Chapter 5 Flashcards
Qualifications and Term of Office of a member of the House
- 25 yrs old
- citizen for 7 yrs
- two year terms
- begin terms on even years
reapportionment
population of each state determines the new number of reps to which each state is entitled
Baker v. Carr
federal courts could decide conflicts over drawing district boundaries
Reynolds v. Sims
the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment required that seats in both houses of the Alabama State legislature be apportioned on a population basis
Wesberry v. Sanders
the Constitution clearly intended that a vote in one congressional district was to be worth the same as a vote in another district
gerrymandering
the political party controlling the state government draws a district’s boundaries to gain an advantage in elections
Qualifications and Term of Office of a member of the Senate
- 30 yrs old
- citizen for 9 yrs
- 2 per state
- 6 year terms
- 1/3 of senators run for reelections every 2 years
27th Amendment
prohibits a sitting Congress from giving itself a pay raise
franking privilege
Congress pays for members’ work related expenses
Purposes of Leaders in the House (6)
- organizing and unifying party members
- scheduling the work of the House
- making certain that lawmakers are present for key floor votes
- distributing and collecting info
- keeping the House in touch with the president
- influencing lawmakers to support the policies of their political party
Speaker of the House (3)
- can decide which members go first
- appoints the members of some committees
- schedules bills for action
- refers bills to the proper House committee
Majority Leader in the House (3)
- help plan the party’s legislative program
- steer important bills through the House
- make sure the chairpersons of many committees finish work on bills important to the party
Union Calendar
money issues
Private Calendar
individual people and places
Consent Calendar
gives unanimous consent to debate out of regular order
Discharge Calendar
petitions to discharge a bill from committee
quorum
minimum number of members who must be present to permit a legislative body to take official action
atmosphere of the Senate
all senators have maximum freedom to express their ideas, more flexible and laid back then the House
The Vice President (3)
- leader of the Senate
- tie breaker
- influence Senate through personal contact with senators
Majority Leader in the Senate (3)
- steer the party’s bills through the Senate
- responsible for making certain the majority party members attend important Senate sessions
- organizing their support on key bills
Calendar of General Orders
lists all bills the Senate will consider
Executive Calendar
treaties and nominations
filibuster
stall the legislative process and prevent a vote
cloture
allows each senator to speak only 1 hour on a bill under debate