| A | B |
|---|
| government | the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public polices |
| public Policy | all of the goals a government sets and the various courses of action it pursues as it attempts to reach these goals |
| legislative Power | the power to make law and frame public policies |
| executive Power | the power to execute, enforce, and administer law |
| judicial Power | the power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within a society |
| constitution | a body of fundamental laws |
| dictatorship | a form of government in which the leader has absolute power and authority |
| democracy | a form of government in which supreme authority rests with the people |
| state | a body of people living in a defined territory who have a government with the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority |
| sovereign | having supreme power within its own territory, neither subordinate nor responsible to any other authority |
| autocracy | a form of government in which a single person holds unlimited political power, it's a form of dictatorship |
| oligarchy | a form of government in which the power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite |
| unitary government | a centralized government in which all government powers belong to a single, central agency, like England |
| federal government | a form of government in which powers are divided between a central government and several local governments, like the Untied States |
| division of power | Basic principle of federalism: the constitutional provisions by which governmental powers are divided on a geographic basis |
| confederation | a joining of several groups for a common purpose, similar to the European Union |
| presidential government | a form of government in which the executive and legislative branches are separate, independent, and coequal, like the United States |
| parliamentary government | a form of government in which the executive branch is made up of the prime minister, or premier, and that official's cabinet |
| compromise | an adjustment of opposing principles or systems by modifying some aspect of each |
| free enterprise system | an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods; investments that are determined by private decisions rather than by state control, and determined by the free market |
| law of supply and demand | states that when supplies of goods and services become plentiful, prices tend to drop. When supplies become scarcer, prices tend to rise |
| mixed economy | an economy in which private enterprise exists in combination with a considerable amount of government regulation and promotion. |
| limited government | basic principal of American government which states that government is restricted in what it may do, and each individual has rights that government cannot take away |
| representative government | system of government in which public policies are made by officials selected by voters and held accountable in periodic elections |
| Magna Carta | a great charter forced upon King John of England in 1215; established that the power of the monarchy was not absolute and guaranteed trial by jury and due process of law to the nobility |
| Petition of Right | document prepared by Parliament and signed by King Charles I of England in 1628; challenged the idea of the divine right of kings and declared that even the monarch was subject to the laws of the land |
| English Bill of Rights | document written by Parliament and agreed up on by William and Mary of England in 1689, designed to prevent abuse of power by English monarchs, forms the basis for much in American government and politics today |
| charter | a city's basic law, its constitution, a written grant of authority from the king |
| bicameral | an adjective describing a legislative body composed of two chambers, like Virginia and the US Congress |
| proprietary | organized by a person to whom the king had made a grant of land |
| unicameral | an adjective describing a legislative body composed of one chamber, like Nebraska |
| Albany Plan of Union | proposed by Benjamin Franklin in 1754 aiming to unite the 13 colonies, for trade, military, and other purposes; the plan was turned down by the Colonies and the Crown |
| delegate | individual(s) who are chosen to speak for a group |
| boycott | refusal to buy or sell certain products or services |
| repeal | to recall, to take back |
| popular sovereignty | basic principal of American government which asserts that the people are the source of any and all governmental power, and government can exists only with the consent of the governed |
| Articles of Confederation | plan of government adopted by the Constitutional Congress during the American Revolution; established a "firm league of friendship" among the States, but allowed few important powers to the central government |
| ratification | formal approval, final consent to the effectiveness of a constitution, amendment, or treaty |
| presiding officer | chairman of a meeting |
| Framers | group of delegates to the Constitutional Convention in 1787 who drafted the Constitution |
| Virginia Plan | called for a three branch government with a bicameral legislature in which each state's membership would be determined by its population |
| New Jersey Plan | called for a unicameral legislature in which each State would be equally represented |
| Connecticut Compromise | an agreement whereby a two chamber legislature was created, on e represented by population, one being equally represented |
| Three-Fifths Compromise | an agreement to count slaves as 3/5ths a person when determining the population of a state |
| Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise | an agreement that denied Congress the power to tax exports and affect the slave trade |
| Federalists | group favoring the ratification of the Constitution drafted in 1787 |
| Anti-Federalists | group who opposed the ratification of the Constitution drafted in 1787 |
| quorum | least number of members who must be present for a legislative body to conduct business |
