| A | B |
|---|
| government | the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies |
| legislative power | the power to make a law and to frame public policies |
| judicial power | the power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes whithin society |
| dictatorship | a form of government in which the leader has absolute power and authority |
| state | a body of people living in a defined territory who have a government with the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority |
| autocracy | a form of government in which a single person holds unlimited political power |
| unitary government | a centalized government in which all government powers belong to a single, central agency |
| division of powers | basic principle of federalism; the constitutional provisions by which governmental powers are divided on a geographic basis, between the National and State governments |
| presidential government | a form of government in which the executive and legislative branches of government are separate, independent, and coequal |
| compromise | an adjustment of opposing principles or systems of modifying some aspect of each |
| law of supply and demand | a law which states that when supplies of goods and services become plentiful, prices tend to drop. When supplies become scarcer, prices tend to rise |
| public policy | all the goals a government sets and the various courses of action it pursues as it attempts to realize these goals |
| executive power | the power to execute, enforce, and administer law |
| constitution | the body of fundamental laws setting out the principles, structures, and processes of a government |
| democracy | a form of government in which the supreme authority rests with the people |
| sovereign | having supreme authority within its own territory, not responsible to any other authority |
| oligarchy | a form of government in which the power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite |
| federal government | a form of government in which powers are divided between a central government and several local governments |
| confederation | a joining of several groups for a common purpose |
| paraliamentary government | a form of government in which the executive branch is made up of the prime minister and the official's cabinet |
| free enterprise system | an ecomonic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods; free market system |
| mixed economy | an ecomony in which private enterprise exists in combination with a considerable amount of government regulation and promotion |
