Chapter 6 AP Government. Valerie Guevara

Question 1

bicameral legislature

Answer 1

A two-house legislature

Sentence: The bicameral legislature is a fundamental part of the US government.

Question 2

apportionment

Answer 2

The process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial census

Sentence: Apportionment set the appropriate amount of seats to each state.

Question 3

impeachment

Answer 3

The power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice president or other “civil officers,” including federal judges, with “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” This is the first step in the constitutional process of removing government officials from office

Sentence: President Trump has been threatened with impeachment.

Question 4

Edmund Burke

Answer 4

Conservative British political philosopher of the eighteenth century who articulated the view that elected representative should act as “trustees” and use their own best judgement when voting

Sentence: Edmund Burke was an important philosopher in the 18th century.

Question 5

trustee

Answer 5

Role played by an elected representative who listens to constituents’ opinion and then uses his or her best judgement to make a final decision

Sentence: Trustee’s have an important role in the US government.

Question 6

delegate

Answer 6

Role played by a representative who votes the way his or her constituents would want, regardless of personal opinions; may refer to an elected representative to Congress or a representative to the party convention

Sentence: Delegates play a vital role in US elections.

Question 7

politico

Answer 7

An elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate, depending on the issue

Sentence: A politico is an important part of the US government.

Question 8

incumbency

Answer 8

Already holding an office

Sentence: Donald Trumps has an incumbency.

Question 9

redistricting

Answer 9

The process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well population shifts within a state

Sentence: When the population shifts redistricting is important.

Question 10

gerrymandering

Answer 10

The drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district

Sentence: Gerrymandering has an important role in the results of the election.

Question 11

majority party

Answer 11

The political party in each house of Congress with the most members

Sentence: Majority parties hold much influence on the US government.

Question 12

minority party

Answer 12

The political party in each house of Congress with the second most members

Sentence: Minority parties have little influence among the house.

Question 13

party caucus (or conference)

Answer 13

A formal gathering of all party members

Sentence: Party caucus are important when members must gather together.

Question 14

majority leader

Answer 14

The head of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate; is second in authority to the Speaker of the House and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member

Sentence: The majority leader controls the most seats in the house.

Question 15

minority leader

Answer 15

The head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Representatives or the Senate

Sentence: The minority leader is second to the majority leader.

Question 16

whip

Answer 16

Party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, takes vote counts on key legislation, prepares summaries of bills, and acts as a communications link within a party

Sentence: The whip is an important person among his or her party.

Question 17

president pro tempore

Answer 17

The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party

Sentence: The president pro tempore holds high seniority.

Question 18

standing committee

Answer 18

Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next

Sentence: The standing committee is an influential part of the US government.

Question 19

joint committee

Answer 19

Standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies

Sentence: The joint committee is a component of the standing committee.

Question 20

conference committee

Answer 20

Special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate

Sentence: Conference committee handles differences among the house and senate.

Question 21

select (or special) committee

Answer 21

Temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose

Sentence: Select committees are not permanent.

Question 22

Hillary Clinton

Answer 22

First female major party candidate for president of the United States, a Democrat, who ran against President Donald J. Trump in 2016. Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013; New York senator from 2001 to 2009; former first lady

Sentence: Hillary Clinton is married to Bill Clinton, who was the former POTUS.

Question 23

House Committee on Rules

Answer 23

The influential “Rules Committee” determines the scheduling and conditions, such as length of debate and type of allowable amendments, for all bills in the House of Representatives (but not in the Senates, where debate is less regulated)

Sentence: House Committee on Rules is an important part of the US government.

Question 24

discharge petition

Answer 24

Petition that gives a majority of the House of Representatives the authority the bring an issue to the floor in the face committee inaction

Sentence: Discharge petition occurs when issues arise.

Question 25

seniority

Answer 25

Time of continuous service on a committee

Sentence: Supreme court judges hold seniority.

Question 26

markup

Answer 26

A session in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor

Sentence: Markups are made to bills before they are presented.

Question 27

Committee of the Whole

Answer 27

A procedure that allows the House of Representatives to deliberate with a lower quorum and to expedite consideration and amendment of a bill

Sentence: The Committee of the Whole is a component of the House of Representatives.

Question 28

hold

Answer 28

A procedure by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor. This request signals leadership that a member may have objections to the bill (or nomination) and should be consulted before further action is taken

Sentence: If a senator wants to know about a bill or nomination a hold will occur.

Question 29

filibuster

Answer 29

A formal way of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate

Sentence: Filibuster’s stall a bill via a debate.

Question 30

closure

Answer 30

Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate

Sentence: Closure requires the vote of 60 senators.

Question 31

veto

Answer 31

The formal, constitutional authority of the president the reject bills passed by both houses of Congress, thus preventing them from becoming law without further congressional action

Sentence: A veto prevents a bill from becoming a law.

Question 32

pocket veto

Answer 32

If Congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill passed by both houses of Congress, the bill is considered vetoed without the president’s signature

Sentence: The process of a pocket veto usually takes ten days.

Question 33

Richard M. Nixon

Answer 33

The thirty-seventh president, a Republican, who served from 1969 through 1974. Nixon advocated détente during the Cold War and resigned rather than face impeachment and likely removal from office due to the Watergate scandal

Sentence: Richard M. Nixon was a republican president.

Question 34

Congressional Budget Act of 1974

Answer 34

Act that established the congressional budgetary process by laying out a plan for congressional action on the annual budget resolution, appropriations, reconciliation, and any other revenue bills

Sentence: Congressional Budget Act of 1974 institutes a budget for congressional actions,

Question 35

reconciliation

Answer 35

A procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours, thereby ending threat of a filibuster

Sentence: Reconciliation allows debates to be limited.

Question 36

Pork

Answer 36

Legislation that allows representatives to bring money and jobs to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs

Sentence: Pork allows for more job opportunities.

Question 37

programmatic requests

Answer 37

Federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. Also referred to as earmarks

Sentence: Programmatic requests aid special projects.

Question 38

divided government

Answer 38

The political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and at least one house of Congress

Sentence: Right now the US has a divided government.

Question 39

War Powers Resolution

Answer 39

Passed by Congress in 1973; the president is limited in the deployment of troops overseas to a sixty-day period in peacetime (which can be extended for an extra thirty days to permit withdrawal) unless Congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period

Sentence: War Powers Resolution limits the presidents power over the military.

Question 40

congressional review

Answer 40

A process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations within a 60-day window by passing a joint resolution of legislative disapproval. The president’s approval of the resolution or a two-third majority vote in both houses to overrule a presidential veto is also required

Sentence: Congressional review occurs in both sides of the house.

Question 41

senatorial courtesy

Answer 41

A process by which presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering their objection

Sentence: Senatorial courtesy concerns the senators from all 51 states.

Question 42

unified government

Answer 42

The political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and Congress

Sentence: The United States of America does not currently have a unified government.

Question 43

logrolling

Answer 43

Vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support

Sentence: Logrolling is also know as vote trading.

Question 44

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

Answer 44

Created in 1914, the non-partisan CRS provides information, studies, and research in support of the work of Congress, and prepares summaries and tracks the progress of all bill

Sentence: Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a non-partisan organization.

Question 45

Government Accountability Office (GAO)

Answer 45

Established in 1921, the GAO is an independent regulatory agency for the purpose of auditing the financial expenditures of the executive branch and federal agencies; until 2004, the GAO was known as the General Accounting Office

Sentence: Government Accountability Office (GAO) audites finances.

Question 46

Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

Answer 46

Created in 1974, the CBO provides Congress with evaluations of the potential economic effects of proposed spending policies and also analyzes the president’s budget and economic projections

Sentence: Congressional Budget Office (CBO) evaluates economic effects.

Question 47

cloture

Answer 47

Mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate

Sentence: In order to halt debate cloture must take place.

Question 48

bill

Answer 48

A proposed law

Sentence: A bill can be vetoed by congress.