Executive Branch

Question 1

Congressional Control

Answer 1

Congressional bureaucratic influence results from legislative and investigative oversight functions, personnel selection and staffing, and the budget

Question 2

Executive Control of the Bureaucracy

Answer 2

Most directly, the president controls the bureaucracies by appointing the heads of the fifteen cabinet departments and of many independent executive agencies, such as the CIA, the EPA, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation

Question 3

Bureaucratic Accountability

Answer 3

refers to the government’s ability to hold the bureaucracy responsible for its conduct and activity.

Question 4

The Pendleton Act

Answer 4

The Pendleton Act of 1883 was the original legislation establishing the civil service system

Question 5

FOIA

Answer 5

FOIA (Freedom of Information Act)- congress and state legislatures have made it so the public could access laws. This allows the press and public to be informed about governmental actions and laws that affect them.

Question 6

Rule Making

Answer 6

the process of defining rules or standards that apply uniformly to classes of individuals, events, or activities

Question 7

Iron Triangle

Answer 7

In the 1950s-1970s iron triangles existed between congressional committees, industry, and executive agencies. The relationship existed to mainly benefit industry and well-established interest groups. This was an early manifestation of issue networks that were hard to break through (that is hard for public interests to gain benefits).

Question 8

Issue Networks

Answer 8

are the modern manifestation of Iron Triangles and while still representing the relationship between congressional committees, industry, and executive agencies, they are more permeable and have more points of influence than past iron triangle systems, similar to the way we now think about countervailing powers.

Question 9

Whistleblower Provisions

Answer 9

a whistle blown to warn/report bad behavior of government officials. Protects the bureaucrats that point out injustices in government and allows for more government transparency.

Question 10

Bureaucracy

Answer 10

a hierarchical organization in which offices have specified missions and employees are assigned responsibilities based on merit, knowledge, and experience

Question 11

FRB

Answer 11

formed in 1913 in charge of regulating monetary policy and overseeing the nation’s banking system. The federal reserve monitors the banking system and adjusts money and credit markets to produce steady economic growth.

Question 12

Sunshine Laws

Answer 12

These laws apply to both legislative and executive officials and are designed to ensure that policy discussions and decisions occur in full public view and not in closed-door sessions.

Question 13

Patronage System

Answer 13

a practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its supporters, friends, and relatives as a reward for working toward victory, and as an incentive to keep working for the party.

Question 14

Bureaucratic Autonomy

Answer 14

despite the president’s role as the commander-in-chief, lifelong bureaucrats’ jobs are protected from changes in administration. This protects the job security of bureaucrats and limits the influence of political parties on executive agencies