American Government

United States Supreme Court held that the city of Richmond's minority set-aside program, which gave preference to minority business enterprises (MBE) in the awarding of municipal contracts, was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. The Court found that the city failed to identify both the need for remedial action and that other non-discriminatory remedies would be insufficient.

Constitution gives the legislative branch the most extensive list of powers and the judicial branch the least extensive.

Constitutional provision in Article 1 Section 8 that declares that Congress shall have the power to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the US or in any department or office thereof.

Those powers of Congress not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution but derived by implication from the delegated powers.

"The powers not delegated to the US by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people."

anything not specified as being under the control of the federal government, is under the power of the state and local governments.

Constitutional provision that declares that the Constitution and laws of the United States take precedence over the constitutions and laws of the states.

Court formed the basis for the exercise of judicial review in the United States under Article III of the Constitution. The landmark decision helped define the boundary between the constitutionally separate executive and judicial branches of the American form of government.

This case established two important principles in constitutional law. First, the Constitution grants to Congress implied powers for implementing the Constitution's express powers, in order to create a functional national government. Second, state action may not impede valid constitutional exercises of power by the Federal government

landmark United States Supreme Court decision in the jurisprudence of the United States, upholding the constitutionality of state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities under the doctrine of "separate but equal."[

landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional.

busing of students to promote integration in public schools. After a first trial going to the Board of Education, the Court held that busing was an appropriate remedy for the problem of racial imbalance in schools, even when the imbalance resulted from the selection of students based on geographic proximity to the school rather than from deliberate assignment based on race. This was done to ensure the schools would be "properly" integrated and that all students would receive equal educational opportunities regardless of their race.

racial separation required by law

The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." Courts and commentators have tended to discuss each of these three areas of commerce as a separate power granted to Congress."

Categorical Grants are grants, issued by the United States Congress, which may be spent only for narrowly-defined purposes.Categorical grants are the main source of federal aid to state and local government, can only be used for specific purposes and for helping education, or categories of state and local spending.Categorical grants are distributed either on a formula basis or a project basis. For project grants, states compete for funding; the federal government selects specific projects based on merit. Formula grants, on the other hand, are distributed based on a standardized formula set by Congress.

a block grant is a large sum of money granted by the national government to a regional government with only general provisions as to the way it is to be spent

The process by which certain of the guarantees expressed in the Bill of Rights become applicable to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment

A constitutional right that is so important that government cannot restrict it unless it can demonstrate a compelling or overriding public interest in doing so.

Government need only show that it is acting in pursuit of a legitimate public purpose.

obligation to shift the accepted conclusion away from an oppositional opinion to one's own position

First Amendment guarantees freedom of expression.

The court has ruled that symbolic expression such as flying a flag or burning it should be treated the same as any other types of expression.

Exceptions to protection: obscenity, child pornography laws, speech that incites imminent lawless action, and regulation of commercial speech such as advertising

guards against unreasonable searches and seizures

Provision of the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution that declares that "No State shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Constitutional principal holding that government must follow fair and regular procedures in actions that could lead to an individual's suffering loss of life, liberty or property.

Judicial doctrine stating that when the police violate an individual's constitutional rights, the evidence obtained as a result of police misconduct or error cannot be used against the defendant.

outlaws slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. It was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, by the House on January 31, 1865, and adopted on December 6, 1865.

Its Due Process Clause prohibits state and local governments from depriving persons of life, liberty, or property without certain steps being taken to ensure fairness.  Adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.

prohibits each government in the United States from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude" (for example, slavery). It was ratified on February 3, 1870.

body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary.

guaranteed women the right to vote

policy distinctions among persons based on their race, ethnicity, and citizenship status

electoral system used in the south to prevent the participation of African Americans in the Democratic primary

government practice of testing the literacy of potential citizens at the federal level, and potential voters at the state level

bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors

Federal law that prohibits gender discrimination in programs and education institutions that receive federal funds.

school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish

Legislative measure that increased penalties for persons convicted of criminal offenses motivated by prejudice based on race, religion, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation.

The reasonable suspicion based on evidence that a particular search will uncover contraband