The United States Government Chapter 3 AHSGE (Vocabulary & Test Review)

1. The United StatesGovernmentChapter 3 AHSGE(Vocabulary & Test Review) AHSGE 2-1: Recognize and comprehend the impact of the influences of intellectual and religious thought on the political systems of the U.S. AHSGE 2-2: Identify and comprehend the provisions of essential documents of the U.S. government. ACOS 4: Describe the political system of the U.S. based on the Constitution and Bill of Rights. ACOS 5: Identify key cases that helped shape the U.S. Supreme Court. ACOS 6: Describe relations of the U.S. with Britain and France from 1781 to 1823.

2. Which describes the Second Continental Congress? • an organization of British merchants selling goods to the colonies • a meeting of colonists opposed to colonial independence • a union of British governors in the colonies • a group of colonists acting as a national government ANSWER: a group of colonists acting as a national government

3. The main purpose of the “elastic clause” in the Constitution of the United States is to • ? ANSWER: give Congress additional powers.

4. In the case of ___________ (1824), the Supreme Court ruled that Congress alone had the power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. This decision allowed the building of roads and canals to increase without the restrictions of state monopolies. • ? ANSWER: Gibbons v. Ogden

5. Montesquieu’s theory that government should be divided into three branches is called • ? ANSWER: separation of powers

6. Once the Constitution was ratified, Congress began working on changes to the Constitution to insure individual rights. Congress wrote ten amendments to the Constitution to insure basic rights and freedoms for American citizens. These first then amendments are called the _______________. • ? ANSWER: Bill of Rights

7. Proposing an amendment to the Constitution requires a ___________ majority vote in Congress or a special convention called by two thirds of the state legislatures. The amendment must then be ratified by the legislatures of 3/4 of the states or by a special convention. • ? ANSWER: 2/3

8. Use the chart below and your own knowledge to answer the question.Some Provisions of the Constitution of the United States • ? The information on the chart MOST related to the concept of ________________. ANSWER: separation of powers

9. Which describes the original purpose of the Magna Carta? • to bring religious wars to an end • to limit the power of the king • to finalize trade agreements between nations • to create a plan for governing colonies to create a plan for governing colonies ANSWER: to limit the power of the king

10. Which civil rights amendment granted women the right to vote? • ? ANSWER: 19th

11. Which branch of government makes the laws? • ? ANSWER: legislative

12. Study the list below.- inclusion of slaves in population counts- balance of representation for large and small states in Congress- strength of the national governmentThe issues shown in the box caused debate over the writing of the • ? ANSWER: Constitution of the United States

13. Study the passage below.When . . . Men have, by the consent [permission] of every individual, made a Community, they have thereby made that Community . . . with a Power to Act as one Body, which is only by the and determination of the majority. . . .The feature of the United States government MOST influenced by the idea discussed above is the right of • individuals to be considered innocent until proven guilty • state governments and the federal government to share power. • people to give a government its authority. • courts to review laws. ANSWER: people to give a government its authority.

14. After much debate at the Constitutional Convention, delegates arrived at a compromise which dividedCongress into two houses. In the upper house, the __________, each state was represented by two senators. In the lower house, the ___________, each state had representatives in proportion to it population. • ? ANSWER: Senate, House of Representatives

15. After eight years in officer, President Washington left office in 1797. His farewell address provided wise advice on several subjects such as • ? ANSWER: avoiding foreign alliances and the formation of political parties.

16. Supporters of the Constitution were called __________________. • ? ANSWER: Federalists

17. Study the information below. Social Contract Theory: government receives its authority from the people, and is given powers to maintain order and protect its citizens.Supporters of this theory would most likely agree with • restricting public knowledge of government processes. • requiring all citizens to work for the government. • giving unlimited powers to a government. • allowing citizens to change their government. ANSWER: allowing citizens to change their government.

18. Who published The Spirit of the Laws in 1748? He thought the functions of government should be divided among three branches of government and that powers and duties should be carefully defined and separated so no branch acquired too much power. • ? ANSWER: Baron de Montesquieu

19. The passage below is from a series of articles written to encourage support for the Constitution of the U.S. Use the passage and your own knowledge to answer the question.The Federalist, No. 51In order to lay a due foundation for that separate and distinct exercise of the different powers of government, . . . it is evident that each department should have a will of its own. . . . But the great security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department consists in giving to those who administer each department the necessary constitutional means and personal motives to resist encroachments [infringements] of the others. . . . In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. . . . We see it particularly displayed in all the . . . distributions of power, where the constant aim is to divide and arrange the several offices in such a manner as that each may be a check on the other.The author of the passage is encouraging support for the Constitution of the United States because it would • allow amendments to be made • protect individual rights. • allow branches of the government to have some control over each other. • provide political parties with a clearly defined role ANSWER:allow branches of the government to have some control over each other.

20. At the Constitutional Convention, the ______________ delegates presented a plan for the new government. Under this plan, representation in Congress would be based on a state’s population. This plan satisfied states with large populations, but angered small states would have less representation. • ? ANSWER: Virginia

21. What was the purpose of the Thirteenth Amendment? • ? ANSWER: to end slavery

22. Which statement below BEST describes the Articles of Confederation? • The Articles of Confederation established a weak central government consisting of a Congress only. • The Articles of Confederation established a strong executive branch with the right to levy taxes and control trade. • The Articles of Confederation established a government modeled after the English parliamentary model. • The Articles of Confederation established the concept of three branches of government later used in the Constitution. ANSWER: The Articles of Confederation established a weak central government consisting of a Congress only.

23. The ___________________ was the first colonial assembly. It was established on July 30, 1619 in Jamestown to represent the colonists in the state of Virginia. This assembly symbolized the authority of the people to limit the power of the king. This event was critical in developing state and national governments in the United States. • ? ANSWER: House of Burgesses

24. Which completes this diagram? • the right to trial by jury the right to confront witnesses • the right to trial by jury • the right to assemble peaceably • the right to be secure against unreasonable searches ANSWER: the right to assemble peaceably

25. The phrase “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union” begins which document? • ? ANSWER: the United States Constitution

26. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could NOT • make amendments with a unanimous vote of all states. • establish a post office. • levy taxes. • declare war and make peace. ANSWER: levy taxes.

27. Opponents of the Constitution were known as • ? ANSWER: Anti-Federalists

28. Which branch of government interprets or explains the laws? • ? ANSWER: judicial

29. Which civil rights amendment abolished slavery? • ? ANSWER: 13th

30. Which branch of government carries out and/or enforces the laws? • ? ANSWER:executive

31. The delegates of the Constitutional Convention were mostly pleased with the government described by the United States Constitution; however, before the Constitution became law, it had to be _____________ (approved) by the states. • ? ANSWER: ratified

32. After much debate at the Constitutional Convention, delegates arrived at the _____________________ which divided Congress into two houses. • ? ANSWER: Great Compromise

33. Changes in the Constitution can be made through the _________________ process. The writers of the Constitution recognized the need to change the document in order to keep the government flexible and current as circumstances changed. • ? ANSWER: amendment

34. The First and Second Continental Congress (1774-1781) brought together delegates from each of the thirteen colonies — except ________________. The First Continental Congress was the first time state representatives met together. These congressional meetings were a model for forming the United States government. • ? ANSWER: Georgia

35. What were the first political parties in the United States? • ? ANSWER: Federalists and Democratic-Republicans

36. The _________________ gives Congress the power to pass legislation that is “necessary and proper” for doing its job. • ? ANSWER: Elastic Clause

37. The writers of the Constitution knew that the limits of the powers and responsibilities of each branch were not always clear. To keep the branches equal in power, the writers developed a system of • ? ANSWER: checks and balances

38. Who proposed paying the revolutionary war debt in full? • ? ANSWER: Alexander Hamilton

39. I was a French philosopher who wrote The Social Contract in 1762. I believed that the right to rule should come from the people and not a king. Who am I? • ? ANSWER: Jacques Rousseau

40. Use the chart below and your own knowledge to answer the following question. -- The Constitution of the United States is different from the Articles of Confederation because it Some Features of the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution of the United States • ? ANSWER: creates a stronger national government

41. Which issue was at the center of the political differences of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton? • colonial independence • individual rights • slavery • federal power ANSWER: federal power

42. How is power divided under the system of federalism? • ? ANSWER: Power is divided between federal and state governments

43. Following the Revolutionary War, thirteen independent states were left to figure out how to govern themselves. The colonists’ chief loyalty was to • ? ANSWER: the state in which they lived

44. _________________ was an English philosopher who believed that government should derive its power from the people whom it governed. • ? ANSWER: John Locke

45. Use the passage below and your own knowledge to answer the question.Marbury v. Madison, 1803The powers of the legislature are defined and limited; and that those limits may not be mistaken or forgotten, the constitution is written. . . . It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. . . . If two laws conflict with each other, . . . the court must determine which . . . governs the case. This is of the very essence of judicial duty. If, then, the courts are to regard the constitution, and the constitution is superior to any ordinary act of the legislature, the constitution, and not such ordinary act, must govern the case to which they both apply. Thus, . . . the constitution of the United States confirms and strengthens the principle, supposed to be essential to all written constitutions, that a law repugnant [offensive] to the constitution is void [invalid]. . . . The ruling shown above gives the Supreme Court authority to • disregard parts of the Constitution of the United States • determine whether a law is constitutional • review bills before they become laws • approve members elected to Congress ANSWER: determine whether a law is constitutional

46. President Adams appointed _____________ (a Federalist) as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He became one of the most influential people to hold the office and established the supremacy of the national government over the states. His decisions showed that the Constitution could adapt to the changing size and needs of the nation. • ? ANSWER: John Marshall

47. Which political party favored states retaining authority, wanted power in the hands of the people because they felt the people were the safest store of power, thought the nation’s economy should be based on agriculture, and interpreted the Constitution strictly as giving powers only as stated? • ? ANSWER: Democratic-Republican

48. Which case established the Supreme Court’s power of judicial review? • ? ANSWER: Marbury v. Madison

49. The ____________ was a written document protecting the rights of English nobles. Although it didn’t protect the rights of a common man, it set the precedent that a king’s power was not absolute. • ? ANSWER: Magna Carta

50. Which writing expressed the idea that there should be an agreement between the people and the government that limits the rights and duties of each? Thomas Jefferson (lived 1743-1826) agreed with this writing, and it became one of the philosophies for colonial separation from England expressed in the Declaration of Independence in 1776. • ? ANSWER: Social Contract Theory