Government Institutions (Congress)

Question 1

Bicameral legislature

Answer 1

one in which the legislators are divided into two separate assemblies, chambers or houses.

Question 2

Parliament

Answer 2

the members of parliament for a particular period, especially between one dissolution and the next.

Question 3

Descriptive representative

Answer 3

is the tendency of elected legislators to advocate on behalf of certain groups. Conflicting theories and beliefs exist regarding why constituents vote for representatives. “

Question 4

Substantive representative

Answer 4

is the tendency of elected legislators to advocate on behalf of certain groups. Conflicting theories and beliefs exist regarding why constituents vote for representatives.

Question 5

trustee

Answer 5

an individual person or member of a board given control or powers of administration of property in trust with a legal obligation to administer it solely for the purposes specified.

Question 6

delegate

Answer 6

a person sent or authorized to represent others, in particular an elected representative sent to a conference.

Question 7

committee

Answer 7

a group of people appointed for a specific function, typically consisting of members of a larger group.

Question 8

committee of the whole

Answer 8

is a device in which a legislative body or other deliberative assembly is considered one large committee. All members of the legislative body are members of such a committee. This is usually done for the purposes of discussion and debate of the details of bills and other main motions.

Question 9

house rules committee

Answer 9

committee of the United States House of Representatives. Rather than being responsible for a specific area of policy, as most other committees are, it is in charge of determining under what rule other bills will come to the floor.

Question 10

conference committees

Answer 10

a committee of the Congress appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve disagreements on a particular bill. The conference committee is usually composed of the senior Members of the standing committees of each House that originally considered the legislation.

Question 11

majority leader

Answer 11

the head of the majority party in a legislative body, especially the US Senate or House of Representatives.

Question 12

minority leader

Answer 12

the head of the minority party in a legislative body, especially the US Senate or House of Representatives.

Question 13

speaker of the house

Answer 13

The presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The Speaker, a member of the House, is elected by a majority party caucus.

Question 14

president pro tempore

Answer 14

a senator, usually a senior member of the majority party, who is chosen to preside over the Senate in the absence of the vice president.

Question 15

ways and means committee

Answer 15

A permanent committee of the House of Representatives, which makes recommendations to the House on all bills for raising revenue. The committee is the principal source of legislation concerning issues such as taxation, customs duties, and international trade agreements.

Question 16

standing committee

Answer 16

a permanent committee that meets regularly.

Question 17

select committee

Answer 17

a small legislative committee appointed for a special purpose.

Question 18

joint committee

Answer 18

a term in politics that is used to refer to a committee made up of members of both chambers of a bicameral legislature. In other contexts, it refers to a committee with members from more than one organization.

Question 19

Private Bill

Answer 19

a proposal for a law that would apply to a particular individual or group of individuals, or corporate entity. This is unlike public bills which apply to everyone within their jurisdiction.

Question 20

Public bill

Answer 20

a bill which proposes a law of general application throughout the jurisdiction in which it is proposed, and which if enacted will hence become a public law or public act.

Question 21

simple resolution

Answer 21

legislative measure passed by only either the Senate or the House. As they have been passed by only one house, simple resolutions are not presented to the President, and do not have the force of law.

Question 22

concurrent resolution

Answer 22

a resolution adopted by both houses of a legislative assembly that does not require the signature of the chief executive and that does not have the force of law.

Question 23

joint resolution

Answer 23

legislative measure that requires approval by the Senate and the House and is presented to the President for his approval or disapproval.

Question 24

appropriation

Answer 24

a sum of money or total of assets devoted to a special purpose.

Question 25

authorization

Answer 25

a document giving permission or authority

Question 26

sequential referral

Answer 26

process through which a bill is referred to a second committee after the first is finished acting.

Question 27

split referral

Answer 27

referral of various parts of a bill to different committees at the same time

Question 28

multiple referral

Answer 28

process through which a bill is referred to a second committee after the first is finished acting. In the United States House of Representatives, proposed legislation can be sent to more than one Congressional committee due to a 1975 rules change.

Question 29

markup discharge petition

Answer 29

petition signed by the members of the House of Representatives to bring a bill from committee to the floor for consideration.

Question 30

calendar (congressional)

Answer 30

a detailed description of the days for which the U.S. Congress will be in session.

Question 31

congressional caucus

Answer 31

a group of members of the United States Congress that meets to pursue common legislative objectives. Formally, caucuses are formed as congressional member organizations (CMOs) through the United States House of Representatives and governed under the rules of that chamber.

Question 32

filibuster

Answer 32

a prolonged speech that obstructs progress in a legislative assembly while not technically contravening the required procedures.

Question 33

cloture

Answer 33

only formal procedure that Senate rules provide for breaking a filibuster

Question 34

party caucus

Answer 34

Members of each major party in the United States Congress meet regularly in closed sessions known as party conferences (Republicans)

Question 35

party whip

Answer 35

an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party’s “enforcers,” who typically offer inducements and threaten party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy.

Question 36

open rule

Answer 36

A bill considered under an open rule is considered under the basic rules of the House.

Question 37

closed rule

Answer 37

a rule that prohibits amendments to a bill from the floor.

Question 38

restrictive rule

Answer 38

an order from the House Rules Committee that permits certain kinds of amendments but not others to be made to a bill on the floor.

Question 39

amendments

Answer 39

a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. They are often used when it is better to change the document than to write a new one.

Question 40

pork barrel legislation

Answer 40

Appropriations made by a legislature for projects that are not essential but are sought because they pump money

Question 41

riders

Answer 41

a condition or proviso added to something already said or decreed.

Question 42

christmas tree bill

Answer 42

a political term referring to a bill that attracts many, often unrelated, floor amendments.

Question 43

quorum call

Answer 43

A call of the roll to establish whether a quorum is present.

Question 44

roll call vote

Answer 44

is known as the Yeas and Nays. The request will be granted, if it is seconded by one-fifth of the Senators present, assuming that a quorum (a majority of Senators) is present.

Question 45

teller vote

Answer 45

A Teller Vote is a vote in which members of Congress pass between two tellers, who write down the votes of each member, along with their names.

Question 46

voice vote

Answer 46

a parliamentary vote taken by calling for ayes and noes and estimating which response is stronger.

Question 47

abstention

Answer 47

an instance of declining to vote for or against a proposal or motion.