11 - Congress

Question 1

incumbents

Answer 1

Those already holding office. In congressional elections, incumbents usually win.

Question 2

casework

Answer 2

Activities of members of Congress that help constituents as individuals, particularly by cutting through bureaucratic red tape to get people what they think they have a right to get.

Question 3

pork barrel

Answer 3

Federal projects, grants, and contracts available to state and local governments, businesses, colleges, and other institutions in a congressional district.

Question 4

bicameral legislature

Answer 4

A legislature divided into two houses. The U.S. Congress and all state legislatures except Nebraska’s are bicameral.

Question 5

House Rules Committee

Answer 5

The committee in the House of Representatives that reviews most bills coming from a House committee before they go to the full House.

Question 6

filibuster

Answer 6

A strategy unique to the Senate whereby opponents of a piece of legislation use their right to unlimited debate to prevent the Senate from ever voting on a bill. Sixty members present and voting can halt a filibuster.

Question 7

Speaker of the House

Answer 7

An office mandated by the Constitution. The Speaker is chosen in practice by the majority party, has both formal and informal powers, and is second in line to succeed to the presidency should that office become vacant.

Question 8

majority leader

Answer 8

The principal partisan ally of the Speaker of the House, or the party’s manager in the Senate. The majority leader is responsible for scheduling bills, influencing committee assignments, and rounding up votes on behalf of the party’s legislative positions.

Question 9

whips

Answer 9

Party leaders who work with the majority leader or minority leader to count votes beforehand and lean on waverers whose votes are crucial to a bill favored by the party.

Question 10

minority leader

Answer 10

The principal leader of the minority party in the House of Representatives or in the Senate.

Question 11

standing committees

Answer 11

Separate subject-matter committees in each house of Congress that handle bills in different policy areas.

Question 12

joint committees

Answer 12

Congressional committees on a few subject-matter areas with membership drawn from both houses.

Question 13

conference committees

Answer 13

Congressional committees formed when the Senate and the House pass a particular bill in different forms. Party leadership appoints members from each house to iron out the differences and bring back a single bill.

Question 14

select committees

Answer 14

Congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation.

Question 15

legislative oversight

Answer 15

Congress’s monitoring of the bureaucracy and its administration of policy, performed mainly through hearings.

Question 16

committee chairs

Answer 16

The most important influencers of the congressional agenda. They play dominant roles in scheduling hearings, hiring staff, appointing subcommittees, and managing committee bills when they are brought before the full house.

Question 17

seniority system

Answer 17

A simple rule for picking committee chairs, in effect until the 1970s. The member who had served on the committee the longest and whose party controlled the chamber became chair, regardless of party loyalty, mental state, or competence.

Question 18

caucus

Answer 18

A group of members of Congress sharing some interest or characteristic. Many are composed of members from both parties and from both houses.

Question 19

bill

Answer 19

A proposed law, drafted in legal language. Anyone can draft a bill, but only a member of the House of Representatives or the Senate can formally submit a bill for consideration.