Chapter 11 Flashcards
the process by which seats in the House of Representatives are distributed among the fifty states
apportionment
the political process that results from dividing a legislature into two separate assemblies
bicameralism
proposed legislation under consideration by a legislature
bill
a parliamentary process to end a debate in the Senate, as a measure against the filibuster; invoked when three-fifths of senators vote for the motion
cloture
the relationship between Congress and the United States as a whole, and whether the institution itself represents the American people
collective representation
a special type of joint committee that reconciles different bills passed in the House and Senate so a single bill results
conference committee
the body of voters, or constituents, represented by a particular politician
constituency
a model of representation in which representatives feel compelled to act on the specific stated wishes of their constituents
delegate model of representation
the extent to which a body of representatives represents the descriptive characteristics of their constituencies, such as class, race, ethnicity, and gender
descriptive representation
the powers given explicitly to the federal government by the Constitution to regulate certain things
enumerated powers
what are the enumerated powers?
- interstate and foreign commerce
- raise and support armies
- declare war
- coin money
- conduct foreign affairs
a parliamentary maneuver used in the Senate to extend debate on a piece of legislation as long as possible, typically with the intended purpose of obstructing or killing it
filibuster
the powers not specifically detailed in the U.S. Constitution but inferred as necessary to achieve the objectives of the national government
implied powers
the powers neither enumerated nor implied but assumed to exist as a direct result of the country’s existence
inherent powers
a legislative committee consisting of members from both chambers that investigates certain topics but lacks bill referral authority
joint committee
the leader of the majority party in either the House or Senate; in the House
majority leader
who does the majority leader serve under in the house?
The Speaker of the House
what two roles does the majority leader have in the Senate?
- Functional leader
2. chief spokesperson for the majority party
the amending and voting process in a congressional committee
markup
the party member who directs the activities of the minority party on the floor of either the House or the Senate
minority leader
the right to review and monitor other bodies such as the executive branch
oversight
a model of representation in which members of Congress act as either trustee or delegate, based on rational political calculations about who is best served, the constituency or the nation
political model of representation
federal spending intended to benefit a particular district or set of constituents
pork-barrel politics
the senator who acts in the absence of the actual president of the Senate, who is also the vice president of the United States; the president pro tempore is usually the most senior senator of the majority party
president pro tempore
an elected leader’s looking out for his or her constituents while carrying out the duties of the office
representation
a small legislative committee created to fulfill a specific purpose and then disbanded; also called an ad hoc, or special, committee
select committee
the presiding officer of the House of Representatives and the leader of the majority party
Speaker of the House
who is in second line of succession after the VP?
Speaker of the House
a permanent legislative committee that meets regularly
standing committee
a theory proposing that the surge of stimulation occurring during presidential elections subsides during midterm elections, accounting for the differences we observe in turnouts and results
surge-and-decline theory
a model of representation in which representatives feel at liberty to act in the way they believe is best for their constituents
trustee model of representation
in the House and in the Senate, a high leadership position whose primary duty is to enforce voting discipline in the chambers and conferences
whip
The Great Compromise successfully resolved differences between ________.
large and small states
While each state has two senators, members of the House are apportioned ________.
according to state populations
The process of redistricting can present problems for congressional representation because________.
districts are often drawn to benefit partisan groups
When did the constitutional convention take place?
1787
Who did not participate in the Const. Convention?
Rhode Island
Virginia proposed the ______ plan, NJ proposed the _______ plan
bicameral, unicameral
proposed a bicameral congress w. members apportioned differently in each house
the Great Compromise
upper house has how many reps per state?
2
House of Representatives has how many reps per state?
proportional to population size
the minimum age of congresspersons
25 years old
article 1 gave congress the power to:
- levy taxes
- borrow money
- regulate commerce
Medieval England had similar bicameral system; consisted of
House of Commons and House of Lords
17th Amendment 1913 allowed senators to be elected by
popular vote of state
uses a mathematical formula to allocate seats based on U.S. Census Bureau population data (info gained every 10 years)
equal proportions method
House decided to permanently cap House members at how many people people and when
435, 1929
how were slaves counted?
3/5s rule
the manipulation of legislative district boundaries as a way of favoring a particular candidate
gerrymandering
districts in which the majority gained the electoral power to send representatives to Congress; some claimed it was gerrymandering
majority-minority districts
3 types of congressional powers
enumerated power, implied power, inherent power
states enumerated powers
- levy/collect taxes
- declare war
- raise an army/navy
- coin/borrow money
- regulate commerce among the states and with foreign nations
Congress has “power over purse” aka
they control money
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Supreme Court declared power to declare laws unconstitutional
Franklin D Roosevelt’s popularity as president (4 terms) was cause for 22nd amendment which
limited president’s to 2 terms
what happened in the 1950’s that essentially shut out Congress
troops were sent to war in Korea w/o a congressional war declaration
congressional resolution designed to limit the U.S. president’s ability to initiate or escalate military actions abroad
War Powers Resolution
house member minimum time as u.s. citizen
7 years
house member age min.
- years
house member term length
2 terms
house member term limit
no limit
senator member minimum time as u.s. citizen
9 years
senator age min.
30
senator term length
6 years
senator term limit
none
examples of stuff passed by house and shot down by senate (2 thingies)
- Buffet Rule
2. Obamacare (ACA)
political campaigns cost upwards of
1 million
Federal Election Commission (FEC); required candidates to
- tell where money came from/where its going
- limit individual contributions
- provide for public financing of president campaigns
limited the use of “soft money,”
BRCA
money given directly to a candidate
hard money
led to removal of spending limits on corporations (2010)
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
more power, less regulations than traditional PAC
super PAC
elected officials who currently hold an office
incumbents
historical difficulty of unseating an incumbent in the House or Senate
incumbent advantage
who said that “All politics is local.”
Tip O’Neill
tension between local and nat. politics is
interpretation vs. representation
women’s group formed in 1966
National Organization for Women
When was the the Congressional Black Caucus formed
1971
types of party members
Speaker of the House, floor leaders, whips
4 types of committees
- standing
- joint
- conference
- ad hoc, special, or select
advisor (typically a trained lawyer) who studied the rules of the chamber
parliamentarian
packaged bill
omnibus bill
a perversion of the cloture rules adopted to control the filibuster
modern filibuster
