Ballot accessElections in the United States refers to the rules and procedures regulating the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots. As the nation's election process is decentralized by Article I, Section 4, of the United States Constitution, ballot access laws are established and enforced by the states. As a result, ballot access processes may vary from one state to another.
Compromis des trois-cinquièmesLe compromis des trois-cinquièmes (Three-fifths compromise) est un compromis établi lors de la Convention de Philadelphie de 1787 entre les colonies du Nord et du Sud. Ce compromis considère, dans les règles de comptage des personnes représentées à la Chambre des représentants, qu'un esclave est comptabilisé à hauteur de trois cinquièmes d'un homme libre.
RedistrictingRedistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each decennial census. The U.S. Constitution in Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 provides for proportional representation in the House of Representatives. The Reapportionment Act of 1929 required that the number of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives be kept at a constant 435, and a 1941 act made the reapportionment among the states by population automatic after every decennial census.
AttainderIn English criminal law, attainder was the metaphorical "stain" or "corruption of blood" which arose from being condemned for a serious capital crime (felony or treason). It entailed losing not only one's life, property and hereditary titles, but typically also the right to pass them on to one's heirs. Both men and women condemned of capital crimes could be attainted. Attainder by confession resulted from a guilty plea at the bar before judges or before the coroner in sanctuary. Attainder by verdict resulted from conviction by jury.
Clinton v. City of New YorkClinton v. City of New York, 524 U.S. 417 (1998), was a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of the United States in which the Court held, 6–3, that the line-item veto, as granted in the Line Item Veto Act of 1996, violated the Presentment Clause of the United States Constitution because it impermissibly gave the President of the United States the power to unilaterally amend or repeal parts of statutes that had been duly passed by the United States Congress.
Alien and Sedition ActsLes Alien and Sedition Acts (en français : « Lois sur les étrangers et la sédition ») sont quatre lois qui furent présentées en 1798 par les Fédéralistes au Congrès des États-Unis, lors d'une guerre navale avec la France, puis ratifiées par le président John Adams. Ces lois, selon leurs proposants, étaient destinées à protéger les États-Unis des citoyens étrangers de puissances ennemies et de mettre fin aux attaques séditieuses visant à affaiblir le gouvernement.
Signing statementA signing statement is a written pronouncement issued by the President of the United States upon the signing of a bill into law. They are usually printed in the Federal Register's Compilation of Presidential Documents and the United States Code Congressional and Administrative News (USCCAN). The statements offer the president's view of the law or laws created by the bill. There are two kinds of signing statements. One type, which is not controversial, consists only of political rhetoric or commentary, such as praising what the bill does and thanking Congress for enacting it.
Affirmation (law)In law, an affirmation is a solemn declaration allowed to those who conscientiously object to taking an oath. An affirmation has exactly the same legal effect as an oath but is usually taken to avoid the religious implications of an oath; it is thus legally binding but not considered a religious oath. Some religious adherents hold beliefs that allow them to make legally binding promises but forbid them to swear an oath before a deity. Additionally, an individual may decline making a religious oath due to their personal beliefs, or those of their audience.
Implied powersIn the United States, implied powers are powers that, although not directly stated in the Constitution, are implied to be available based on previously stated powers. When George Washington asked Alexander Hamilton to defend the constitutionality of the First Bank of the United States against the protests of Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Attorney General Edmund Randolph, Hamilton produced what has now become the doctrine of implied powers. Hamilton argued that the sovereign duties of a government implied the right to use means adequate to its ends.
Necessary and Proper ClauseThe Necessary and Proper Clause, also known as the Elastic Clause, is a clause in Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution: The Congress shall have 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 United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof. Since the landmark decision McCulloch v. Maryland, the US Supreme Court has ruled that this clause grants implied powers to US Congress in addition to its enumerated powers.
