AP Gov Live Stream 2025 Lecture Notes

Introduction

• Welcome to the AP Gov live stream for 2025, designed to cover the entire course in one night due to changes in exam dates.
• The session will last approximately two hours.
• The lecture will cover key ideas from each unit in the AP Government curriculum.

Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy

Big Idea 1: Enlightenment Influence

• Foundational documents influenced by Enlightenment thought.
• Key concepts: Natural rights, popular sovereignty, social contract, republicanism.
• Limited government as a foundational principle.
• Illustrated in: Declaration of Independence (natural rights, social contract) and Constitution (republican form of government).

Big Idea 2: Models of Democracy

• Three models: participatory, elite, pluralist.
• Constitution includes elements of all three.
• Federalist 10 and Brutus 1 illustrate debates.

Big Idea 3: Federalists vs Anti-Federalists

• Federalists favored strong central government; Anti-Federalists favored states' power.
• Key documents: Federalist Papers, Federalist 10, Brutus 1.

Big Idea 4: Articles of Confederation

• Failed due to weak federal power, strong state power.
• Key event: Shays' Rebellion led to constitutional reform.

Big Idea 5: Constitutional Compromises

• Constitution is a bundle of compromises: Great Compromise, Electoral College, Three-fifths Compromise.
• Amendment process in Article 5.

Big Idea 6: Separation of Powers & Checks and Balances

• Federalist 51: independence of branches, checks on power.
• Three branches: Legislative, Executive, Judicial.

Big Idea 7: Federalism

• Sharing of power between national and state governments.
• Types of powers: Exclusive, Reserved, Concurrent.

Big Idea 8: Balance of Power

• Constitutional provisions: 10th Amendment, 14th Amendment, Commerce Clause, Necessary and Proper Clause.
• Key cases: McCulloch v. Maryland, U.S. v. Lopez.

Unit 2: Interactions Among Branches of Government

Big Idea 1: Legislative Powers

• Congress: enumerated and implied powers.
• Bicameral structure: House (435 members) and Senate (100 members).

Big Idea 2: Leadership and Committees in Congress

• Leadership roles: Speaker of the House, Majority/Minority Leaders, Whips.
• Types of committees: Standing, Joint, Select, Conference.

Big Idea 3: Efficiency in Congress

• Impacted by ideological divisions, representation models, redistricting, and gerrymandering.
• Key cases: Baker v. Carr, Shaw v. Reno.

Big Idea 4: Presidential Powers

• Formal powers: Veto, Commander-in-Chief.
• Informal powers: Bargaining, persuasion, executive orders.

Big Idea 5: Conflict and Checks on Presidential Power

• Presidential appointments and Senate's advice and consent.

Big Idea 6: Growth of Presidential Power

• Expansions under Jackson, Lincoln, FDR.

Big Idea 7: Presidential Communication

• Use of new technologies to communicate directly with the public.

Big Idea 8: Judicial Review

• Federalist 78 and Marbury v. Madison established judicial review.
• Structure: District Courts, Circuit Courts, Supreme Court.

Big Idea 9: Legitimacy of the Court

• Precedents, ideological shifts, judicial activism vs restraint.
• Key cases: Roe v. Wade, Dobbs v. Jackson.

Big Idea 10: Bureaucracy

• Structure: Departments, Agencies, Commissions, Corporations.
• Functions: Writing/enforcing regulations, issuing fines.

Big Idea 11: Delegated Discretionary Authority

• Bureaucracy's role in rulemaking and implementation.
• Important agencies: DHS, DOT, VA, DOE, EPA, FEC, SEC.

Big Idea 12: Checks on Bureaucracy

• Congressional oversight, power of the purse, judicial review.

Unit 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

Big Idea 1: Bill of Rights

• Protects individual liberties.
• Balance between personal freedom and public order.

Big Idea 2: Freedom of Religion

• Establishment Clause vs Free Exercise Clause.
• Key cases: Engel v. Vitale, Wisconsin v. Yoder.

Big Idea 3: Freedom of Speech

• Not absolute; restrictions require high justification.
• Key case: Tinker v. Des Moines.

Big Idea 4: Freedom of the Press

• Essential to democracy.
• Key case: New York Times v. United States.

Big Idea 5: Second Amendment

• Generally protects individual right to own guns.

Big Idea 6: Balancing Rights

• Amendments' application varies to promote public safety.

Big Idea 7: Selective Incorporation

• Applies Bill of Rights to states via the 14th Amendment.
• Key case: McDonald v. Chicago.

Big Idea 8: Balancing Liberty and Order

• Procedural and substantive due process.
• Key cases: Miranda v. Arizona, Gideon v. Wainwright.

Big Idea 9: Social Movements

• Civil rights, women's rights, LGBTQ rights.

Big Idea 10: Government Response

• Key policies: Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act.

Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs

Big Idea 1: Core American Beliefs

• Individualism, equality of opportunity, free enterprise, rule of law, limited government.

Big Idea 2: Political Socialization

• Influenced by family, school, peers, media, social environments.

Big Idea 3: Public Opinion and Polling

• Types: Opinion, Benchmark, Tracking, Entrance/Exit polls.
• Importance of sampling techniques.

Big Idea 4: Polling and Elections

• Affects candidates, voter decisions.
• Polling reliability and failures.

Big Idea 5: Political Ideologies

• Spectrum from liberal to conservative.
• Liberal emphasizes government role; conservative emphasizes tradition.

Big Idea 6: Public Policy

• Reflects participants' beliefs.
• Economic ideologies: Keynesian (liberal) vs. Supply-side (conservative).

Unit 5: Political Participation

Big Idea 1: Voting Rights

• Expansions through amendments: 15th, 17th, 19th, 23rd, 24th, 26th.

Big Idea 2: Voter Turnout

• Affected by structural barriers, political efficacy, election type, demographics.

Big Idea 3: Linkage Institutions

• Connect people to government: Political parties, interest groups, elections, media.

Big Idea 4: Two-Party System

• Winner-take-all system and absorption of third-party agendas limit third-party success.

Big Idea 5: Interest Groups

• Influence policy through lobbying, financial contributions.

Big Idea 6: Presidential Elections

• Process: Primaries, general election, electoral college.

Big Idea 7: Congressional Elections

• Incumbency advantage, gerrymandering impact.

Big Idea 8: Campaign Strategies

• Fundraising, long campaign seasons.

Big Idea 9: Campaign Finance

• Laws and court cases: FEC, Buckley v. Valeo, Citizens United v. FEC.

Big Idea 10: Media

• Gatekeeping role, watchdog role, influence on public opinion.