Chapter 5

Question 1

Qualifications and Term of Office of a member of the House

Answer 1

• 25 yrs old
• citizen for 7 yrs
• two year terms
• begin terms on even years

Question 2

reapportionment

Answer 2

population of each state determines the new number of reps to which each state is entitled

Question 3

Baker v. Carr

Answer 3

federal courts could decide conflicts over drawing district boundaries

Question 4

Reynolds v. Sims

Answer 4

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

Question 5

Wesberry v. Sanders

Answer 5

the Constitution clearly intended that a vote in one congressional district was to be worth the same as a vote in another district

Question 6

gerrymandering

Answer 6

the political party controlling the state government draws a district’s boundaries to gain an advantage in elections

Question 7

Qualifications and Term of Office of a member of the Senate

Answer 7

• 30 yrs old
• citizen for 9 yrs
• 2 per state
• 6 year terms
• 1/3 of senators run for reelections every 2 years

Question 8

27th Amendment

Answer 8

prohibits a sitting Congress from giving itself a pay raise

Question 9

franking privilege

Answer 9

Congress pays for members’ work related expenses

Question 10

Purposes of Leaders in the House (6)

Answer 10

• 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

Question 11

Speaker of the House (3)

Answer 11

• can decide which members go first
• appoints the members of some committees
• schedules bills for action
• refers bills to the proper House committee

Question 12

Majority Leader in the House (3)

Answer 12

• 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

Question 13

Union Calendar

Answer 13

money issues

Question 14

Private Calendar

Answer 14

individual people and places

Question 15

Consent Calendar

Answer 15

gives unanimous consent to debate out of regular order

Question 16

Discharge Calendar

Answer 16

petitions to discharge a bill from committee

Question 17

quorum

Answer 17

minimum number of members who must be present to permit a legislative body to take official action

Question 18

atmosphere of the Senate

Answer 18

all senators have maximum freedom to express their ideas, more flexible and laid back then the House

Question 19

The Vice President (3)

Answer 19

• leader of the Senate
• tie breaker
• influence Senate through personal contact with senators

Question 20

Majority Leader in the Senate (3)

Answer 20

• 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

Question 21

Calendar of General Orders

Answer 21

lists all bills the Senate will consider

Question 22

Executive Calendar

Answer 22

treaties and nominations

Question 23

filibuster

Answer 23

stall the legislative process and prevent a vote

Question 24

cloture

Answer 24

allows each senator to speak only 1 hour on a bill under debate

Question 25

Purposes of Committees (3)

Answer 25

• allows members of Congress to divide their work among many smaller groups
• committees choose the few bills that are to receive further consideration
• by holding public hearings and investigations, committees help the public learn about key problems and issues facing the nation

Question 26

Standing Committees (2)

Answer 26

• continue from one house of Congress to the next

- majority leader controls standing committee –> selects a chair person for each from among its party members

Question 27

Subcommittees

Answer 27

specializes in a subcategory of its standing committee’s responsibility

Question 28

Select Committees

Answer 28

study one specific issue and report their findings to the Senate or the House

Question 29

Joint Committees

Answer 29

coordinate the work of the two houses of Congress

Question 30

Conference Committees

Answer 30

resolve differences between the two versions of the bill

Question 31

Assignment to the right committees can help strengthen member’s career by…. (3)

Answer 31

• membership on some committees can increase a lawmaker’s changes for reelection
• lawmaker will be able go influence national policy making
• a member to exert influence over other lawmakers because they deal with matters important to everyone in Congress

Question 32

Role of Committee Chairperson (3)

Answer 32

• decide when their committees will meet, which bills they will consider, and for how long
• hire committee staff members and control the committee budget
• manage floor debates that take place on the bills that come from their committees

Question 33

Role of Congressional Staff

Answer 33

• help lawmakers handle the growing workload of Congress
• communicate with voters
• help run committee hearings and floor sessions
• draft new bills
• attend committee meetings

Question 34

Administrative Assistants (4)

Answer 34

• runs the lawmaker’s office
• supervises the lawmaker’s schedule
• gives advice on political matters
• deals with influencing people from the lawmaker’s congressional district or state

Question 35

Legislative Assistants (3)

Answer 35

• lawmaker is well informed about the many bills with which she or he must deal
• does research, draft bills, studies bills currently in Congress, and writes speeches and articles for the lawmakers
• assist lawmaker in committee meetings and to attend committee meetings when the lawmaker can’t be present