Congress and courts

Question 1

House of Representatives

Answer 1

Lower Chamber of congress

Question 2

How many in the House of representatives and how is that decided

Answer 2

435- Determined by the states population

Question 3

Length of terms for House of Representative

Answer 3

2 years

Question 4

Senate

Answer 4

Upper chamber of congress

Question 5

How many in the senate and how its decided

Answer 5

two from each state, 100 total

Question 6

Term length of senate

Answer 6

6 year terms, 1/3 runs for reelection every year

Question 7

qualifications for US house

Answer 7

Must be 25 and a US citizen for at least 7 years

Question 8

qualifications for US senate

Answer 8

Must be 30 and a US citizen for at least 9 years

Question 9

Chief leadership position in the House of Representatives

Answer 9

The speaker of the house who can assign members to committees

Question 10

Chief leadership position in the Senate

Answer 10

The majority leader who can decide if a bill goes on the floor

Question 11

What are whips

Answer 11

They encourage people to vote with the party and count the votes

Question 12

Cloture

Answer 12

A senate procedure through which a super majortiy of 60 senators can vote to limit the amount of time debating a bill

Question 13

Committee of the whole

Answer 13

A committee of the House on which all representatives serve in order to consider the details of a proposal.

Question 14

discharge petition

Answer 14

A petition signed by members of the House of Representatives to bring a bill out of committee and onto the floor for a vote.

Question 15

filibuster

Answer 15

A tactic used by senators to block a bill by continuing to hold the floor and speak, adhering to the Senate rule of unlimited debate. The purpose of this tactic is to continue to speak for so long that the bill’s supporters eventually back down.

Question 16

House Rules Committee

Answer 16

The committee responsible for scheduling and managing the flow of legislation on the floor of the House of Representatives in order to make the process more efficient and manageable. The committee can also make it easier or more difficult for a bill to pass depending on the rules they create.

Question 17

logrolling

Answer 17

When two legislators agree to trade votes for each other’s benefit.

Question 18

pork barrel legislation

Answer 18

The use of federal funding to finance localized projects, typically bringing money into a representative’s district in order to please constituents and boost the representative’s chances of winning reelection.

Question 19

President of the Senate

Answer 19

The Vice President of the United States, who presides over the Senate’s daily proceedings.

Question 20

Amicus Curiae

Answer 20

“Friend of the court”; a third party to a lawsuit who files a legal brief for the purpose of raising additional points of view in an attempt to influence a court’s decision.

Question 21

Appellate Court

Answer 21

Court that generally reviews only findings of law made by lower courts.

Question 22

Appellate Jurisdiction

Answer 22

The power vested in an appellate court to review and/or revise the decision of a lower court.

Question 23

Dissenting opinion

Answer 23

An opinion written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion/ outcome of the case.

Question 24

Inferior Federal Courts

Answer 24

Federal Courts made by Congress below the U.S. Supreme Court (District and Courts of Appeals)

Question 25

Federalist 78

Answer 25

A limited Constitution requires an independent judiciary to check arbitrary and unconstitutional legislative acts. Courts have the duty “to declare all acts contrary to the manifest tenor of the Constitution void”.

Question 26

Judicial activism

Answer 26

A philosophy of judicial decision making that argues judges should use their power broadly to further justice, especially in the area of equality and personal liberty. It is the courts’ appropriate role to correct injustices committed by the other branches of government. The courts need to protect oppressed minorities.

Question 27

Judicial implentation

Answer 27

Refers to how and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies that are enforced.

Question 28

Judicial nomination process

Answer 28

Nominated by president. Confirmed by the Senate

Question 29

Judicial restraint

Answer 29

A philosophy of judicial making that argues courts should allow the decisions of other branches of government to stand, even when they offend a judge’s own sense of principles. The federal courts are composed of unelected judges, and that makes it the least democratic branch of government. Therefore, the courts should usually defer to the political branches.

Question 30

Judicial Review

Answer 30

Power of the courts to review acts of other branches of government and the states to decide if they are constitutional

Question 31

Marbury v madison

Answer 31

Supreme Court case in which the Court first asserted the power of judicial review

Question 32

Original jurisdiction

Answer 32

The jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial. Courts determine the facts of a case.

Question 33

Precedent

Answer 33

Prior judicial decision that serves as a rule for settling subsequent cases of a similar nature.

Question 34

Rule of four

Answer 34

At least four justices of the Supreme Court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard.

Question 35

Stare Decisis

Answer 35

Let the decision stand. In court rulings, a reliance on past decisions or precedents to formulate decisions in new cases.

Question 36

Writ of certiorari

Answer 36

A request by the Supreme Court to order up the records from a lower court to review the case.

Question 37

Congressional modification of a court ruling

Answer 37

Although Congress can’t overturn a court decision, it can pass legislation that attempts to change the impact of the court’s decision