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| Group opposed to the ratification of the Constitution on the grounds that it gave too much power to the national government at the expense of the states. Later became one of the first two major political parties in America. |
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| Authority to hear appeals of cases arising in a particular geographic area or sphere of the law. The Supreme Court has appellate jurisdiction over all cases arising under the Constitution of the United States. |
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| Allotment of specific dollar amounts for specific programs or purposes. |
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| A public policy question decided by a vote of the people. The placement of the question on the ballot is initiated by the people (usually by petition). Used only at the state level. |
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| Term describing a legislative branch that is divided into two houses, such as the United States Congress which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. |
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| A bill passed by a legislature imposing a penalty or inflicting a detriment on a particular individual or group of individuals |
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| First ten amendments to the Constitution which establish the fundamental rights enjoyed by the people of the United States |
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| Cooperation and colaboration between members of the two major political parties (Republicans and Democrats). |
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| Group of key presidential advisors which includes the Secretaries or heads of each Department of the national government. Presidents generally hold regular Cabinet meetings. |
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| Economic system in which goods and services are produced, exchanged and owned by individuals with minimal governmental regulation. |
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| A group of legislators unified by common goals or characteristics. The largest congressional caucusses are the Republican and Democratic party caucuses. Other caucuses include the Black Caucus, the Hispanic Caucus and a variety of issue-oriented caucusses. |
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| An official enumeration or counting of the population of the United States conducted by the national government every ten years, as dictated by the Constitution. |
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| Powers held by one branch of government that allow it to limit another branch's exercise of its own powers, e.g. the President's ability to veto legislation. |
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| A primary election in which only voters that belong to a particular political party are permitted to vote, e.g. only registered Democrats can vote in a closed Democratic party primary election. |
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| A boost in electoral support realized by candidates lower down the ballot when a successful candidate of their party runs strong at the top of the ballot. For example, a popular Democratic presidential candidate who won a large percentage of the vote might carry other Democratic party candidates into office on his or her "coattails." |
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| "War" between the United States and the former Soviet Union which involved no direct conflict between the two nations but instead was characterized by a multibillion dollar nuclear arms race and numerous conflicts between secondary nations backed (sometimes publicly, sometimes secretly) by each nation. |
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| Formal constitutional role of the President as leader of the nation's armed forces. |
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| Powers shared and exercised jointly under the Constitution by both national and state governments. Examples include taxation and law enforcement. |
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| Committee comprised of both House and Senate members charged with working out the differences between House and Senate versions of a bill. |
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| The structures and fundamental principles of a government, usually in written form. |
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| A formally proposed and ratified change to the Constitution that becomes a fully binding provision of the Constitution itself |
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| Accumulated amount of unpaid budget deficits. |
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| Amount by which spending exceeds available funds during a fiscal year. |
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| A representative who bases his or her votes on the majority opinions of the people he or she represents. |
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| Form of government in which policy alternatives are voted on by the people with majority determining the outcome. |
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| System or process that depends on the voice of the people (and not representatives), usually through referendums or initiatives, to make public policy decisions. |
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| Election in which rank-and-file members (and not the leaders) of a political party select nominees to represent their party in the general election. |
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| Mechanism by which the President is chosen. Each state has a number of electoral votes equal to the number of members it sends to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives |
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| Provision in the 14th Amendment to the Constitution that guarantees all people "equal protection under the law." |
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| Agreement made between the President of the United States and the leader of another country or countries. Has the same effect as a treaty but does not need to be ratified by the Senate. |
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| Branch of government charged with "executing" or implementing and enforcing the laws. |
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| A group of individuals united in the pursuit of shared political values. A political party is a large faction. |
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| System of government in which powers are divided and shared between different levels, e.g. national, state and local. |
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| Series of essays written in support of ratifying the Constitution. Written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison. |
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| Supporters of the Constitution during the battle for its ratification. Also became one of the first two major political parties in the United States. |
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| Tactic employed by an individual or group of individuals in the U.S. Senate aimed at blocking legislation by gaining control of the floor (simply by standing and making a speech) and refusing to relinquish control until the rest of the Senate gives up and agrees to move on to other business. |
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| 365-day period, begining October 1st and ending September 30th, which defines the beginning and end of the federal government's annual budgetary cycle. |
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| Tax collected at the same rate or percentage regardless of income level. |
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| The redrawing of a political district to favor a particular candidate or kind of candidate, e.g. an incumbent, a member of a particular political party or a racial minority. |
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| Period shortly after an election, especially a presidential election, during which the winning candidate enjoys a surge in public and political support. |
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| Committee in the House of Representatives that creates a "rule" for each bill to be debated on the floor. The rule establishes the time and extent of debate and what, if any, amendments can be offered. |
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| A public policy question that is initiated by the people, usually by petition, and decided by the people at the ballot box. |
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| A group of like-minded individuals united in the pursuit of a common goal or set of goals. In the political arena, an interest group seeks its goals through the legislative and / or legal processes. |
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| Process by which members of the Executive Branch or the Judiciary are formally charged with crimes that could be grounds for removing them from office. A trial follows impeachment to determine the fate of the impeached individual. |
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| Powers not explicitly stated in the Constitution but which are suggested or implied by the "general welfare," "necessary & proper," and commerce clauses in the Constitution. |
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| Branch of government that hears and settles legal disputes. |
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| A "hands-off" approach to the economy characterized by minimal governmental interference in or regulation of the businesses and economic transactions. |
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| A political office holder who, because of term-limits, retirement or defeat, will not be returning to office after the end of his or her present term of office. Presidents serving in their second terms are not eligible to run for a third term and are, therefore, "lame duck" Presidents. |
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| Branch of government with the authority to make an change the laws of the land |
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| Philosophical perspective based on the premise that the legitimate sphere of government does not extend beyond the protection of individuals from harming one another. |
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| A veto which is used to reject only specific items or parts of legislation passed by the Congress. |
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| The practice of talking with members of Congress to persuade them to support a particular position or pieced of legislation. Often conducted in the "lobbies" just off the House and Senate chambers. |
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| Someone who engages in lobbying (see above). A lobbyist is generally an individual whose full-time work is representing a particular interest or set of interests in the legislative process. |
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| Individual elected to lead a party in the House or Senate that holds the most seats in the body. |
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| Occurs when the media (individually or collectively) reports something that is inaccurate or one-sided because of ideology, political favoritism, reliance on limited (not treating both sides equally), or other factors. Bias can show up in coverage (or lack thereof) or in the content and analysis of stories. |
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| Individual elected to lead a party in the House or Senate that does not hold the majority of seats in the body. |
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| Policies aimed at controlling inflation and unemployment through manipulation of the money supply and interest rates. Primarily established by the Federal Reserve Board |
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| "necessary & proper" clause |
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| Provision in the Constitution which strongly suggests that the national government has powers other than those explicitly stated in the Constitution. |
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| Election held for the purposes of choosing the nominee for a particular political party in which voters of any party are eligible to vote. |
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| Authority to hear a cases for the first time in a particular geographic area or sphere of the law. Courts of original jurisdiction are generally trial courts in which decisions are made by juries |
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| An official statement and proclamation of the beliefs, values and policy positions of a political party. Specific statements or positions in a platform are sometimes called "planks," e.g. the "abortion plank" of a party's platform |
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| If the Congress adjourns before ten days have passed since the passage of a bill, the President can allow the legislation to die simply by failing to sign it. See veto. |
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| political action committee (PAC) |
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| Arm of an interest group legally permitted to give money to political candidates competing for federal elective office. |
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| A team of office seekers and their supporters, generally unified by a common ideology, philosophy, set of values and political beliefs, usually outlined in a party platform. |
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| Notion that political power or the power to govern is derived from the people. As such, the people retain the right to rescind any grant of power to the government. |
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| Spending that is primarily for the benefit of particular local interestes in a member of Congress's district and not obviously in the interests of the nation as a whole. |
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| The authority to create and raise taxes and to authorize the spending of the money raised through them. |
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| Acting president of the United States Senate in the absence of the Vice President who is the constitutionally authorized President of the body. |
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| Tax collected at increasingly higher rates or percentages as income level increases. |
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| Mechanism authorized in some states by which voters may remove an individual from office in the middle of his or her term. There is no provision for a recall at the national level. |
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| A public policy decision referred to the people by a legislative body. Used only at the state level. |
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| Form of government in which decisions are made by representatives who are chosen by the people. |
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| An attachment to a piece of legislation that is generally unrelated to the rest of the bill. |
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| A congressional seat that is very likely to be held by the incumbent (current occupant of the seat) after the next election.< |
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| Powers which are held and exercised by more than one level of government. |
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| Philosophy and form of government based on the notion that the governmental authority ought to be used to promote fair and equal socioeconomic outcomes in terms of education, wealth and other important ways. Socialistic governments generally own or exercise substantial control over sectors of the economy that impact large portions of the population and maintain significant wealth and income redistribution programs. |
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| Political contributions not regulated by federal campaign finance laws. It is money given directly to political parties for the purposes of "party building." It is not to be used on or given directly to candidates in support of election efforts. |
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| Individual selected by the House to preside over the proceedings of the House in formal session. The Speaker of the House is almost always a member of the majority party. |
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| Amount by which available funds exceed spending during a fiscal year. |
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| A legal prohibition against running for a political office after holding it for a prescribed number of years or terms. For example, Presidents cannot serve more than two and a half terms (ten years). |
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| Crime committed against one's country. Espionage or spying for an enemy nation is treasonous. |
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| Legally binding agreement between two nations. United States treaties are generally negotiated by the President and must be ratifed by the Senate. |
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| Latin for "I forbid." The Constitution authorizes the President to reject any bill passed by both houses of Congress if he disapproves of it for any reason |
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| If the President vetoes a bill, the Congress may override the veto by a two-thirds majority vote in both houses. The bill would then become law, the President's objections notwithstanding. |
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| Hotel that was home to the Democratic Party's campaign headquarters which were broken into by operatives of the Richard Nixon campaign. The resulting scandal known as "Watergate" led to Nixon's resignation. |
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| Political party official in a legislative body charged with the duty of encouraging party members to vote with their parties on key pieces of legislation. |
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| Documented legal justification for holding an individual prisoner. The Constitution provides that an individual suspected of a crime cannot be held without a writ of habeas corpus. |
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| A judicial order directing a government official to perform a duty of his or her office. |
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