AP Gov Ch 6 Semia Sims Flashcards
bicameral legislature
A two-house legislature
The advantages of a bicameral legislature include stability, more varied representation and the passing of quality legislation.
apportionment
The process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial census
United States congressional apportionment is the process by which seats in the United States House of Representatives are distributed among the 50 states according to the most recent decennial census mandated by the United States Constitution.
bill
A proposed law
A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive.
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.” This is the first step in the constitutional process of removing government officials from office
The speculation over Democrats calling for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump has been swirling with varying levels of seriousness, and their new control of the House of Representatives means that there will be more calls to come.
Edmund Burke
Conservative British political philosopher of the eighteenth century who articulated the view that elected representative should act as “trustees” and use their own best judgement when voting
A year before he published his full critique of the French Revolution Edmund Burke (1729-1797) wrote to a young Frenchman and offered his definition of liberty.
trustee
Role played by an elected representative who listens to constituents’ opinion and then uses his or her best judgement to make a final decision
A trustee may be appointed for a wide variety of purposes, such as in the case of bankruptcy, for a charity, for a trust fund or for certain types of retirement plans or pensions.
delegate
Role played by a representative who votes the way his or her constituents would want, regardless of personal opinions; may refer to an elected representative to Congress or a representative to the party convention
Delegates are responsible for electing the best possible national officers for the Board of Directors and Nominating and Elections Committee members for the NSNA.
politico
An elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate, depending on the issue
POLITICO covers the politics, policy and personalities of the European Union.
incumbency
Already holding an office
Republican political candidates gain votes after booms, leading to a near doubling in the probability of a change in incumbency.
redistricting
The process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well population shifts within a state
Redistricting reforms attempt to address the legislative tendency to undermine electoral accountability through districting
gerrymandering
The drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district
Partisan gerrymandering returns to the Supreme Court for the first time in a decade.
majority party
The political party in each house of Congress with the most members
These designations are significant because the majority party holds the most significant leadership positions, such as Speaker of the House.
minority party
The political party in each house of Congress with the second most members
A minority party is a political party with a smaller role than the mainstream parties in a country’s politics and elections.
party caucus (or conference)
A formal gathering of all party members
A party caucus or conference is the name given to a meeting of or organization of all party members in the House.
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 and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member
The House of Representatives, with its large membership, has relied on Majority Leaders since the late-19th century to expedite legislative business and to keep their parties united.
minority leader
The head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Representatives or the Senate
The majority party members and the minority party members meet separately to select their leader of the house.
whip
Party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, takes vote counts on key legislation, prepares summaries of bills, and acts as a communications link within a party
Whips are a set of individuals tasked with imposing discipline and direction and each party has a designated whip in the House.
president pro tempore
The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party
The president pro tempore designates other senators to preside in his absence, generally new members of the majority party.
standing committee
Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next
The primary purpose of standing committees shall be to consider and recommend actions and propose policies in the functional areas under their jurisdictions.
joint committee
Standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies
An important function of the Joint Committee staff is to evaluate whether provisions of the tax law operate as intended or cause unintended administrative, interpretive, or statutory results.
conference committee
Special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate
A conference committee is a committee of the United States Congress appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve disagreements
select (or special) committee
Temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose
Select committees gather evidence from ministers and officials, the public and organisations outside Parliament.
Hillary Clinton
First female major party candidate for president of the United States, a Democrat, who ran against President Donald J. Trump in 2016. Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013; New York senator from 2001 to 2009; former first lady
Hillary Clinton was a lawyer and former first Lady who was a U.S. senator and U.S. secretary of state.
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 (but not in the Senates, where debate is less regulated)
The House Rules Committee considers all bills reported from policy and fiscal committees and determines whether, and in what order, to schedule their consideration on the floor of the House.
discharge petition
Petition that gives a majority of the House of Representatives the authority the bring an issue to the floor in the face committee inaction
A discharge petition requires the signature of an absolute majority of the members which is signature of 218 members.
seniority
Time of continuous service on a committee
Having seniority is like having a higher rank or status.
markup
A session in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor
A markup is added into the total cost incurred by the producer of a good or service in order to cover the costs of doing business and create a profit.
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
A committee of the whole is a meeting of a deliberative assembly according to modified procedural rules based on those of a committee.
hold
A procedure by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor. This request signals leadership that a member may have objections to the bill (or nomination) and should be consulted before further action is taken
A hold is a parliamentary procedure permitted by the Standing Rules of the United States Senate which allows one or more Senators to prevent a motion from reaching a vote on the Senate floor.
filibuster
A formal way of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate
The filibuster is a tactic used in the U.S. Senate to block or delay action on a bill or other measure.
closure
Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate
Without senators closure wouldn’t be possible.
veto
The formal, constitutional authority of the president the reject bills passed by both houses of Congress, thus preventing them from becoming law without further congressional action
The president may veto specific provisions on money bills without affecting other provisions on the same bill.
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 occurs when the president of the United States fails to sign a piece of legislation, either intentionally or unintentionally.
Richard M. Nixon
The thirty-seventh president, a Republican, who served from 1969 through 1974. Nixon advocated détente during the Cold War and resigned rather than face impeachment and likely removal from office due to the Watergate scandal
On the morning of April 16, 1956, Vice President Richard Nixon served notice that the vice presidency had finally become an office to be sought after by other politicians.
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 and impoundment Control Act of 1974 was enacted to establish a congressional budget process.
reconciliation
A procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours, thereby ending threat of a filibuster
Reconciliation legislation is passed through an expedited process first.
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 appropriations known as pork.
programmatic requests
Federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. Also referred to as earmarks
Programmatic requests function in lieu of earmark requests ever since the outright ban on earmarks in 2011.
divided government
The political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and at least one house of Congress
The dynamics between Trump and Congress are about to significantly change because of the 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 (which can be extended for an extra thirty days to permit withdrawal) unless Congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period
Though the title of the Senate-approved bill, War Powers Act, became widely used in the 70s
congressional review
A process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations within a 60-day window by passing a joint resolution of legislative disapproval. The president’s approval of the resolution or a two-third majority vote in both houses to overrule a presidential veto is also required
The Congressional Review Act (CRA) enables Congress to disapprove a final rule issued by a federal agency.
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
Because of senatorial courtesy, scholars typically assume that presidents defer to home state senators from their party when selecting judges.
unified government
The political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and Congress
Unified Government jobs are predominately available in Kansas City.
logrolling
Vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support
Logrolling occurs when each of two people agree to vote for the other’s project to ensure that both are passed.
Congressional Research Service (CRS)
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 bill
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) works exclusively for the United States Congress, providing policy and legal analysis to committees and Members.
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Established in 1921, the GAO is an independent regulatory agency for the purpose of auditing the financial expenditures of the executive branch and federal agencies; until 2004, the GAO was known as the General Accounting Office
Government Accountability Office (GAO), agency of the U.S. federal government that reports to Congress and bills itself as independent and nonpartisan.
Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
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 nonpartisan, and produces independent analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process
cloture
Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate
Under cloture, the Senate may limit consideration of a pending matter to 30 additional hours of debate.
