Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
31 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
|
1
· Know the number of members in the House and in the Senate
· Know the most powerful member in the House and the most powerful member in the Senate
· Know the term of office of House members and Senators |
· 435 House members · 100 Senate members
· Speaker of the House · Senate Majority Leader
· 2 yrs. term in the House (every midterm election every member is up for election/ re-election) · 6 yrs. term in the Senate (every midterm election 1/3 of members are up for election/re-election) |
|
|
2
· Know the leadership structure in congressional committees
· Know which chamber can impeach the president
· Know what voting majority in Congress is needed to override a presidential veto
· Know the congressional agencies created to assist congress and their respective functions
· Know what gerrymandering is |
· Bicameral · Chair person (most important person in the House from the leading political party) · Ranking member (most senior person in the House from the minor political party)
· House of Representatives impeaches the president · Senate holds a trial
· Super Majority consisting of 2/3 votes from the House and 2/3 votes from the Senate
· Congressional Budget Office: provides congress with non partisan analyses for economic and budget decisions · Gov't Accountability Office: audits books · Congressional Research Service: provides congress with non partisan policy and legal analysis
· Gerrymandering: occurs when a congressional district's boundaries are drawn to maximize the influence of a certain group or political party. |
|
|
3
· Appreciate the "binary" character of presidential veto power
· Know which chamber a bill designed to raise revenue first goes to
· Know the size of the voting majority that can end a filibuster in the Senate
· Know the ways by which congress can exercise oversight over the federal bureaucracy |
· President cannot "pick and choose" lines out of a bill to veto, he must veto or accept the bill in its entirety
· The House of Representatives
· 60 senators (3/5 super majority; cloture motion)
· Checks and Balances · By holding the funding that that will support the bureaucracy · Congress can call bureaucrats to hearings where they must testify under oath · Congress can initiate and conduct investigations on any bureaucracy that it deems necessary |
|
|
4
· Know the categories of officials who typically need senate confirmation before they can assume office |
· Non White House EPO · Secretaries · Federal Judges · Ambassadors · Chief of Staff |
|
|
5 · Characterize the voting behavior of a member of Congress |
· Attitudionally to please one's concious (trustee) · Representationally to please the people (delegate) · Organizationally to please their party, not objective (partisan) |
|
|
6
· Know the age requirement to become President
· Know the maximum number of years a person can serve as President
· Appreciate the fact that a presidential candidate must win a majority (not a mere plurality) of electoral college votes to win presidency outright
· Know which chamber decides who becomes president and vice-president in a contingent election
· Understand the role of the president as chief of state |
· 35 years of age
· 8 years ( two 4yr temrs) or 10 years if he/she had to serve 2 years for a president who died
· 270 majority of electoral college votes
· House votes for President (26 state delegation votes needed to win) · Senate votes for vice president (51 state delegation votes needed to win)
· performs ceremonial activities as a personal symbol of the nation · decorates war heroes · receives foreign heads of state |
|
|
7 · Know about the White House EOP and the Non White House EOP · Some of the key offices respectively in each · Their functions · Which officials require Senate confirmation under the EOP |
· Executive Office of the President established in 1939 · White House EOP - do not need senate confirmation - offices are within the White House - Chief of staff: (oversees all EOP offices) - Press secretary: (meets with reporters and makes public statements for the president) - White House Counsel: (advises the president in all legal issues concerning him and his administration) - Congressional Liaison: (facilitates communication between lawmakers and agencies) - Office of the First Lady · Non White House EOP - subject to Senate confimation after president invitation - offices are located elsewhere outside of the White House - Director Office of Management and Budget: (produce the president's budget) - Ambassador Office of U.S. Trade Representative: (developes and coordinates U.S. international trade and oversees negotiations with other countries) - Council of Economic Advisors: (prepares the anual economic report of the President) · Non White House EOP |
|
|
8
· Know the president whose death contributed to pressure to create a civil service
· Know the ideal of the civil service
· Know the title of heads of executive departments in the federal bureaucracy
· Know the role Andrew Jackson played in "spoils politics"
· Know which agencies are gov't coorporations |
· James A. Garfield
·
· The Secretary
· He was known as the king of spoils for giving positions out to his friends rather than for merit
· Tennessee Valley Authority · Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation · National Railroad Passenger Corporation · U.S. Postal Service |
|
|
9 · Know officials in the presidential succession line |
· Vice President (Biden) · Speaker of the House (Ryan) · President Pro Tempore of the Senate (Hatch) · Secretary of State (Kerry) |
|
|
10
· Know the principle source of federal law |
· The U.S. constitution · U.S. Courts Decisions and Rulings · Acts of Congress · Treaties · Rules created by U.S. regulatory agencies |
|
|
11
· Know the number of judges on each of the three tiers of constitutional courts
· Know examples of legislative courts
· Know the distinctions between constitutional courts and legislative courts
· Know the checks on constitutional courts |
· U.S. Supreme Court - 1 Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices · U.S. Courts of Appeals - 3 judges · U.S. District Courts - 1 judge and 1 hurt
· The U.S. Tax Court · The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces · The Veterans Court of Appeals
· Legislative Courts - Were provided for under article 1 of the U.S. constitution - Are created at congress discretion - Judges serve fixed terms without salary protection
· Constitutional Courts - Were provided for under article 3 of the U.S. constitution - congress was obligated to create them - Judges serve for life under good behavior with salary protection - Have broad jurisdiction
· Posibility of Impeachment · Posibility of expanding the number of justices of the supreme court · Posibility of amending the constitution of a stature · Posibility of congress or president ignoring the decision · Possible salary freeze |
|
|
12
· Know the principle upheld by the Marshall Court in McCulloch vs. Maryland (1918)
· Know how Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) fared in the Brown decision (1954)
· Know the landmark cases by which the doctrine of judicial review was born
· Know the case in which judicial review was used the second time ever to strike down an act of congress
· Know the decision that led to forced bussing of students to end racial segregation in public schools |
· Federal Supremacy
· Plessy was overturned
· Marbury vs. Madison (1803)
· Scott vs. Standford (1857)
· Brown vs. Board of education of Topeka Kansas (1954) |
|
|
13 · Know the jurisdictions of the three levels of constitutional courts (original or appelate authority) · Know which court has the authority to decide cases involving states · Know which court issues a writ of certiorari · Know the courtshere the Rule of Four applies |
· U.S. Supreme Court - Original and Appellate Jurisdiction · U.S. Courts of Appeals - Appellate Jurisdiction · U.S. District Courts - Original Jurisdiction · U.S. Supreme Court · U.S. Supreme Court - issues an offer to the court below to bring records of the case for evaluation · U.S. Supreme Court - persuade 4 of 9 judges to hear your case |
|
|
14 · Know what cases can be heard in a federal court |
· Cases of Federal Question - U.S. constitution - Laws passed by congress - treaties made by the U.S. - Rules created by independent regulatory agencies · Diversity of citizenship (different states) in civil action where the amount in view is at least $75,00 |
|
|
15
· Know the distinctions between civil action and criminal action |
· Criminal Proceedings - Convicted for felonies or misdemeanors - For felonies you face possible time in prison and up to death sentence in some states - For misdemeanors time in prison cannot exceed 1 yr - State will always be part of the action pressing the issue - For the state to prevail it must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt
· Civil Proceedings - Held libel for contracts, torts, and property - Usually only pay a fine - State does not have to be part of the action - Plantiff vs. Defendant, in order for the defendant to prevail he needs to prove his case with preponderance of the evidence (just enough evidence on his side, not beyond a reasonable doubt) |
|
|
16
· Know what the era and policy of isolationism called for
· Know the factors that made that policy appear reasonable and doable
· Know what brought the era to an end |
· Avoid entangling alliances while insisting on the right to engage in international trade · The need to avoid alienating sections of America's diverse population · U.S. did not want to get caught in Europe's crossfires · U.S. was occupied with the challenge of pacifying the land from sea to shining sea in the spirit of manifest destiny · The U.S. was separated from Europe by the great Atlantic ocean · The era of internationalism which began with the cold war |
|
|
17
· Know the Monroe Doctrine
· Know the Truman Doctrine |
· Monroe Doctrine: - Sphere of influence - Restablish legitimacy - Those who try to recolonize the Americas will be viewed as enemies and America will act accordingly
· Truman Doctrine: - Containment where the U.S. and the Soviet Union sought to limit the influence of eachother abroad |
|
|
18
· Know what America's long term foreign policy priorities are |
· Waging the war against international terrorism · Promoting global economy · Promoting global environment · Preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD's) specially nuclear weapons |
|
|
19
· Know why the President dominates congress in the formulation of the U.S foreign policy |
· President has more control over the foreign policy/national security bureaucracy
· Congress knows that foreign affairs activity is not under good light with the people so they give the president leadway in the matter
· President can adroitly use executive agreements
· President can adroitly use executive orders |
|
|
20 · Know key departments and agencies of the national security bureucracy |
· CIA · State Department · Defense Department · National Security Agency · National Intelligence Agency · National Security Council |
|
|
21
· Know a very important factor why African-American political leaders hesitate to vote in favor of war
· Know weather or not the secretaries of the service departments can be in active military service
· Know the official (in uniform) who is the highest military Advisor to the president
· Know the name by which the headquarters of the U.S. military establishment is commonly known |
· 1/3 of the army is made of African Americans · No, secretaries of the service departments cannot be in active military service · Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff · The Pentagon is the headquarter of the U.S. military establishment |
|
|
22 · Know where the defense spending is situated in the national budget · Know the role of special interest in the defense allocation · Know the two contrasting views in the defense spending · Know what claims the largest share of the defense dollar · Know the reasons for cost overruns in the acquisition of big ticket items |
· Discretionary Portion · Exaggerate the outside threats to promote defense spending · Boondoggle · Money Well Spent · Non Discretionary Portion (entitlements) · Sincere underestimation of true cost · Dishonest underestimation of true cost · Stretching out · "Sole" sourcing (oligopoly) · Goldplating |
|
|
23 · Know the fundamental branches into which California state govt is divided · Know whether these branches are required by the U.S. state constitution · Know the type of legislature California has · Know some important accomplishments of the progressive movement in California · Know the size of California's electoral college |
· Legislative · Executive · Judicial · No they're not · Professional legislature · Direct democracy · Non partisan elections · 55 |
|
|
24 · Know the several hats that California governor puts on · Know the nature of his/her veto power |
· Commander of California's national guard · Chief executive office · Chief legislator · Party chief · The governor has line item veto power (can pick and choose lines out of a bill to veto) |
|
|
25 · Know who unltimately has the power to amend the constitution of California |
· We the people |
|
|
26 · Know the ultimate authority to settle disputes over the interpretation of the constitution and laws of California |
· Supreme court of California |
|
|
27 · Understand why one candidate can win more popular votes than another and yet lose the presidential election |
· The Electoral College works on a winner-take-all by the state |
|
|
28
· Know the major political entities that have constitutional standing to participate in the American system of check and balances |
· Legislative · Executive · Judicial · Reserved powers of the state |
|
|
29 · Know the technology that has made it possible for average Americans to participate more easily today in the political process than in the past |
· The internet |
|
|
30 · Know the major themes in the political and economic development of California · Know some of the more important names or ideas associated with the themes |
· Gold rush (John Sutter) · Railroad (Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins, Leland Standford, Charles Crocker) · Compromise of 1850 (California entered as a free state, slave trade ended in Washington DC, New Mexico and Utah have popular sovereignty to decide whether or not they can enter as free or slave states) |
|
|
Part 2
· Know the three fundamental pillars on which the non-proliferation treaty stands
· Know the pillar the United States accused Iran of violating before the Iraq nuclear deal
· Know the pillar Iran insisted its nuclear programs conform to
· Know the two categories of signatories
· Know the year the treaty entered into Force
· Know the American Ally widely believed to have nuclear weapons which is not a signatory to the NPT
· Know the country which withdrew from the NPT and with which the United States has been in negotiation to give up its nuclear weapons but has refused so far |
· Non-proliferation · Peaceful use of nuclear technology · Nuclear disarmament
· Non proliferation
· Peaceful use of nuclear technology
· Nuclear Weapon Members · Non Nuclear Weapon Members
· March 4 1970
· Israel
· North Korea |
