AP Gov Ch. 6 Chris Bauder Flashcards
bicameral legislature
a two-house legislature
The framers of America created the bicameral legislature
apportionment
the process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial census
The process of apportionment adjusts the number of seats allotted to each state.
bill
a proposed law
The bill was not passed because it did not have the approval of both houses.
impeachment
the power delegated to the house of representatives in the constitution to charge the president, vice president, or other civil officers, including federal judges, with treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.
When Bill clinton was president, he was impeached for lying under oath.
Edmund Burke
conservative british political philosopher of the 18th century who articulated the view that elected representatives should act as “trustees” and use their own best judgement when voting.
Back in the old days, Edmund Burke was a conservative british philosopher.
trustee
role played by an elected representative who listens to constituents would want, regardless or personal opinions: may refer to an elected representative to congress or a representative to the party convention
The representative was a trustee of another government official.
delegate
role played by a representative who votes the way his or her constituent would want, regardless or personal opinions; may refer to an elected representative to the party convention
Delegates are people that vote for what their party tells them to vote for.
politico
an elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate
The manager of the mayor’s campaign is politico.
incumbency
already holding an office
Incumbency is what officials use to help hold their office.
redistricting
the process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state
Redistricting is the process of redrawing congressional districts to show changes of seats allotted to the states.
gerrymandering
the drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district
Gerrymandering gives political parties an advantage over another group.
majority leader
the head of the party controlling the most seats in the house of representatives or the senate; is second in authority to the speaker of the house
The majority leader represents the head of the party controlling the most seats.
minority leader
the head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the house of representatives or the senate
The minority leader helps the speaker schedule proposed legislation for debate.
whip
party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, takes vote counts on key legislation, prepares summaries of ills, and acts as a communications link within a party
A whip is always in the know of what’s going on in his political party.
redistricting
the process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state
Redistricting is the process of redrawing congressional seats to be counted.
president pro tempore
the official chair of the senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party
Mitch McConnell is the president pro tempore.
standing committee
committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one congress to the next
Standing committees are bills referred to for consideration.
joint committee
standing committee that includes members from both houses of congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies
The joint committee is the standing committee that includes members from both houses of congress.
conference committee
special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the house and senate
A Conference committee comprises members from the house and the senate.
select (or special) committee
temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose
A special committee was organized for the investigation of 9/11.
hillary clinton
first female major party candidate for president of the united states, a democrat, who ran against president donald j. trump in 2016
Hillary Clinton was formerly the first lady of the united states.
house committee on rules
the influential “rules committee” determines the scheduling and conditions, such as length of debate and type of allowable amendments, for all bills in the house of representatives
The house committee on rules plays a very important role in the law making process.
discharge petition
petition that gives a majority of the house of representatives the authority to bring an issue to the floor in the face of committee inaction
If a discharge bill is signed by a majority of 218 can force bills out of a house committee.
seniority
time of continuous service on a committee
The president pro tempore most likely always holds seniority.
markup
a session in which committee members often changes to a bill before it goes to the floor
The committee may reject a bill during a markup.
committee of the whole
a procedure that allows the house of representatives to deliberate with a lower quorum and to expedite consideration and amendment of a bill
The house has the option to form a committee of the whole to deliberate with only 100 members.
hold
a procedure by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor.
A senator can ask for a hold to be informed on a particular bill.
filibuster
a formal way of halting senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate
The filibuster is a tactic that is used in U.S. senate to delay or block a bill from passing.
cloture
mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate
Sixty three members of the senate voted to end the filibuster, which was a cloture.
veto
the formal, constitutional authority of the president
The president was able to veto the bill and stop it from being passed.
pocket veto
if congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill passed by both houses of congress, the bill is considered vetoed without the president’s signature
A pocket veto is congress’ equivalent to a president’s veto.
Richard M. Nixon
the 37th president, a republican, who served from 1969 through 1974. Nixon advocated detente during the cold war and resigned rather than face impeachment.
Richard Nixon resigned after his involvement in the watergate scandal was exposed.
Congressional Budget Act of 1974
act that established the congressional budgetary process by laying out a plan for congressional action on the annual budget resolution, appropriations, reconciliation, and any other revenue bills
The congressional budget act of 1974 established the congressional budgetary process in use today.
reconciliation
a procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours, thereby ending threat of a filibuster
The procedure of reconciliation could help prevent a filibuster from occurring.
pork
legislation that allows representatives to bring money and jobs to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs
Representatives often seek to win an election using the legislation’s known as pork.
programmatic requests
federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district
Programmatic requests were once known as earmarks, and are funds for a specific project.
divided government
the political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and at least one house of congress.
Our congress right now suffers from a divided government.
war powers resolution
passed by congress in 1973; the president is limited in the deployment of troops overseas to a sixty-day period in peacetime unless congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period
Congress passed the war powers resolution when Lyndon B. Johnson was president.
congressional review
a process whereby congress can nullify agency regulations within a 60-day window bu passing a joint resolution
The process of congressional review allows the house and senate to nullify actions of using the oversight power.
senatorial courtesy
a process by which presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering their objection
Senators often have considerable say in the nomination of judges from their states through senatorial courtesy.
unified government
the political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and congress
In times of unified government, the president and congress are in control by the same political party.
logrolling
vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support
Logrolling often occurs when issues are presented to a legislator that have little to no interest to them.
congressional research service
created in 1914, the non partisan CRS provides information, studies, and research in support of the work of congress, and prepares summaries and tracks the progress of all bills.
The congressional research service is also known as congress’ think tank.
government accountability office
established in 1921, the GAO is an independent regulatory agency for the purpose of auditing the financial expenditures of the executive branch federal agencies; until 2004, the GAO was known as the general accounting office
The government accountability office is a legislative branch that provides evaluation for congress.
congressional budget office
created in 1974, the CBO provides congress with evaluations of the potential economic effects of proposed spending policies and also analyzes the president’s budget and economic projections
The congressional budget office is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the government that provides economic information to congress.
majority party
the political party in each house of congress with the most members
The majority party is a political party that holds influence in a country’s politics.
minority party
the political party in each house of congress with the second most members
The minority party plays more minor influence on elections.
party caucus
a formal gathering of all party members
A party caucus occurs when all party members meet up to decide policies.
