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| a form of government in which the interests of the people are represented through elected leaders |
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| a form of government in which power is held by a single person or monarch who comes to power through inheritance rather than election |
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| Constitution was created through: |
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| Articles of Confederation |
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| Sent to the states for ratification in 1777 and were the first attempt at a new American government. It was later decided that the Articles restricted the national government too much |
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| a system in which the powers of the government are restricted to protect against tyranny |
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| basics of articles of confederation |
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| no president or executive leader; unicameral congress; one vote per state; congress could not tax; powers such as making treaties were limited and not denied to the states too; states can coin money too |
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| As understood by James Madison and the framers, the belief that a form of government in which the interest s of the people are represented through elected leaders is the best form of government |
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| September 1786, 5 states sent delegates, decided to examine the effects of the current governmnt and devise a plan to fix them |
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| Common Sense: pamphlet and influential indictment of monarchy and an endorsement of the principles that fueled the revolution and underpinned the thinking of the framers |
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| natural rights, and self rule, equity |
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| the idea that government gains its lefitimacy through regular elections in which the people living under that government participate to elect their leaders |
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| also known as "unalienable rights" "life liberty and the pursuit of happiness", founders believed that upholding these rights should be the governments central purpose |
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| A series of eighty five articles written by alexander hamilton, james madison, and john jay that sought to sway public opinion toward the federalists position |
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| interests of the framers, regional economic differences, economic wants (creditors wanted government to pay off their debts) |
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| those at the constitutional convention that favored a strong national government and a system of separated powers |
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| those at the constitutional convention who favored strong state governments and geared that a strong national government would be a threat to individual rights |
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| the idea that having a variety of parties and interests within a government will strengthen the system, ensuring that no group possesses total control |
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| a plan proposed by the larger states during the constitutional convention that based represenation in the national legislature on population. The plan also included a variety of other proposals to strengthen the national government |
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| in response to the virginia plan, smaller states at the constitutional convention that proposed that each state should receive equal representation in the national legislature, regardless of size |
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| a compromise between the large and small states proposed by connectivut in which congres would have 2 houses: a senate with 2 legislatures per state and a House of representatives in which each states representation would be based on population |
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| a system of government in which legislative and executive power are closely joined. The legislature (parliment) selects the chieg executive (prime minister) who forms the cabinet from members of the parliment |
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| as defined in the 10th amendment, powers that are not given to the national government by the constitution, or not prohibited to the states are reserved by the states or the people |
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| national supremacy clause |
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| states that the constitution anf the laws and treaties of the US are the "supreme law of the land" meaning national laws take precedent over state laws if the 2 conflict |
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| the states decisions during the constitutional convention to count each slave as 3/5 of a person in a states population for the purposes of determining the number of house members and the distribution of taxes |
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| the first 10 amendments to the constitution; they protect individual rights and liberties |
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| grants congress the power to pass all laws related to one of its expressed powers also known as elastic clause |
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| negative or checking power over the other branches that allows Congress to remove the president, vp, or other "officers of the US" for abuses of power |
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| the constitutional power of congress to raise and spend money . Congress can use this as a negative or checking power over the other branches by freezing or cutting their funding |
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| the supreme courts power to strike down a law or executive branch action that it finds unconstitutional |
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| the executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America |
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| gives congress the right to regulate commerce among the states |
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| powers explicitly granted to congress, the president, or the supreme court in the first 3 articles of the constitution |
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| powers supported by the constitution that are not expressly stated in it |
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| constitutional revolution |
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| a significant change in the constitutin that may be accomplished either through amendments or shifts in the Supreme Court's interpretations of the constitution |
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| Sources of conflict at the constitutional convention |
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| -after failed articles, framers knew they needed a stronger national government |
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| compromise achieved at the Constitutional Convention (5) |
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| political compromises between competing interests: Majority rule vs minority rights, small states vs large states, legislative power vs executive power, national power vs state and local power, slave vs nonslave states |
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| most important part of constitution |
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| separation of powers and checks and balances |
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