HSA Review GuideGovernment

#1 The Three Branches of Government

The Legislative BranchRoles: establish U.S. Post Offices, regulate commerce, coin

money, protect patents, raise army, declare war, make all laws “necessary and proper.” – MAKE LAWS

Executive Branch Roles: enforce laws, fill vacancies, help with foreign

affairs, “State of the Union Speech”– 1x per year Judicial Branch Roles: Interpret the laws (judicial review)

– Deals with appeals, treaties, treason, maritime law and ambassadors

#2 Electoral College 435 electors from the House

+ 100 Senators + 3 D.C. Electors = 538 Electors in all.

But, if you divide 538 by 2, you then get 269, which is half of the votes, the candidate needs 270 votes to win the electoral vote.

A group of persons (presidential electors) chosen in each State and the District of Columbia every four years who make a formal selection of the President and Vice President.

If no candidate receives a majority – House of Reps – votes for Pres and Senate – votes for V.P.

#2 Advantages vs. Disadvantages to the Electoral College System

Helps ensure that the President is a true national leader.

Promotes majority rule while protecting minority interests.

Preserves federal system. Keeps politics moderate

because 3rd parties have little chance of winning.

Easily recounted Only messed up twice

Doesn’t allow people to directly elect the President.

If there are more than 2 candidates, the system may not work.

Person with the most votes may not win.

Complex

#3 Confederation and Unitary Systems of Government

Confederation: a loose union of independent states 1781-1789.

Unitary: a system of government that gives all key powers to the national or central government – under colonial rule – Revolutionary War

#4 Roles of the President

Chief of State: the president represents the nation and performs many ceremonial roles

Party Diplomat: the president directs the foreign policy of the United States, makes key decisions about the relations the United States has with other countries in the world

Chief Executive: the president sees that the laws of Congress are carried out – hires and fires

Commander in Chief: the president can back up their foreign policy decisions with military force by being the head of the armed forces

#5 Naturalized Citizen vs. Natural Born Citizen

Naturalized Citizen: a person who goes through a legal process by which they are granted citizenship and receive almost all the same rights as a natural born citizen

You have to have be approved of specific qualifications they have to be investigated and go through a preliminary hearing

Natural Born Citizen: a person who is born on the United States’ soil is considered a natural born citizen or if you are born to an American parent (when you are a natural born citizen you get all of your rights from birth)

#6 Due Process and the 14th amendment

Due Process: stated in the 5th amendment the government may not deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without following this process. (this means the government must follow proper constitutional procedures in trials and in other actions it takes against individuals. Arrest, Miranda Rights, bail, witnesses, probation, appeal, etc.

The 14th amendment protects the rights of all people who hold citizenship and states that no citizen can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without “due process” – no discrimination.

#7 Political Parties

Roles of Political Parties: #1 Goal – Winning elections to spread ideasRecruiting CandidatesEducating the publicOperating the GovernmentDispensing patronageReducing Conflict

Characteristics: a group of people with broad interests who organize to win elections, control government, and there by influence government policies – Democrats – workers / liberal, Republicans – owners / conservative.

#8 The Third Party

The third Party: any party other than one of the two major parties. In any election there may be more than one party running against the major parties (they rarely win elections) also called minor parties

Spoiler: a 3rd party candidate that steals votes from the major party and costs a major candidate the election

Examples: single-issue party, ideological party, splinter party, Bull Moose party

#9 What is the Free Market?

Free Market Economy: economic system in which buyers and sellers make free choices in the marketplace

Other Names: Capitalism Laissez-Faire- “to be left alone” Entrepreneurial systemMixed Economy: an economy where individual

businesses and the government plays a role in the economy (U.S. System)

#10 Traditional Economy

Traditional Economy: economic system in which customs dictate the rules for economic activity

Old system – trade / barter / gold

#11 Revenue and Income Tax

Revenue: the money a government collects from taxes or other sources (their income)

Income Tax: the tax levied on individual and corporate earnings (deductions and exemptions are deducted)

Due April 15th – government overspends!

#13 State Governments

State Governments: Maryland General Assembly – meets in Annapolis

General Assembly: 2 parts (bicameral) House of Delegates and Senate – pass laws the same way as Congress

Governor: Martin O’Malley chief executive – has many of the same powers as the President

Laws only apply to state of Maryland

#14 Types of Governments

Representative Democracy: the people elect representatives and give them the responsibility and power to make laws and conduct government

Totalitarian Dictatorship: the ideas of a single leader are glorified. (the government seeks to control all aspects of social and economic life) ex. Adolf Hitler

Authoritarian Governments: which citizens lack most civil rights and in which the government commits “numerous human rights abuses”

#15 Methods Used to Prevent African Americans from Voting

Gerrymandering– State governments draw district lines in order to limit the

voting power of certain groups.History: Eldridge Gerry (governor of Massachusetts) signed

a redistricting plan that gave his party a big political advantage over the Federalists.

#16 A Living Document

The Constitution is a living document because it can always be amended and changed (ratifying)

The Constitution has been amended 27 times

This provides a way to remain responsive to the needs of the changing nations –abortion, gay marriage, racism, etc.

The process is difficult so that only necessary and proper changes can occur.

#17 Plea Bargain

Defendant pleads guilty in a criminal trial for exchange for a lesser sentence

Benefits – less time and money spent and guilty verdict

Example – charged with 1st degree animal cruelty, distribution of narcotics – plea = misdemeanor drug possession and 3rd degree animal cruelty

In CIVIL cases this is called a Settlement = Cash to the victim

#17 Acquittal

Acquittal: judgment, as by a judge or a jury, that a defendant is not guilty of a crime as charged

#18 Interest Groups

Role of Interest Groups: support candidates that favor their ideas and they try to influence government officials to support certain policies – MADD, PETA, NRA, NAACP

Lobbyists: representatives of the interest groups and they try to convince members of Congress to support policies favored by the groups they represent

#19 Why do people fail to vote?

Voter Apathy– A “don’t care” attitude about voting.

2004 Election– 12% of registered voters did not vote– Why?

20% - too busy/conflicting schedules 15% - ill/disabled/family emergency 11% - not interested/vote would not make a difference 10% - did not like the candidates or issues Other reasons – being out of town, confusion about the

voting process, forgetting to vote, transportation issues

#20 Capitalism

Capitalism: an economic system providing free choice and individual incentive for workers, investors, consumers, and business enterprises

Pure Capitalism: an economic system where the government has no say in the economy the private businesses make all the decisions

#21 Double Jeopardy and Habeas Corpus

Double Jeopardy: retrial of a person who was acquitted in a previous trial for the same crime (citizens are protected from this under the 5th amendment, Due Process)

Habeas Corpus: Latin meaning- you (shall) have the body….. A defendant is innocent until proven guilty by the court, suspect must be brought quickly before a judge to understand the charges against them.

#22 Expenditure and Social Security

Expenditure: the money that is spent by the Federal Government (examples of expenditures are entitlements, defense, discretionary (cabinet requests, executive agencies), and interest on the public debt

Social Security: (ENTITLEMENT) a program designed to help elderly, ill, and unemployed people. Money for this program is funded by tax dollars out of workers’ paychecks (part of the largest percentage of expenditure costs for our nation)

#23 Federal Budget

Serves as a blueprint for the Federal Government’s spending

It shows how much will be spent of various national concerns such as defense and social welfare

President prepares the budget and Congress must approve it

#24 Federalism Chart – separated powers geographically -

#24 Continuation of Federalism Chart

Federalism: a system in which power is divided between the national and state governments

State powers: specific powers that are given to the states

Concurrent powers: powers that are shared by both the federal and state governments

#25 Executive Agencies

FDA – Food and drug administration – tests food and drugs for safety

FTC – Federal Trade Commission – regulates fair trade on the stock market

FCC – Federal Communications Commission- grants licenses to television and radio, regulates decency

FAAFederal about air travel.aviation administration.Makes laws EPAEnvironmental protection agency.Protects air, water, and soil from pollution.

#26 Protest and Rally

The 1st amendment protects the civil liberties of individuals in the United States (speech, press, religion, assembly)

The government cannot prevent individuals from freely expressing their opinions.

People have the right to assemble peacefully (rally) and disagree with the government (protest)

Some protests and marches are required to have a permit so they do not disrupt traffic, business, or safety.

#27 Principles of Democracy

Federalism- dividing powers between state and federal governments

Checks and Balances- each branch has some control over the others

Judicial Review- judicial branch reviews government actions to determine if they are constitutional

Separation of Powers- dividing powers between 3 branches of government

Popular Sovereignty- authority of government comes from the people

Limited Government- powers are limited due to the Bill of Rights

#28 Censorship

The FCC is a government agency with authority to regulate interstate and international communications by radio, television, telephone, telegraph, cable, and satellite.

When Can It Be Done? – 1. school newspapers– 2. issues of national security

#29 Juries

TWO TYPES –

GRAND JURY - a jury, at common law, of 12 to 23 persons, designated to inquire into alleged violations of the law in order to ascertain whether the evidence is sufficient to warrant trial. This is called an INDICTMENT.

PETIT JURY - a jury of 12 to determine the facts and decide the issue in civil or criminal proceedings. This is called a verdict.

#30 Civil vs. Criminal

Civil Cases Tort – result from

someone negligence - toys

Dispute against people

Person who is harmed (plaintiff) brings suit

Remedy – pay person or pay them for pain and suffering

Ex. – breech of contract, divorce, negligence, custody, and property

Criminal Cases Offenses against

society State brings suit 2 types – felonies and

misdemeanors Remedy – Jail, fine, or

death

Both

•Could deal with the same case

•Neither require a Lawyer

•Are based on Constitutional & common law

#31 Command Economies – population is TOLD what to produce

Command Economy: have a central authority that makes most of the economic decisions

Socialism: a partial command system in which the government influences economic decisions

Communism: a command system in which the central government directs all major economic decisions

#32 Taxes / Tariffs

Taxes: the money that people and businesses pay to support the activities of the government

Tariffs: tax placed on imports to increase their price in the domestic market

Taxes raise money (raise revenue) for the government for groups, interest on debt, entitlements, and cabinet requests

#33 Deficit

Deficit: the amount of money that the government spends over the amount that they have (this makes the government in debt) for the YEAR.

#34 Taxes

Corporate Tax: tax paid by businesses based on their profit from that fiscal year

Individual Income Tax: tax paid by an individual based on their taxable income for that fiscal year (total income-deductions-exemptions= taxable income)

Sales tax: tax paid on most products sold (0-8%) changes due to states

Excise Tax: tax on luxury items (cigarettes, beer, SUV’s) sin tax

#35 FED

FED: Federal Reserve System Central banking system of the United States also known as the Banker’s Bank

Job: They lend money to other banks, control interest rates, collect and shred money, inspect banks, and try to prevent inflation

Inflation: when prices continue to rise as income stays stable

#36 Isolationism vs. Internationalism

Isolationism: avoidance of involvement in world affairs

Internationalism: involvement in world affairs

The United States changed from Isolationism to Internationalism on December 7, 1941 because of the attack on Pearl Harbor

#37 World Bank / IMF

Both are part of the United Nations

World Bank: fight poverty and improve living standards by making low interest loans

International Monetary Funds (IMF): promote exchange rates

#38 Economic Interdependence

Economic Interdependence: when nations depend on each other for their economic well being (trading and exchanging)

Example – middle east vs. U.S. We need their oil and they need our money

#39 CIA / FBI

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): uses its own secret agents to spy on the world, paid informers, foreign news sources, and friendly governments to collect information about other countries, evaluates it, and passes it onto the president and other foreign policy decision makers

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Investigates U.S. criminals and arrests them

#40 NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization: military alliance of democratic states in Europe and North America formed after WWII (Soviet Union) whereby its members agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external parties

- Currently more of a trade organization working to eliminate trade barriers and expand the economy.

#41 Court Cases

TLO: 1980-1985 4th Amendment search and seizure. The Supreme Court ruled that school officials do not need warrants to search students or their property

BAKKE: 1974-1978 14th Amendment-civil rights, medical student against University of California for reverse discrimination

GIDEON: 1961-1963 6th Amendment right to free counsel. Decision ruled that whenever a jail sentence of 6 months or more is a possible punishment the accused has a right to a lawyer at public expense

Affirmative action: government policies that award jobs, government contracts, promotions, admission to schools, and other benefits to minorities and women in order to make up for past discriminations

#42 Forms of Government

•Both are usually authoritarian

•Monarchy: autocracy in which a king, queen or emperor exercises supreme powers of government

• Oligarchy: a system of government in which a small group holds power

#43 Executive Order

A rule issued by the president that has the force of law

Executive order #9066 – Japanese internment

Presidents use these to make quick changes in the U.S.

Others – integrate troops – Truman, Homeland Security - Bush

# 44 Business Cycle

Rising and fall of prices

Effected by supply and demand

# 45 Media

Watchdogs for democracy Forms of media – tv, radio, newspapers,

magazines, etc.. Informs people – should be unbiased.

# 46 Defense / Interest

Defense: A large amount of revenue the United States makes from taxes is spent on defense

Interest: The amount of money added to a loan. Currently our country is unable to payoff the principle of their loans and is only paying off the interest – around 250 billion a year.

# 47 CPI/GDP

Consumer Price Index (CPI): program that produces monthly data in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services

Gross Domestic Product (GDP): one of the measures of national income and input for a given country’s economy – This should grow every year if the country is doing well economically

# 48 Foreign Policy

Foreign Policy: is a set of goals outlining how the country will interact with other countries economically, politically, socially and militarily or how the country will react with non-state actors

# 49 WHO

World Health Organization (WHO): specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health

Studies world diseases / cures / and vaccination programs

# 50 Environmental Problems

Urban Sprawl creates many environmental problems such as pollution, overcrowding of cities, run off of chemicals, erosion

Wetlands being built upon Overfishing Overpopulation Pollution – Garbage / Noise / Etc.

# 51 Redress of Grievances

The colonists outlined grievances in the Declaration of Independence stating why they declared themselves independent from Great Britain

Many countries don’t listen to complaints from citizens. What are some ways we can complain to elected officials?

1. use the media – letters to editor, television 2. write a letter / e-mail 3. speak out at a public meeting 4. campaign for or against a candidate 5. vote

# 52 Red Cross

Red Cross: an international organization that cares for the sick, wounded and homeless in wartime or Natural disaster

Also know as Red Crescent in other countries

# 53 Court Cases

Miranda V. Arizona– “Right to Remain Silent, anything you say….”

Plessy V. Fergueson– Separate But Equal is Legal

Brown – Overturned Plessy– “Separate But Equal is NOT Legal”

# 54 Qualifications

President – 35 years old, Natural born citizen, live in the US for at least 14 years.

Senate – 30 years old, live in the US for 9 years, live in state you represent

House of Reps – 25 years old, live in the US for 7 years, live in the district you represent

# 55 Interstate Compact

Agreement between two or more states. Example – fishing / crabbing regulations

between Maryland and Virginia regarding the Chesapeake Bay

# 56 Campaigning Steps

Caucus Primary election Petition Nominating Convention Campaigning General Election Electoral College Inauguration Candidate becomes President

# 57 Demographics

Typical voters is a middle aged (45 – 60) white woman with a college degree.

Demographics are statistics about the population – age, numbers, education, salary, life span. These are compiled after the U.S. census every 10 years.

# 58 Deficit Financing

In order to balance our budget and completely reduce our national debt every American would have to pay $37,000 in taxes.

# 59 Opportunity Cost

Opportunity Cost: the cost of passing up the next best choice when making a decision.

Mr. Taylor chooses to hire a new teacher instead of ordering new books.

What’s the opportunity cost?

# 60 United Nations

United Nations: is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights and achieving world peace.

192 members

# 61 Sanctions

Limiting trade with countries whose views and actions conflict with ours.– No tourists to Cuba– Limiting sales to certain countries

# 62 Smart Growth

Remodeling or refurbishing existing buildings in lue of building new or expanding into new land.

# 63 NAFTA

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): is a trilateral trade block in North America created by the governments of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

# 64 Ambassadors

Government appointed representatives who are stationed in other countries.

Appointed by the President and confirmed by Congress

# 65 Court Cases

Tinker v. Des Moines – Peaceful demonstration on school setting is allowed.

– First Amendment McCulloch v. MD – State cannot tax a federal entity.

– Necessary and Proper/Elastic Clause Marbury v. Madison – Established Judicial Review

– Gave Supreme Court clout

# 66 Budget Steps

The President’s budget request, which kicks off the budget process each year, is brought to him by the OMB who collects all the financial requests from all the federal agencies.

Once the President creates the budget, with help from his financial advisors and the OMB he make his final revisions and sends the budget the congress.

The budget is reviewed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The CBO reviews the President’s proposed budget, develops its own budget, and approves spending and revenue bills.

If Congress / CBO makes any changes in the President’s budget then they create a budget “reconciliation,” a special procedure used in some years to facilitate the passage of spending and tax legislation.

The budget is then implemented after the President and Congress agree on a budget

# 67 Entitlements

Welfare programs that are paid for through taxes.

WIC, Medicare, Medicaid Continue to grow annually

# 68 Formal/Informal Amendments

Formal – Laws that are introduced at a National/Constitutional Convention and ratified by 3/4s of the States.

Informal – Any laws that are added or changed.

# 69 Voting Requirements

18 years old, U.S. citizens, citizen of state and registered.

Note – states control voting and some of your actions may disqualify you from voting.