| A | B |
|---|
| ratification | ratify means to approve like the Articles of Confederation; it took 9 states to ratify |
| Artcles of Confederation | continued the structure and operation of government as established under the Second Continental Congress; the Articles gave Congress power |
| autocracy | a system of government in which the power to rule is in the hands of a single individual |
| pork barrell legislation | laws passed by Congress that appropriate money for local federal projects |
| filibuster | a method of defeating a bill in the Senate by stalling the legislative process and preventing a vote |
| rider | a provision included in a bill on a subject other thatn the one covered in the bill |
| joint committee | a committee of the House and the Senate that usually acts as a study group and reports its findings back to the House and the Senate |
| conference committee | a temporary joint committee set up when the House and the Senate have passed different versions of the same bill |
| interstate commerce | trade among the states |
| supremacy clause | statement in Article VI (6) of the Constitution establishing that the COnstitution, laws passed by Congress, and treaties of the U.S. shall be the supreme Law of the Land |
| expressed powers | powers directly stated in the Constitution |
| implied powers | powers that the government requires to carry out the expressed constitutional powers |
| inherent powers | powers that the national government may exercise simply because it is a government |
| concurrent powers | powers that both the national government and the states have |
| censure | a vote of formal disapproval of a member's actions |
| anti-federalist | opposed the new Constitution |
| commerce | trade |
| public service | working for the government or county or state |
| authoritarian | a government in which citizens lack most civil rights and in which the government commits numerous human rights abuses. |
| totalitarian | government with a single leader or group like the Communist Party |
| limited government | constitution limits the powers of government by making explicit grants of authority |
| unlimited government | constitution does not limit the powers of government by making explicit grants of authority |
| appropriations bill | proposed law to authorize spending money |
| gerrymander | to draw district's boundaries to gain an advantage in elections |
| reapportionment | a process in which the population of each state determines the new number of representatives to which each is entitled |
| popular sovereignty | people are the source of government power |
