A: A group that seeks to elect candidates to public office.

A: The social rewards (sense of pleasure, status, or companionship) that lead people to join political organizations.

A: An electoral system with two dominant parties that compete in national elections.

A: This term applied to those who advocated ratification of the Constitution; they were centralizing nationalists who were convinced that America's survival required the new, stronger government outlined in the Constitution.

A: In his Report on Public Credit in 1791, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton recommended that the national debt be funded at par. This meant calling in all outstanding securities and issuing new bonds of the same face value in their place, and establishing an untouchable sinking fund to assure payment of the interest and principal of the new bonds.

A: During the American Revolution, he helped lead the assault at Yorktown that resulted in a British surrender. In the 1780s, he became a vocal critic of the Articles of Confederation, condemning them for their ineffectiveness. At the Constitutional Convention, he, with such notables as James Madison and Benjamin Franklin pushed for a powerful executive and federal supremacy. He rallied support for the new constitution through writing of several articles that, along with those of Madison and John Jay, became known as the Federalist Papers. With the Constitution ratified and Washington elected, he was appointed secretary of the treasury. As Treasury Secretary, he immediately confronted the main problem facing the new government, namely its finances. In building support for his program, Hamilton created the Federalist Party. In 1804, he was killed in a duel with his political nemesis, Aaron Burr.

A: A widely shared and consciously held view, like support for homeland security.

A: An informal and subjective affiliation with a political party that most people acquire in childhood.

A: A secret ballot printed by the state.

A: The ability of Congress to override a presidential decision. Although the War Powers Resolution asserts this authority, there is reason to believe that, if challenged, the Supreme Court would find the this in violation of the doctrine of separation of powers.

A: The events and scandal surrounding a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in 1972 and the subsequent cover-up of White House involvement, leading to the eventual resignation of President Nixon under the threat of impeachment.

A: The political equivalent of an indictment in criminal law, prescribed by the Constitution. The House of Representatives may do this to the president by a majority vote for "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."