| A | B |
|---|
| amendment | A change in or an addition to a document. |
| Anti-Federalists | The Founders who were against ratifying the Constitution because they thought it gave too much power to the national government and did not protect the rights of the people. |
| appellate jurisdiction | The legal authority of a court to hear appeals from a lower court. |
| compromise | A way to settle differences by each side agreeing to give up some of what it wants. |
| electoral college | The electors chosen by each state who cast the official votes for president after a presidential election. |
| enumerated powers | Powers that are specifically granted to Congress in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. Tenth Amendment that prohibits states from discriminating against people by denying them the "equal protection of the laws." |
| equal representation | The system by which all states would have the same number of representatives in Congress, regardless of population. The Senate is based on equal representation. |
| Federalist Party | Led by Alexander Hamilton, this was one of the first political parties in America. The Federalist party supported a strong national government. It believed in a broad interpretation of the powers of the national government under the Constitution. |
| Federalist, The | A series of articles, written in1787-1788 by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, supporting the ratification of the Constitution. |
| Federalists | The people who supported the ratification of the Constitution and argued for a strong central government. |
| fugitive slave clause | That part of Article IV of the Constitution which said that slaves who escaped to other states must be returned to their owners. |
| general welfare clause | The clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 8) that states Congress shall provide for the general welfare of the United States. |
| Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise) | The plan accepted at the Philadelphia Convention that called for Congress to be composed of a Senate based on equal representation for each state and a House of Representatives based on population. |
| impeach | To charge a public official with a crime committed while he is in office. |
| necessary and proper clause | The clause (Article I, Section 8) that gives Congress the right to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out the powers given it in the Constitution; also called the "elastic clause." |
| New Jersey Plan | This plan, presented to the Philadelphia Convention, called for a one-house national legislature with each state having equal representation. |
| original jurisdiction | The legal authority of a court to be the first to hear a case. |
| pardon | Power of the president to grant pardons for acts of treason. |
| Philadelphia Convention | The meeting held in Philadelphia in 1787 at which the U.S. Constitution was written. |
| politics | The activities of (1) getting and holding public office and (2) forming government policy, including laws. |
| proportional representation | The system under which the number of representatives a state has in the House of Representatives is based on its population. |
| protective tariffs | Taxes on imported goods intended to protect the industry of the home country. |
| ratification | The formal approval of the Constitution by the states. |
| ratifying conventions | Meetings held in the states to approve the Constitution. |
| simple majority vote | One more than half of the votes |
| supremacy clause | The clause of the Constitution (Article VI, Section 2) that states that the Constitution, the laws passed by Congress, and the treaties of the United States are the nation's highest laws and must be obeyed by the states. |
| three-fifths clause | A clause in the Constitution, no longer in effect, that provided for counting each slave as three-fifths of a person for purposes of representation and taxation. |
| treason | Aiding and abetting the enemy. |
| veto | The constitutional power of the President to refuse to sign a bill passed by Congress. |
| Virginia Plan | This plan, presented to the Philadelphia Convention, provided for a national government composed of three branches. It also provided for a Congress with two houses, both of which would be based on proportional representation. |
