ap gov - unit 2 Flashcards
how many members does the house have?
435
The House represents …?
Districts: population
How many terms do you serve in the House?
2 years
What are the rules like in the House?
More formal and strict
How many members does the Senate have?
100
The Senate represents…?
the states
How many terms do you serve in the Sentate?
6 years
What are the rules like in the Senate?
Less formal and fewer rules
Standing committees
PERMANENT; revise bills and hold hearings
-most bills NEVER advance beyond this committee
-congressional oversight
-investigate executive branch
Committee Chairs
Leader of congressional committees; always from MAJORITY party
(big influence over legislation)
Speaker of the House
Most powerful member of congress; favors own party’s legislation
-schedules bills for debate & votes
-always from MAJORITY party
President of the senate
aka Vice president; casts tie-breaking vote
Party leadership
-Committee chairs
-majority & minority leaders
-speaker of House
-whips
(all determined by political party)
House’s duties
-initiates all tax and REVENUE bills
-power of impeachment
-House RULES committee
-Committee of a Whole
-Discharge petition
Committee of a Whole
house forms itself into a committee, to help ease the process
Discharge petition
majority of House can force bill out of committee
Examples of enumerated powers
-declare war
-raise an army
-raise revenue/tax
-passing a federal budget
-coin money
Examples of implied powers
-economic legislation
-environmental legislation
-social issues
Discretionary spending
must be approved ANNUALLY as part of budget bills
-largest area of spending = defense
-education
Whats the largest area of discretionary spending?
defense
Mandatory spending
REQUIRED by law (can ONLY be changed by legislation) over 2/3 of federal spending
-entitlements
-interest on debt
Over 2/3 of federal spending is on what?
mandatory spending
Entitlement spending
Benefits people are entitled to receive by law;
-Social security
-medicare
-medicaid
-temporary assistance for needy families
-supplemental nutrition assistance program
Pork barrel legislation
bring benefits, jobs, and money to a district
Logrolling
Vote trading;
I vote for yours, you vote for mine
Reapportionment
changing the # of seats each state has in the House of Reps; following the census
Redistricting
Redrawing or congressional districts done by STATE LEGISLATURE
Baker v. Carr
Banned MALAPPORTIONMENT;
“one person, one vote”
14th amendment
districts must be similar, NO GERRYMANDERING
14th amendment
equal protection clause
Gerrymandering
Drawing congressional districts in bizarre shapes; usually to benefit a party, UNFAIR
Shaw v. Reno
Banned RACIAL GERRYMANDERING;
racial redistricting violates 14th
minority majority districts *
Trustee
A representative that votes HIS/HER CONSCIENCE regardless of what the constituents want
Delegate
A representative that votes on how the CONSTITUENTS WANT, even if she/he personally disagrees
Politico
Sometimes acts like a trustee, sometimes acts like a delegate
Divided government
DIFFERENT parties control White House, Sentate, and/or House of Reps
Policy gridlock
slow/difficult to pass legislation/confirm nomination
Veto
message to congress REJECTING a bill
Pocket veto
When the president takes NO action and session of congress ends within 10 days of receiving bill-can’t be overridden
Commander-in-Chief
Head of the armed forces, directs troop movement- THE PRESIDENT
Bully pulpit
Having a position of authority that allows the president to speak out about any issues to the public(raise awareness)
Bargaining
When there is a conflict between the president’s and Congress’s agendas, they need to bargain to work out appointments, budgets, and legislative goals
Persuasion
Used to gain support for agenda from public and Congress
Signing statements
written command issued by president (when signing a bill that require presidential interpretation)
Executive order
Having the power of law and doesn’t require congressional approval (on-the-spot decisions)
What is the president’s longest lasting influence?
Judicial nominees
Federalist No. 78
LIFE TERMS for federal judges
establishes an INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY that can engage in JUDICIAL REVIEW
What’s the least dangerous branch?
Judicial - lacks war powers, relies on other branches to enforce their decisions
Precedent
A past decision that influences future decisions
Judicial activism
Courts are able and should overrule other branches when wrong
cabinet department
MAJOR area of responsibility over a BROAD policy area
(ex: education)
Executive agencies
perform public services
(ex: environmental protection agency)
Independent regulatory commissions
Make rules regulating SPECIFIC industries to protect public
Government corporations
Provide services that could be provided by PRIVATE COMPANIES (not profitable)
The 4 Administrative Tasks
- writing and enforcing regulations
- issuing fines
- testifying before Congress
- Issue networks and iron triangle
Issue Networks
The looser, more informal, and TEMPORARY version of iron triangles
Iron triangles
-congressional committees
-interest groups
-bureaucratic agencies
Political patronage
Bureaucrats receiving jobs as politico favors
Congressional oversight
Committee hearings & investigations into an agency’s activities
Committee hearings
Agency heads must TESTIFY before Congress about agency’s activities
Power of the Purse**
CONGRESS can alter department budget depending on whether they are pleased or not with an agency’s activities
Congress can…
-congressional oversight; power of the purse*
-establish/abolish an agency
The president can…
-appoint/remove agency heads
-make executive orders
Congress’s powers
-make laws
-power of the purse*
-pass tax, budget, and appropriation bills
-declare war
Congress check on executive branch
-override president’s veto (2/3 both houses)
-impeach the president
-refuse to pass a bill the president wants
-confirm presidential nominees (Senate only)
-ratify a treaty (Senate only)
Congress checks on Judicial branch
-impeach federal judges
-aler the # of judges on court
-pass a slightly altered version of same law
-confirm judicial nominees (Senate only)
-propose a constitutional amendment to override Court’s decision
Who has the most influence in the Senate?
Majority Floor Leader
conference committee
reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate
Where are the details of legislation usually worked out in?
subcommittee
A divided government causes what?
delays in decision making
Largest portion of uncontrollable spending
entitlement spending
To which congressional committee would a proposal to reform the national income-tax system initially be sent?
Ways and Means
What has decreased in Congress over the past twenty years?
the influence of committee chairs
Largest source of federal revenue
income tax
Rules committee
place a bill on the legislative calendar, limit time for debate and determine the type of amendments allowed
Most powerful figure in Congress
Speaker of the House
NOMINATIONS
SENATE
conference committee
when bill passes house and bill that is similar passes the senate and they are not the same, so conference committee works them out
