It is arguably the most revered document in the world. Countless countries, after revolution or liberation, have looked to it to guide their own nation-building processes. The Constitution, written in the wake of the failed Articles of Confederation and ratified by the states in 1789, outlines the structure and function of our government and also, through the Bill of Rights and subsequent amendments, guarantees our civil rights and liberties.
A substantial portion of the AP® US Government & Politics exam will test your knowledge of the three branches of government—executive, legislative and judicial—and how they interact, or ‘check’, each other’s powers. So let’s take a look at the Executive Branch—commonly thought of as the presidency.
The system of checks and balances is one that the United States has been founded as a method of decreasing corruption. This standard has been employed in other countries as well, with varying degrees of success as to that implementation. The AP® US Government exam will likely consider your understanding of what checks and balances are and how they relate to the entire system of government within the United States.
Public opinion is a pretty simple concept, but it is important to have a proper understanding of it for the AP® US Government & Politics exam. Today, we measure public opinion mostly through polling—taking small, representative samples of the population and quizzing them about their views on political issues, public policy and candidates via neutral questions.
Because it is unique to our political system, the AP® US Government & Politics exam is almost certain to test you on your knowledge of the Electoral College. What is the Electoral College, again? No—it’s not somewhere you get accepted to if you get a lot of 5s on your AP® exams.
Federalism is a unique idea, particular to American government. So, when you take the AP® US Government & Politics exam, you are going to be asked a lot of questions about what federalism is and how it works.
No matter which party controls the presidency or the Congress, the bureaucracy has continued to grow. In fact, one of the most conservative presidents in recent memory, George W. Bush, expanded the bureaucracy considerably in the wake of 9/11. An entirely new federal department, the Department of Homeland Security, was created to deal with domestic terror threats.
In American politics, there are official as well as unofficial institutions that shape the development of policy and the administration of government. The AP® US Government & Politics exam will test your knowledge of these institutions, as well as how these institutions work together.
The Supreme Court has issued thousands of opinions, but some of its decisions have either had a profound impact on American history or continue to influence American government today.