| A | B |
|---|
| 1787 | Year Constitution was written. |
| 3/5 Compromise | The decision of how the slaves would be counted in terms of representation in the House. |
| Popular sovereignty | The principlle that the people give the government the power to govern. |
| Checks and balances | System established to ensure one branch of government did not become too powerful. |
| Separation of powers | To ensure power did not reside in the hands of few. |
| Necessary and Proper Clause | To allow Congress to expand their powers when carrying out a law or amendment. |
| Bicameral | 2 chambers. |
| Role of legislative branch. | To creat laws. |
| Senate | Holds the trial to remove the impeached President. |
| House | Brings criminal charges against the President. |
| Date of national elections | First Tuesday after the first Monday in November. |
| 25 years | Age limit to run for House of Representatives. |
| 7 years | Citizenship requirement for House of Representatives. |
| 2 years unlimited | Term for House of Representatives. |
| 6 years unlimited | Term for Senate. |
| 30 years | Age requirment for Senate. |
| 9 years | Citizenship requirement of Senate. |
| Census | Population survey taken every ten years. |
| Examples of delegated powers | Tax, declare war, control $, impeach |
| Quorum | The minimum number of members that must be present for Congress to be in session. |
| Speaker of the House | Ranking member in House of Representatives chosen by the other members. |
| Vice President | President of the Senate |
| President Pro Tempore | In charge of Senate if VP is absent. |
| Chief Justice | Presides over the trial to remove the President from office. |
| Formula for electoral votes | # in the House + # in the Senate + 3 for D.C. |
| 538 | Total number of electoral votes. |
| 270 | Number of electoral votes necessary to win. |
| House of Representatives | Should the Electoral College end in a tie or neither candidate receive a majority of votes,this chamber selects the President. |
| Pardon | To excuse. |
| Reprieve | To postpone a sentence. |
| Commutation | To reduce a sentence. |
| Amnesty | A group pardon. |
| Cainet Members | Appointed by President and confirmed by Senate. |
| Secretary of State | 5th in line of presidential succession. |
| Number of Supreme Court Justices | 9 |
| Life | Term of S.C. Justice. |
| Role of Supreme Court | To interpret the Constitution. |
| U.S. District Courts | Federal trial courts. |
| Dissenting Opinion | An opinion that disagrees with the courts decision. |
| Majority Opinion | The court's decision. |
| Concurring Opinion | To agree or disagree with the court's decision, but for a different reason. |
| Original Jurisdiction | When a court can hear the case for the first time. |
| Marbury v. Madison | Defined judicial review. |
| Judicial Review | The court's power to determine and act of Congress or the President unconstitutional. |
| Federalism | Division of power between national and state governments. |
| Full faith and credit clause | All documents and court decisions will be honored in all states. |
| Delegated Powers | Powers written in the Constitution. |
| Reserved Powers | Powers saved for the states by the 10th Amendment. |
| Concurrent Powers | Shared powers between the national and state governments. |
| Prohibited Powers | Powers denied to both levels of government. |
| Ex post facto | Charging a person for a crime before a law existed to make that action illegal. |
| Extradition | The process of returning a criminal to the state of the alleged crime. |
| Vote needed to propose an amendment | 2/3 vote of both houses. |
| 34 | # of states needed to call a national convention. |
| 38 | # of state legislatures or state conventions needed to ratify an amendment. |
| Supremacy Clause | The national law will ALWAYS win if state law contradicts it. |
| 9 | # of states need to originally ratify the Constitution. |
| The Federalist Papers | Essays used to urge people to ratify the Consitution. |
| Anti-Federalists | People against the Constitution without a Bill of Rights. |
| National | Level of government the Bill of Rights was designed to protect citizens from. |
| First Amendment | Freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. |
| Second Amendment | The right to bear arms. |
| Third Amendment | The housing of soldiers. |
| Fourth Amendment | Freedom from unreasonable searches and siezures. |
| Fifth Amendment | Freedom from self-incrimination and double jeopardy. |
| Sixth Amendment | Speedy public trial, umbiased jury, and right to counsel. |
| Seventh Amendment | Common law suits. |
| Eighth Amendment | Freedom from cruel and unusual punishments and excessive bail. |
| Ninth Amendment | Rights reserved to the people. |
| Tenth Amendment | Rights reserved to the states. |
| Twelveth Amendment | Separated the Presidential and Vice Presidential elections. |
| Fifteenth Amendment | Universal male suffrage. |
| Eighteenth Amendment | Prohibition. |
| Nineteenth Amendment | Women's right to vote. |
| Twenty-first Amendment | Repealed prohibition. |
| Twenty-second Amendment | Limits the president to two terms of four years with a maximum of ten years in office. |
| Twenty-seventh Amendment | Limits placed on congressional pay. |
