanation as to why a prisoner is being held in custody
126554199	writ of certiorari	a legal document issued by the Supreme Court approving to review the lower court's decision
126576074	classical republicanism	a political philosophy that advocates serving the public before oneself
126576075	civic virtue	loyalty to the community and doing what is best for the common good
126576076	inalienable rights	rights given to human by God that cannot be taken away
126576077	natural rights	a philosphy that focuses on finding the least corrupt and least complex system of government and has the sole purpose of protecting inalienable rights
126576078	popular sovereignty	the authority of the government given by its citizens
126576079	social contract theory	the people of a society set up a government and agree to certain responsibilities as citizens
126576080	state of nature	what a society would be like without governement
126576081	constitutional government	a government limited by its own rules stated in its constitution
126576082	unwritten constitution	a collection of laws and precedents that limit the government
126576083	common law	a system of laws set by a government that is applicable to all regions within that government's power
126576084	rule of law	all members of society, including rulers, must obey the law
126576085	stare decisis	Latin for "let the precedent stand"
126576086	redress of grievances	compensation for things the government did wrong
126576087	magistrate	a minor judicial officer who rules on smaller cases
126576088	suffrage	the right to vote
126576089	writs of assistance	warrants for government officials to search and seize property
126576090	pluralism	a political theory of power sharing among a group of independent political parties
126576091	bill of attainder	an act of legislature that punishes a person without trial
126576092	political efficacy	a citizen's capacity to understand and influence political events
126576093	internal efficacy	the ability to understand and take part in political affairs
126576094	external efficacy	the ability to make a system repsond to the citizenry
126576095	sedition	rebellion, rejection of governmental authority
126576096	patronage	appointing members of your own party to political positions
126576097	fundamental rights	rights that are protected from government interference by the courts
126576098	substantive due process	some fundamental rights or precedents can't be violated by Congress, no matter how popular the legislation
126576099	franchise	a right or privilege
126576100	devolution	giving states responsibilities of the national government
126576101	Dillon's Rule	narrow interpretation of city charters
126576102	home-rule charter	allows cities to do anything not prohibited in charters or conflicting with state laws
126576103	municipality	a small government given a charter to have certain powers and authority in certain areas
126576104	special act charter	applies to a certain city and gives them specific rules
126576105	general act charter	applies to any number of cities in a certain region or that fall within a certain classification
126576106	ordinances	city laws
126576107	police power	the power of the states to enforce laws and regulate
126576108	second order devolution	transferring power from state to local governments
126576109	third order devolution	transferring power to nonprofit organizations and private groups in policy implementation
126576110	office bloc ballot	ballot that lists candidates by office, no check box for a straight ticket
126576111	party column ballot	can vote for one party for all candidates with one check box
126576112	plurality system	the system in which a candidate wins by getting the most votes, not necessarily the majority
126576113	valence issue	a matter in which most people agree on a certain side, and they judge candidates on how much he/she supports the public's view
126576114	prospective voting	voting based on the candidate's position and current political issues
126576115	retrospective voting	voting based on the past term and how the current party has performed
126576116	libel	a written statement that defames the character of another person
126576117	discharge petition	a procedure in which the House or Senate can bring a bill that is stalled in committee out on the floor for vote
126576118	multiple referral	a bill may be referred to several committees which will review it simultaneously to solve the problem of bills that exceed committee jurisdiction
126576119	franking privilege	congressmen can send out mail free to constituents
126576120	political question	a matter that should be left up to the executive or legislative branch to decide
126576121	in forma pauperis	petitions sent to a court to request a hearing without paying the full cost, requiring government aid
126576122	sovereign immunity	the government cannot be sued without its consent
126576123	litmus test	a test of ideological purity in selecting judges
126576124	fee shifting	the losing party in a lawsuit must pay the other party's attorney cost (not used in America)
126576125	remedy	judicial order to correct a situation that a judge feels is wrong
126576126	inherent powers	powers implied by the nature of the institution
126576127	negative rights	rights that restrict government action
126576128	positive rights	rights that require the government to act in a particular way
126576129	gag rule	a rule prohibiting debate on certain issues
126576130	plea agreement	pleading guilty to a lesser crime
126576131	de facto segregation	racial separation caused by action of individuals or groups
126576132	de jure segregation	separation by law
126576133	jus sanguinis	"law of the blood" (citizen by blood)
126576134	jus soli	"right of birthplace" (citizen by birth)
126576135	letter of marque and reprisal	a warrant that authorizes an agent to go beyond borders of a nation
126576136	gold plating	tendency (of military officials) to ask for everything at once
127003564	representational view	when congress members vote to please constituents
127003565	organizational view	when congress members vote and respond to cues from colleagues
127003566	attitudinal view	when congress members vote based on their ideology