Exam 3 Questions Flashcards
Senatorial courtesy describes the practice of
senators from a president’s party approving of a judicial nominee from their home state.
When President Andrew Jackson reputedly said, “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it,” what did he mean?
The Supreme Court is unable to enforce its decisions without the aid of the executive branch.
In what type of law is the government always the plaintiff?
criminal law
The need to divide the labor of legislation is best exemplified in what formal structure of Congress?
the establishment of standing committees
There are ________ U.S. district courts.
94
Baker v. Carr (1962) involved ________.
apportionment of legislative seats
Why is Marbury v. Madison an important case?
In this case, the justices authorized the Supreme Court to exercise judicial review over laws passed by Congress.
How many justices currently serve on the Supreme Court?
9
Each Supreme Court justice is assigned ________ law clerks.
4
What is the essence of the rule of law?
Every state must judge government officials by the same laws as its citizens are judged.
Following the 2006 elections, ________ became speaker of the U.S. House.
Nancy Pelosi
A writ of habeas corpus declares that
the government must show a legal cause for holding someone in detention.
A proposed piece of legislation is called a ________.
bill
About ________ percent of all lower court cases are reviewed by federal appeals courts.
20
________ occurs when a criminal case is resolved through a negotiated agreement before a full trial is completed.
A plea bargain
A ________ veto occurs when Congress adjourns during a ten-day period after presenting the president with a bill and he or she takes no action.
The number of cases filed in the Supreme Court has
increased dramatically since 1940.
Which of the following statements best describes the Supreme Court?
The justices have broad latitude to decide which cases they will hear and generally hear only those cases they deem to raise the most important issues.
Which of the following statements concerning the process of reapportionment is correct?
In order for one state to gain a seat, another state must lose a seat.
Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called ________.
district courts
________ were the only two presidents to be impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton
What was known as the “court-packing” plan?
the attempt by President Franklin Roosevelt to add sympathetic justices to the Supreme Court in order to get New Deal laws upheld as constitutional
________ occurs when two members of Congress share no common interests but agree to support each other’s bills.
Logrolling
Constituency service is so important that
party leaders will not ask any member to vote in a way that conflicts with the interests or opinions of the member’s district.
Which of the following statements about Congress’s delegation of power to the executive is most accurate?
Since the New Deal, the courts have not struck down any congressional delegation of power to the executive branch as impermissibly broad.
Normally, ________ judge(s) hear(s) a specific case on a federal circuit court of appeals.
3
The Supreme Court’s power to review acts of Congress has not been seriously questioned because
the Court has been reluctant to strike down congressional laws and has overturned only a small number over the last 200 years.
The assignment of the opinion in a Supreme Court case is
important because differences in wording and emphasis can have important implications for how the decision is interpreted in future litigation.
Cloture is
the process by which three-fifths of the Senate can end a filibuster.
Each year, the Supreme Court receives about ________ appeals and hears about ________ of them in full court.
8,500; 80
In Roe v. Wade (1973), the Supreme Court was required to rule on the issue of ________, due to the fact that the pregnancy had already come to term.
mootness
The requirement of standing means that parties in a case must
have a concrete injury or interest at stake.
Which of the following is true of the impeachment process?
It is a partisan exercise.
Congressional organization is influenced by all of the following EXCEPT ________.
presidential directives
In recent years, federal court appointments have
been characterized by intense partisan and ideological efforts to support or defeat the candidate.
The frequency with which they must seek re-election makes members of the U.S. House
more responsive to the needs of local interest groups in the districts they represent.
Which of the following is NOT a resource congressional party leaders have at their disposal to secure the unity and cooperation of their members?
constituency service
One reason some people support the establishment of term limits in the House and Senate is that it will
increase turnover and get new faces into Congress.
________ occurs when a member of Congress makes resources available to government officials.
Patronage
Why did many Republicans oppose President Obama’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court?
She supported affirmative action.
Which of the following is NOT a task of congressional staff members?
debating and voting in subcommittee meetings
The jurisdiction of standing committees
is defined by the subject matter of legislation, which often parallels the major cabinet departments or agencies.
