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American Govt & WY Hist > Challenge Exam > Flashcards

Challenge Exam Flashcards

1
Q

What is “reapportionment”?

A

Redistribution of representatives among the states, based on population changes. Congressional seats reapportioned after each census.

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2
Q

How are constitutional duties of the House and Senate different?

A

House has the right to originate revenue bills, power of impachment

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3
Q

What factors contribute to incumbency effect in congressional elections?

A

Redistricting, Name Recognition, Casework, Campaign Financing, Successful Challengers

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4
Q

What is Gerrymandering?

A

Redrawing a congressional district to intentionally benefit one political party

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5
Q

How do the personal characteristics of congressmen differ from the population as a whole?

A

Women and minorities underrepresented and upper-class men

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6
Q

Define Descriptive representation

A

A belief that legislators who are similar to them in such key demographic characteristics as race, ethnicity, religion, or gender most effectively represent constituents

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7
Q

What is the objective of racial gerrymandering?

A

The drawing of a legislative district to maximize the chances that a minority candidate will win election

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8
Q

Define Bill

A

a proposal for a new law

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9
Q

What is the role of the rules committee?

A

To attach a rule to the bill that governs the coming floor debate, typically specifying the length of the debate and types of amendments House member may offer

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10
Q

Veto

A

the president’s rejection of a bill that has been passed by both houses of congress. Congress can override a veto with a two-thirds vote in each house

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11
Q

Pocket Veto

A

A means of killing a bill that has been passed by both houses of congress, in which the president neither signs the bill nor returns it to congress and congress adjourns within ten days of bill’s passage

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12
Q

What role do committees play in congress?

A

Congress in committee rooms is congress at work. The nuts and bolts of lawmaking goes to committees. All congress members eventually vote on a bill coming from a committee

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13
Q

Standing Committee

A

A permanent congressional committee that specialized in a particular legislative area

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14
Q

Joint committee

A

A committee made up of members of both House and Senate

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15
Q

Select committee

A

A congressional committee created for a specific purpose and, usually, for a limited time

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16
Q

Conference committee

A

A temporary committee created to work out differences between the House and Senate versions of a specific piece of legislation

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17
Q

What is “Oversight?” Why is it important?

A

The process of reviewing the operations of an agency to determine whether it is carrying out policies as Congress intended. It is important to control public policy. Make sure government is responsive to us.

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18
Q

What are the responsibilities of the following congressional leaders: speaker of the house

A

the presiding office of the house of representatives (Majority parties leader)

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19
Q

What are the responsibilities of the following congressional leaders: Minority leader

A

Top position for the opposing party

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20
Q

What are the responsibilities of the following congressional leaders: Majority leader

A

the head of the majority part in the senate; the second- highest ranking member of the majority party in the House

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21
Q

What are the responsibilities of the following congressional leaders: Pro Tempore

A

Elected by majority party, supposed to chair the senate in absence of VP

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22
Q

Filibuster

A

A delaying tactic, used in the senate that often involves speech making to prevent action on a piece of legislation

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23
Q

cloture

A

The mechanism by which a filibuster is cut off in the Senate

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24
Q

What is the influence of political parties?

A

Democrats and Republicans have different ideologies

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25
Q

What is the influence of the President

A

represent the nation, Chief

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26
Q

What is the influence of the Constituents?

A

Vote and live in a legislator’s district, contribute to pluralism because of diversity

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27
Q

What is the influence of the legislator?

A

introduce legislation, push bills

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28
Q

What is the influence of Interest groups?

A

represent vocational regional, and ideological groupings, force congress to take action

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29
Q

Trustee

A

A representative who is obligated to consider the views of constituents but not obligated to vote according to those views if he or she believes they are misguided

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30
Q

Delegate

A

A legislator who primary responsibility is to represent the majority view of his or her constituents, regardless of his or her own view

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31
Q

How is a parliamentary system from the American system of government?

A

A system of government in which the chief executive is the leader whose party holds the most seats in the legislature after an election or whose arty forms a major party of ruling coalition

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32
Q

What are earmarks?

A

federal funds appropriated by congress for use on specific local projects

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33
Q

Why is it difficult to make broad institutional changes in congress, such as eliminating earmarks?

A

Have to make sure that the case entails serving the national interest, typically through creation, or economic production that projects allegedly produce

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34
Q

Why were the delegates to the constitutional convention wary of a powerful president?

A

When presidency was created, the nation had just fought a war of independence counterbalanced by their desire for strong leadership

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35
Q

What are the powers of the president as administrative head of the nation?

A

supervise and offer leadership to various departments, agencies, and programs

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36
Q

What are the powers of the president as commander in chief of the military?

A

highest ranking officer in the armed forces. Cannot declare war

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37
Q

What are the powers of the president regarding legislation?

A

Can veto a bill, but congress can override

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38
Q

What are the powers of the president regarding Appoint officials?

A

authority to appoint federal court judges, ambassadors, cabinet members, and other key policy makers

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39
Q

What are the powers of the president regarding making treaties?

A

needs to advice and consent of 2/3 voting senators

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40
Q

What are the powers of the president regarding granting pardons?

A

yes, except in cases of impeachment

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41
Q

How have the concept of inherent powers and the delegation of powers contributed to an expansion of the presidency?

A

Inherent powers are claimed by the president since they are not specified in the constitution and the delegation of powers gives the executive branch more responsibility

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42
Q

By what criteria are most vice presidents selected?

A

appeal to a different geographic region or party coalition

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43
Q

Who makes up the cabinet?

A

A group of presidential advisers; the heads of the executive department and other key officials

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44
Q

What explains the cabinet’s decline as an advisory body?

A

Cabinet is large and most members have limited areas of expertise, may not be close to president, and the White house staff is so big they have them to rely on

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45
Q

How is the power to persuade an important power for the president?

A

can affect outcomes in congress, presidents must depend on other’s cooperation

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46
Q

When is the president’s popularity typically the highest?

A

1st year or After they are already out of office

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47
Q

What factors explain the rise and fall of presidential popularity?

A

Economic conditions, unanticipated events that occur, war (with heavy causalities)

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48
Q

What is “divided control of government” and how does it affect the presidents ability to pursue his policies?

A

divide government is the situation in which one part controls the White House and the other controls at least on House. He has to please more issues that both sides want

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49
Q

What is the ‘mandate’ is reference to a presidential election?

A

An endorsement by votes. Presidents sometimes argue that they have been given a mandate to carry out policy proposals

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50
Q

When did the president’s role as a legislative leader develop?

A

Primarily in the 20th century, a critical change with Franklin Roosevelt

51
Q

What is meant by the phrase “the president proposes and congress disposes?”

A

Once the president sends his legislation to Capitol Hill, Congress decided on its own what to do with it

52
Q

What are the presidents responsibilities in foreign relations?

A

National security, fostering a peaceful international environment, protection of US economic interest.

53
Q

It is important for a president to do what three things during a crisis?

A

Drawing on a range of advisers and opinions, not acting in unnecessary haste, having a well-designed, formal review process that promotes thorough analysis and open debate

54
Q

bureaucracy

A

A large, complex organization in which employees have specific job responsibilities and work within a hierarchy of authority

55
Q

Bureaucrate

A

An employee of a bureaucracy, usually meaning a government bureaucracy

56
Q

What factors explain the expansion of government in the 20th century?

A

Increasing complexity of society, public’s attitude toward business has changed. Great Depression, World War 2, Cold War

57
Q

How do public attitudes toward government in general and special programs differ?

A

People are warmer to special programs affecting themselves, but criticize the government in general

58
Q

Departments

A

The biggest unit of the executive branch, covering a broad area of government responsibility. The heads of the department, or secretaries, form the president’s cabinet

59
Q

independent agencies

A

An executive agency that is not part of a cabinet department

60
Q

Regulatory commissions

A

An agency of executive branch of government that controls or directs some aspect of the economy

61
Q

Government corporations

A

A government agency that performs services that might be provided by the private sector but that involved either insufficient financial incentive or are better provided when they are somehow linked with government

62
Q

What is the objective of civil service?

A

the system by which most appointments to the federal bureaucracy are made, to ensure that government jobs are filled on the basis of merit and that employees are not fired for political reasons

63
Q

How do administrative agencies make policy through “administrative discretion” and “rule making”?

A

If a law does not stay how to accomplish a goal, it is up to the administrative agencies to decide

64
Q

What do the authors mean when they says that policy making is “incremental”?

A

Policy making characterized by a series of decisions, each instituting modest change

65
Q

Define Implementation

A

The process of putting specific policies into operations

66
Q

What factors make implementation of policy difficult?

A

The policy to be carried out is not clearly stated and the complexity of some government endeavors

67
Q

What risks are associated with deregulation?

A

Dishonest actions in the economy/ business, affect other, can we trust other without laws?

68
Q

What is the trend regarding “outsourcing” of governmental tasks and services?

A

Outsourcing is growing

69
Q

How does the power of the Supreme Court conflict with democratic theory?

A

It is not an elected body: no limitations or checks, no reappointment/ term limits. Can influence law making policies

70
Q

What is judicial review? In what court case was it first established?

A

The power to declare congressional and presidential acts invalid because they violate the constitution… Marbury vs. Madison

71
Q

What are the three components of judicial review?

A
  1. The power of the courts to declare national, state, and local laws invalid if they violate the Constitution.
  2. The supremacy of national laws of treaties when they conflict with states and local laws.
  3. The role of the supreme court as the final authority on the meaning of the constitution
72
Q

Criminal cases

A

A court case involving a crime or violation of public order

73
Q

Are more cases decided in federal courts or state courts?

A

State courts

74
Q

Civil cases

A

A court case that involves a private dispute arising from such matter as accidents, contractual obligations, and divorce

75
Q

Common Law

A

Legal precedents derived from previous judicial decisions

76
Q

Plea bargaining

A

A defendant’s admission of guild in exchange for a less severe punishment

77
Q

Statutory construction

A

The judicial interpretation of legislative acts

78
Q

What are the powers and responsibilities of US District courts and US courts of Appeal?

A

District: sources of litigation
US: Appellate Court Proceedings, Precedents and Making Decision

79
Q

Define precedent

A

A judicial ruling that serves as the basis for the ruling in a subsequent case

80
Q

Original Jurisdiction

A

The authority of a court to hear a case before any other court does

81
Q

Appellate jurisdiction

A

The authority of a court to hear cases that have been tried, decided, or reexamined in other courts

82
Q

Regarding the courts, What is a federal question?

A

An issue covered by the US constitutions, national laws, or US treaties

83
Q

What is the role of the solicitor general?

A

The 3rd highest ranking official of the US department of Justice, and the one who represents the national government before the supreme court

84
Q

judicial restraint

A

A judicial philosophy whose adheres refuse to go beyond the text of the constitution in interpreting its meaning

85
Q

Judicial activism

A

A judicial philosophy that the court should see beyond the text of the constitution to consider the broader social implications of its decisions

86
Q

Judgement

A

the judicial decision in a court

87
Q

Concurrence

A

the agreement of a judge with the court’s majority decision, for a reason other than the majority reason

88
Q

Dissent

A

the disagreement of a judge with a majority decision

89
Q

Who decides which justice will author the opinion of the Supreme Court?

A

Chief Justice if he is in majority or assigns another justice in the majority. If not in the majority then the senior justice

90
Q

What makes the chief justice an important member to the supreme court?

A

Social leader, giving solidarity within the group. Provides policy leadership, directing the court towards a general policy position

91
Q

How are federal judges selected?

A

Nominated by President

Confirmed by the Senate

92
Q

What is Senatorial Courtesy?

A

The practice whereby the president, before formally nominating a person for a federal district judgeship, finds out whether the senators from the candidate’s state support the nomination.

93
Q

What is the most important factor in the rejection of a nomination to the US supreme court?

A

Partisan Politics

94
Q

Approximately what percentage of criminal cases are tried and adjudicated by a court?

A

10%

95
Q

Do the supreme court’s decisions mirror public opinion more often or less often that the decisions of elected officials?

A

less often

96
Q

Why did the authors of the Wyoming constitution specify so many limits on the state legislature?

A

They were suspicious because many state legislatures were corrupt in the years following the civil war

97
Q

From what type of districts are Wyoming legislators elected?

A

single-member districts

98
Q

What is the patterns concerning incumbents seeking re-election to the state legislature?

A

Few are defeated; at least 60% are re-elected

99
Q

How do Wyoming legislators compare to the general population in terms of occupation, level of education, and gender?

A

Age is much older, many more college graduates, many employed in agriculture, and females are poorly represented.
Everything else is higher
Women hold only 23% of legislative seats, three fourths have a bachelors degree, and greater than three fourths have possessed a professional job or ran a business

100
Q

What level of support is required for a bill to pass the House or Senate on third reading?

A

Majority of those present and voting in the Committee and a whole

101
Q

At what stage of the Wyoming legislative process do most bills die?

A

Failed to be approved by a standing committee

102
Q

What is the tradition in the Wyoming House regarding the length of service of the Speaker of the House?

A

Serve one term and then retire

103
Q

On which committee do most Wyoming legislators wish to serve>

A

Joint appropriations committee

104
Q

What factors account for the joint appropriations committee’s influence?

A

members have more knowledge about the extremely complex budget than the great majority of part- time lawmakers. Majority leadership normally selects members to JAC

105
Q

What influence does constituents opinion have on legislative decision making?

A

They have very little influence

106
Q

Which Wyoming administrative officials are elected by the people?

A

Governor, secretary of state, auditor, treasurer, and superintendent of public instruction

107
Q

From what professions to Wyoming administrative officials drawn?

A

US army officer, lawyers, politician, entrepreneurs, field of education

108
Q

What is the role of the governor in developing the state budget

A

Chief budget officer (broad priorities, a proposal that must be approved by legislature)

109
Q

In comparison with other states, is the Governor of Wyoming considered a “strong governor,” a “weak governor,” or a “typical” governor?

A

typical

110
Q

What is the item veto?

A

Governor can veto specific provisions of spending bills

111
Q

What enables Democratic governors to be successful in Wyoming?

A

Personal skills, integrity, fit with legislature

112
Q

What factors contribute to the respect of the governor?

A

Personal skills, integrity, leadership abilities, cultural and social factors such as patriotism

113
Q

What are the basic responsibilities of the following state official: secretary of state

A

Program responsibilities and serve in the absence of governor

114
Q

What is the largest source of revenue for the general fund?

A

sales and use tax

115
Q

What is the jurisdiction of the Circuit Courts, District Courts, and the Supreme Court in Wyoming?

A

Circuit: Misdemeanors
District: serious Civil and Criminal
Supreme: General appellate

116
Q

What are the basic steps in the process of selecting judges in Wyoming?

A

Nomination, appointment, retention, further retention

117
Q

How well does the merit selection plan work in wyoming?

A

97% retention average, controversial though due to incumbent reelection

118
Q

How can Wyoming judges be removed from office in addition to regular retention process>

A

Impeachment and forced retirement

119
Q

How do Wyoming judges compare to the general population in terms of gender, race or ethnicity, and level of education?

A

More males than representative, Caucasian represents 94% higher education levels

120
Q

What are the president’s responsibilities in foreign relations?

A

National security, fostering a peaceful international environment, protection of US economic interests

121
Q

What are the basic responsibilities of the State official auditors?

A

Insuring that the fiscal operations of the state are in line with statutes

122
Q

What are the basic responsibilities of state official treasurer?

A

Receives and manages all state money

123
Q

What are the basic responsibilities of the stat officials superintendent of public instruction?

A

Responsible for public school system of the state of Wyoming and administers the state department of education

American Govt & WY Hist (2 decks)

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