| A | B |
|---|
| Federal | at at the National level - the country - United States |
| Local | at the State or Town level - New York, Newburgh |
| republic | a nation/country run by the people - NOT a dictator |
| nation | a country - the United States |
| country | another word for "nation" - the United States |
| government | an organized group of people which run the affairs of a nation/country |
| State | often used to refer to those govt. powers at the Local level - New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania |
| separation of powers | when no one group or person can dominate govt. - they "share" |
| dictatorship | 1 person rule - people have no power or say |
| totalitarian | another term for dictatorship - total power |
| Executive | the Office of the President |
| Legislative | the Congress: House & Representative ... laws begin here [usually] |
| Congress | the Senate & the House of Representatives ... people elect representatives |
| Senate | each State is allowed 2 people - equal representation among states |
| Senators | person elected to the Senate ... each term is 6 years |
| House of Representatives | State representation is based on population - larger states such as New York & California get more votes than say Connecticut or Rhode Island |
| checks & balances | separation of powers ... 3 part government .. to prevent 1 person/group dominating |
| Baron de Montesquieu | French Enlightenment philosopher ... argued for a "separation of powers" |
| Judicial | the court system |
| Supreme Court | the highest court in the land - says whether a law is okay - if it violates the Constitution |
| Representatives | a person elected to the House of Representatives - elected for 1 4 year term - |
| unicameral | 1 group/house Congress |
| bicameral | 2 group/houses Congress - what we have today |
| Electoral College | people who actually ELECT/vote for the President |
| law | something people have to follow |
| bill | a PROPOSED law - it has to accepted/voted on |
| veto | the President refuses to sign a Bill into Law |
| pocket veto | the President doesn't act on a bill - he let's it die, so it doesn't become a law - occurs if a bill proposed during the last 10 days of Congress |
| Constitution | the written laws of the United States government |
| amend | to change something once it has been approved & put into affect - like a law |
| ratify | to approve |
| Bill or Rights | the 1st 10 Amendments of the U.S. Constitution - done to protect the people - also known as the 1st 10 Amendments |
| 1st 10 Amendments | another term for the "Bill of Rights" - the 1st 10 laws added to the U.S. Constitution |
| bureaucracy | people who do the daily work of running the government - secretaries, people at the Treasury Dept., tax collectors, Congress |
| caucus | a political meeting |
| primary election | people run for an govt. office - run against each other within their party - people of that party then vote/decide who will be the Party's Candidate |
| nominate | to select/choose |
| Election Day | 1st Tuesday in November - people go to the polls & vote |
| poll | a place where people vote - done in private |
| Secretary of Treasury | a cabinet position - advises the President - on taxes, how much money to spend |
| Secretary of State | a cabinet position - helps President & nation deal with other countries |
| Secretary of Defense | a cabinet position - advises the President on the role of the U.S. military |
| Attorney General | the #1 lawyer in the nation - tries cases for the U.S. government when crimes are committed aganst the U.S. (nation) |
