AP Gov Ch.6 Jeron Tainatongo Flashcards
bicameral legislature
a two house legislature
The Framers had created a bicameral legislature.
apportionment
process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population
Apportionment is able to adjust the seats allotted to states.
bill
a proposed law
No bill can become a law without both houses consent..
impeachment
power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice president or other “civic officers”.
Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton are the only two presidents to be impeached so far.
Edmund Burk
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
Edmund Burk had served in the British Parliament.
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
Trustees are used to make their best judgments on a decision .
delegate
Role played by a representative who votes the way his or her constituents would want, regardless of personal opinions
Delegates must be ready to vote against their conscience.
politico
An elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate, depending on the issue
Politicos alternately dons the hat of a trustee.
incumbency
Already holding an office
Incumbency helps members stay in office.
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 is a largely political process.
gerrymandering
The drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district
Gerrymandering is often involved in the redistricting process.
majority party
The political party in each house of Congress with the most members
The majority party is one part of the houses’ division.
minority party
The political party in each house of Congress with the second most members
The minority party is the other half of the majority party in which the house is divided.
party caucus (or conference)
formal gathering of all party members
Historically, party caucuses varied over powers.
Speaker of House
only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the Constitution
The Speaker of House is the chamber’s most powerful position.
majority leader
The head of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate
Majority Leaders are the second in authority to the Speaker of House.
minority leader
The head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Representatives or the Senate
Minority leaders are the level underneath majority leaders.
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 elected by party members in caucuses.
president pro tempore
The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party
The majority party selects the president pro tempore.
standing committee
Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next
Consider issues roughly parallel to those of the departments represented.
joint committee
Standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies
Joint committees force public attention on the major matters.
conference committee
Special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate
Conference committees originally considered the bill.
select (or special) committee
Temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose
The select committee investigated the 9/11 attack.
Hilary Clinton
First female major party candidate for president of the United States, a Democrat, who ran against President Donald J. Trump in 2016.
Hilary Clinton was a former first lady.
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 for which no counterpart in the Senate exist.
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
Discharge petitions are signed by at least 218 members of the House and can remove bills from the House.
seniority
time of continuous service on a committee
Committee chairs in the House are no longer selected by seniority.
markup
A session in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor
A bill is required to go through 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
Members may offer amendments during the Committee of the Whole.
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
Holds may be anonymous or public.
filibuster
A formal way of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate
The use of filibusters has increased over the years.
cloture
Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate
Members may spend no more than 30 additional hours debating after the cloture.
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
Vetoes are more likely to occur when the president is of a different party.
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
The pocket veto is when a president doesn’t want to sign a bill.
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
Richard Nixon exposed several shortcoming in the system.
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 led to the creation of the Congressional Budget Office.
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 received a great deal of attention back in 2010.
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
Pork is what appropriations are best known for.
programmatic requests
Federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. Also referred to as earmarks
Programmatic requests are funds that an appropriations bill designates.
divided government
The political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and at least one house of Congress
Divided government is when the executive and legislative branches are controlled.
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
War Powers Resolution was passed over Nixon’s veto.
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
Congressional Review is when the house and senate nullify actions of the D.C. council.
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
The senatorial courtesy is when senators have a say in the nominations of judges from their states.
unified government
The political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and Congress
A unified government can see a president act as chief of the party.
logrolling
Vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support
Logrolling occurs for issues that are of little interest to legislatures.
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 bill
The Congressional Research Service helps members of congress.
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 and federal agencies; until 2004, the GAO was known as the General Accounting Office
The Government Accountability Office is capable of helping Congress members who need assistance.
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 also helps members of Congress when they need the help.
