American Political Culture

1. Immigrant: people who come to a country to settle as permanent residents

2. Quotas: set numbers, such as for immigrants, who may enter a country in a
year
3. Aliens: people who live in a nation but are not citizens of that nation
4. Refugees: people who flee persecution in their homeland to seek safety in
another nation
5. Native-born citizen: a person who has citizenship based on birth in the United
States or its territories
6. Naturalization: a legal process by which aliens become citizens
7. American exceptionalism: The view that the United States is different from
other countries.
8. Political efficacy: the belief that the government listens to normal people and
that participation can make a difference in government.
9. Necessary evil: Something that is believed to be needed but is not good in
and of itself; many Americans see government as a necessary evil.
10.Diversity: A mix of different cultural and religious traditions and values.
11.Rugged individualism: A form of individualism that emphasizes self-reliance
and ignoring what others want and think.
12.Rights of the minority: Rights held by the minority that must be respected by
the majority.
13.Conformism: A tendency for people to act the same way, watch the same
television programs, read the same books, and so on.
14.Popular sovereignty: A regime in which the government must respond to the
wishes of the people.
15.Equality of opportunity: When all people are given the same chances to
compete and achieve so that those with talent and diligence will succeed,
whereas others will not.
16.Equality of outcome: When all people achieve the same result, regardless of
talent or effort.
17.Political equality: treating everyone the same way in the realm of politics.
18.Laissez-faire capitalism: The economic philosophy that the government
should not interfere with the economy.
19.Limited government: A government that places few restrictions on its
citizens’ choices and actions, and in which the government is limited in what
it can do.
20.Liberty: The freedom to do what one chooses as long as one does not harm or
limit the freedom of other people.
Constitution and Its Founding
21.Direct democracy: a form of government in which all the people meet
together at one place to make laws and decide what actions to take
22.Democracy: a form of government in which the people of a country either rule
directly or through elected representatives
23.Representative democracy: a form of government in which the people elect
representatives to carry on the work of government for them
24.Constitution: a written plan of government
25.First Continental Congress: A gathering of representatives from all thirteen
colonies in 1774; it called for a total boycott of British goods in protest
against taxes.
26.Second Continental Congress: The governing body over the colonies during
the revolution that drafted the Articles of Confederation to create the first
national government.
27.Articles of Confederation: America’s first national constitution, which loosely
bound the states under a weak national Congress.
28.Shay’s Rebellion: A 1786 uprising of Massachusetts farmers against high
taxes and debt.
29.Framers: The men who wrote the Constitution.
30.Three-fifths Compromise: A compromise on how to count slaves for
determining population; slaves were counted as three-fifths of a person.
31.Electoral College: The body that elects the president of the United States;
composed of electors from each state equal to that state’s representation in
Congress; a candidate must get a majority of electoral votes to win.
32.Separation of powers: Dividing up governmental power among several
branches.
33.Checks and balances: The ability of different branches of government to stop
each other from acting; designed to prevent one branch from gaining too
much power.
34.Reapportionment:The process of reallocating representation in the House of
Representatives after a census; some states will gain seats, while others will
lose them.
35.Census: Counting the population to determine representation in the House of
Representatives; the constitution mandates one every ten years.
36.Judicial review: The power of the courts to declare laws and presidential
actions unconstitutional.
37.Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas: Supreme Court case that
ended segregation and declared “separate but equal” to be unconstitutional.
38.Amendment: A change to the Constitution.
39.Bill of rights: The first ten amendments to the Constitution, which safeguard
some specific rights of the American people and the states.
40.Confederation: a loose association of states
41.Tyranny of the majority: when the majority violate the rights of the minority
42.McCulloch v. Maryland: A Supreme Court case that granted the federal
government extensive power to carry out its enumerated powers
43.Delegates: representatives
44.Delegated powers: powers given to the federal government by the
Constitution
45.Bicameral: consisting of two houses, as in a lawmaking body
46.Federalism: a system of government in which the powers of government are
divided between the national government, which governs the whole country,
and the state governments, which govern the people of each state
47.Federalists: supporter of the constitution who urged its adoption
48.Anti-federalists: opponents of the Constitution who urged its rejection
49.Ratification: approval by a formal vote
50.Compromise: a an agreement in which each side gives up part of its demands
51.Legislature: a lawmaking body of government
52.Supremacy clause: The part of Article VI of the Constitution that specified
that the federal Constitution, and laws passed by the federal government, are
the supreme law of the land.

FEDERALISM
53.Unitary government: A system of government where power is concentrated in
the hands of the central government
54.Federal system: a system of government where power is shred between the
central government and state and local governments.
55.Confederate government: a system of government with a very weak central
government and strong states.
56.Enumerated powers: The powers specifically given to Congress in Article I,
Section 8, of the Constitution (expressed powers)
57.Expressed powers: the specific power given to the Congress or the president
y the Constitution; also called the enumerated powers.
58.Necessary and proper clause: A clause at the end of Article I, Section 8, of the
U.S. Constitution that grants Congress the power to do whatever is necessary
and proper to carry out its duties; also known as the elastic clause
59.Elastic clause: Clause in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution that says the
Congress has the power to do anything that is necessary and proper in order
to carry out its explicit powers; also called the necessary and proper clause.
60.Implied powers: Powers given to the national government by the necessary
and proper clause.
61.Inherent powers: The powers inherent to the national government because
the United States is a sovereign nation.
62.Prohibited powers: The powers specifically denied to the national government
by the Constitution.
63.Commerce clause: A clause in Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution
that grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.
64.Reserved powers: The powers reserved to the states and the people in the
Tenth Amendment.
65.Concurrent powers: Powers exercised simultaneously by the states and the
federal government.
66.Full faith and credit clause: A clause in Article IV of the Constitution that
declared that state governments must give full faith and credit to other state
government’s decisions.
67.Charter: A document issued by state government granting certain powers
and responsibilities to a local government
68.Home rule: The granting of significant autonomy (freedom) to local
governments by state governments.
69.Special district: A type of local government designed to meet a very specific
need.
70.Dual federalism: A term to describe federalism through most of the
nineteenth century, where the federal and state government each had their
own issue areas, which rarely overlapped; also known as layer-cake
federalism
71.Layer-cake federalism: A term used to describe federalism through most of
the nineteenth century, in which the federal and state governments each had
their own issue areas, that rarely overlapped; also known as dual federalism.
72.Due process clause: Part of the Fourteenth Amendment, which declares that
no person can be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of
law; states cannot deprive citizens of their legal rights.
73.Equal protection clause: Part of the Fourteenth Amendment, which states that
states must give all citizens the equal protection under the law.
74.Privileges and immunities clause: Part of the Fourteenth Amendment, which
forbids state governments from taking away any of the privileges and
immunities of American citizenship.
75.Industrialization:
76.Globalization:
77.Cooperative federalism: A term used to describe federalism for most of the
twentieth century (and into the twenty-first), where the federal government
and the states work closely together and are intertwined; also known as
marble-cake federalism.
78.Marble-make federalism: A term used to describe federalism for most of the
twentieth century (and into the twenty-first), where the federal government
and the states work closely together and are intertwined; also known as
cooperative federalism.
79.New federalism: An American movement, starting in the 1970’s, to return
power to state and local governments, thereby decreasing the amount of
power held by the federal government.
80.Devolution: The process of the national government giving responsibilities
and powers to state, local, or regional governments.
81.Fiscal federalism: The practice of states spending federal money to help
administer national programs.
82.Grants-in-aid: A general term to describe federal aid given to the states for a
particular matter.
83.Block grants: A grant-in-aid with few restrictions or rules about how it can be
spent.
84.Categorical grants:Money given for a specific purpose that comes with
restrictions concerning how the money should be spent. There are two types
of categorical grants: project grants and formula grants.
85.Project grants: Categorical grant programs in which states submit proposals
for projects to the federal government and the national government chooses
which to fund on a competitive basis.
86.Formula grants: Grants in which a formula is used to determine how much
money each state receives.
87.Mandates: When the federal government requires states to do certain things.
88.Unfunded mandates: A mandate for which the federal government gives the
states no money.
89.Regulated federalism: The practice of the national government imposing
standards and regulations on state governments.
90.Preemption: The practice of the national government overriding state and
local laws in the name of the national interest.
91.Horizontal federalism: How state governments relate to one another.
92.Gibbons v. Ogden: An 1824 Supreme Court case that gave the federal
government extensive powers through the commerce clause.

THE PRESIDENCY

93.Executive privilege: The right of officials of the executive branch to refuse to

disclose some information to other branches of government or to the public
94.Executive order: An order issued by the president that has the effect of law.
95.Impeach: The power of the House of Representatives to charge an
officeholder with crimes; the Senate then holds a trial to determine if the
officeholder should be expelled from office.
96.Federal Register: A federal publication that lists all executive orders.
97.State of the Union Address: A constitutionally mandated message, given by
the president to Congress, in which the president lays out plans for the
coming year.
98.Reprieves: A formal postponement of the execution of a criminal sentence;
the president has the power to grant reprieves.
99.Pardon: A release from punishment from criminal conviction; the president
has the power to pardon.
100.Electoral College: The body that elects the president of the United States;
composed of electors from each state equal to that state’s representation in
Congress; a candidate must get a majority of electoral votes to win
101.Electors: A member of the electoral college
102.Winner-take-all system: An electoral system in which the person with the
most votes wins everything (and everyone else loses); most states have
winner-take-all systems for determining electoral votes.
 103.Veto: The power of the president to stop a bill passed by Congress from
becoming law.
104.Pocket Veto: An unusual type of presidential veto: When the president
neither signs no vetoes a bill, after ten days the bill dies if Congress is not in
session.
105.Majority: More than half
106.Plurality: More votes than any other candidate but not a majority
107.Veto message: A message written by the president, attached to a bill he or
she has vetoed, which explains the reasons for the veto.
108.Signing message: A message attached to a bill the president signs,
explaining his or her understanding of the bill.
109.Legislative agenda: A series of laws a person wishes to pass.
110.War Powers Resolution: Passed in 1973, the War Powers Resolution demands
that the president consult with Congress when sending troops into action; it
also gives Congress the power to force withdrawal of troops.
111.Cabinet: A group composed of the heads of federal departments and key
agencies that advises the president.
112.Kitchen Cabinet: An informal name for the president’s closest advisers.
113.Faithless Electors: An elector who votes for someone other than the
candidate who won the most votes in the state.
114.Chief of State: The ceremonial head of government; in the United States, the
president serves as chief of state.
115.Bureaucracy: An administrative way of organizing large numbers of people
to work together; usually relies on specialization, hierarchy, and standard
operating procedure.
116.Appointment Powers: The president’s power to appoint people to key federal
offices.
117.Constitutional powers: Powers of the president granted explicitly in the
Constitution.
118.Delegated Powers: Powers granted by Congress to help the president fulfill
his duties.
119.Inherent Powers: The powers inherent to the national government because
the United States is a sovereign nation.
120.Expressed Powers: The specific powers given (expressed)

POLITICAL PARTIES

121.Political party
122.Party identification
123.Independents
124.Party organization
125.Convention delegates
126.Party activists
127.Duopoly
128.Plurality
129.Winner-take-all system
130.Single-member districts
131.Multiple-member districts
132.Proportional representation
133.Realignment
134.Crosscutting
135.Critical election
136.Soft money
137.Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
138.McCain-Feingold bill
139.527 groups
140.Third party
141.Caucus
142.Machines patronage
143.Populists
144.Responsible parties
145.Party reform
146.Dealignment
147.Split-ticket voting
148.Divided governments
149.Candidate-centered politics
150.Party-centered
151.Splinter party
152.Spoiler