| A | B |
|---|
| amendment | A new provision in the Constitution that has been ratified by the states. |
| Antifederalists | Those who favor a weaker national government. |
| Articles of Confederation | A weak constitution that governed America during the Revolutionary War. |
| bill of attainder | A law that declares a person, without trial, to be guilty of a crime. |
| Bill of Rights | The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution. |
| checks and balances | Authority shared by three branches of government. The power of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government to block some acts by the other two branches. (See alsoseparation of powers.) |
| coalition | An alliance of factions. |
| concurrent powers | Powers shared by the national and state governments. |
| Constitutional Convention | A meeting in Philadelphia in 1787 that produced a new constitution. |
| enumerated powers | Powers given to the national government alone. |
| ex post facto law | A law that makes an act criminal although the act was legal when it was committed. |
| faction | A group with a distinct political interest. |
| federalism | Government authority shared by national and local governments. |
| Federalists | Those who favor a stronger national government. |
| Great (or Connecticut) Compromise | Plan to have a popularly elected House based on state population and a state-selected Senate, with two members for each state. |
| habeas corpus | An order to produce an arrested person before a judge. |
| judicial review | The power of the courts to declare laws unconstitutional. |
| line-item veto | An executive’s ability to block a particular provision in a bill passed by the legislature. |
| New Jersey Plan | Proposal to create a weak national government. |
| republic | A government in which elected representatives make the decisions. |
| reserved powers | Powers given to the state governments alone. |
| separation of powers | Constitutional authority is shared by three different branches of government. |
| Shays’s Rebellion | A 1787 rebellion in which ex–Revolutionary War soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes. |
| unalienable | A human right based on a nature or God. |
| Virginia Plan | Proposal to create a strong national government. |
