Congress And The Judiciary Flashcards
Unicameral
Practice of having one legislative or parliamentary chamber.
Franking Privilege
The ability of members of Congress to mail letters to their constituents free of charge by substituting their facsimile signature for postage.
Bicameral
A lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts.
Speaker of the House
The speaker is usually selected by the members of the majority party and functions as a leader of that party.
Party Caucus
A meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement
Rules Committee
?one of the most important committees in the house. They determine what limits and procedures are attached to every bill as it makes it way thru the chamber and to the floor for debate
Fillibuster
An attempt to defeat a bill in the Senate by talking indefinitely, thus preventing the Senate from taking action on the bill.
Cloture
A rule used by the Senate to end or limit debate. Designed to prevent “talking a bill to death” by filibuster.
Gerrymandering
Drawing the boundaries of political districts in bizarre or unusual shapes to make it easy for candidates of the party in power to win elections in those districts.
President Pro Tempore
is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate. The United States Constitution states that the Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate, despite not being a senator, and that the Senate must choose a president pro tempore
Majority and Minority Leaders
Legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House of Reps or Senate.
Legislative leader elected by party members holding a minority of seats in the House of Reps or Senate
Party Whip
A senator who helps the party leader stay informed about what party members are thinking, rounds up members when important votes are to be taken, and attempts to keep a nose count on how the voting on a controversial issue is likely to go.
Steering Committee
A committee set up to prepare and arrange topics to be discussed, the order of business, etc., for a legislative assembly or other body
Standing Committee
Permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area.
Select Committee
Congressional committees appointed for a limited time and purpose.
Joint Committees
Committees on which both representatives and senators serve.
Conference Committees
A joint committee of a bicameral legislature, which is appointed by, and consists of, members of both chambers to resolve disagreements on a particular bill.
Simple Resolution
An expression of opinion either in the House of Representatives or the Senate to settle housekeeping or procedural matters in either body.
Concurrent Resolution
An expression of congressional opinion without the force of law that requires the approval of both the House and Senate but not of the president.
Quorum
The minimum number of members who must be present for business to be conducted in Congress.
Voice Vote
A Congressional voting procedure in which embers shout “yea” in approval or “nay” in disapproval: allows members to vote quickly or anonymously on bills.
Standing Vote
Where the members of the house literally divide into groups indicating a vote in favor of or in opposition to a motion on the floor.
Roll-call vote
A congressional voting procedure that consists of members answering “yea” or “nay” to their name.
Pork Barrel Politics
Legislation that gives tangible benefits to constituents in several districts or states in the hope of winning their votes in return.
Judicial Review
The power of the courts to declare acts of the legislature and of the executive to be unconstitutional and hence null and void.
Strict Constructionist
The view that judges should decide cases on the basis of the language of the Constitution.
Judicial Activist
judicial rulings suspected of being based on personal or political considerations rather than on existing law.
John Marshall
Was the fourth Chief Justice of the United States (1801–1835) whose court opinions helped lay the basis for American constitutional law and made the Supreme Court of the United States a coequal branch of government along with the legislative and executive branches.
Roger B Taney
Was the fifth Chief Justice of the United States, holding that office from 1836 to 1864. Delivered the majority opinion in Dred Scott v. Sandford, that ruled, among other things, that African Americans, having been considered inferior at the time the Constitution was drafted, were not part of the original community of citizens and could not be considered citizens of the United States.
District Courts
The lowest federal courts where federal cases begin. They are the only federal courts where trials are held.
Courts of Appeals
The federal courts with authority to review decisions by federal district courts, regulatory commissions, and certain other federal courts.
Legislative Courts
A court that is created by Congress for some specialized purpose and staffed with judges who do not enjoy the protection of Article III of the Constitution.
Litmus Test
In chemistry a way of finding out whether a liquid is acid or alkaline. The term is used in politics to mean a test of ideological purity, a way of funding out whether a person is a dyed-in-the-wool liberal or conservative or what his or her views are on a controversial question.
Federal Question Cases
Cases concerning the Constitution, federal law, or treaties over which the federal courts have jurisdiction as described in the constitution.
Civil Law
The body of rules defining relationships among private citizens.
Criminal Law
The body of rules defining offenses that, though they harm an individual (such as murder, rape, and robbery), are considered to offenses against society as a whole and as a consequence warrant punishment by and in the name of society.
Writ of Certiorari
A Latin term meaning “made more certain,” an order issued by a higher court to a lower court to send up the record of a case for review.
Plaintiff
The party that institutes a lawsuit to obtain a remedy for an injury to his or her rights.
Defendant
Anyone tried as the accused.
Briefs
A legal document prepared by an attorney representing a party before a court. The document sets forth the facts of the case, summarizes the law, gives the arguments for its die, and discusses other relevant cases.
Per Curiam Opinion
A brief, unsigned opinion issued by the Supreme Court to explain its ruling
Opinion of the Court
A Supreme Court opinion written by one or more justices in the majority to explain the decision in a case.
Concurring Opinion
A Supreme Court opinion by one or more justices who agree with the majority’s conclusion but for different reasons.
Dissenting Opinion
A Supreme Court opinion by one or more justices in the minority to explain the minority’s disagreement with the Court’s ruling.
Stare Decisis
A Latin term meaning “let the decision stand.” The practice of basing judicial decisions on precedents established in similar cases decided in the past.
Appellate Jurisdiction
The power of the United States Supreme Court to review decisions and change outcomes of decisions of lower courts.
Concurrent Jurisdiction
Where two or more courts from different systems simultaneously have jurisdiction over a specific case.
Original Jurisdiction
The power to hear a case for the first time
