Legislative Branch Flashcards
How many senators are there?
100
How many years is 1 term for senators?
6 years
Who votes on senators
the whole state
What is the re-election cycle or senate?
a system in which only 1/3 of senate is up for reelection each term
How many house of representatives are there?
435
Who elects house representatives ?
congressional representatives
How is the amount of house representatives determined?
by population
How is the amount of senators determined?
each state gets 2 senators.
Redistricting
The process of drawing new district boundaries every 10 years within states
reapportionment
The process of determining how many representatives each state gets. Every 10 years, changes in population will be determined by a U.S. census, which will determine how many HOR will be given to each state
Partisan
a committed member of a certain political party
Federal Budget Process: : What is step 1 of the federal budget process?
The president submits a budget request to congress.
Federal Budget Process: What happens after a budget request is submitted into congress?
The House and Senate pass budget resolutions. (provides outlines for federal funding)
Federal Budget Process: What happens after House and Senate pass budget resolutions?
House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees markup appropriation bills
Federal Budget Process: What happens after House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees markup appropriation bills?
House and Senate vote on Appropriations bills and reconcile differences.
Federal Budget Process: What is the last step of the federal budget process?
The president signs each bill and it becomes law.
Filibuster
When senators talk for a long time to delay progress in passing legislation.
House Rules Committee
A committee within the House of Representatives where rules are placed for how bills are presented.
Conference committee
A joint committee withing the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve disagreements about a particular bill.
Constituencies
A body of voters among a particular district/area
Delegate
A representative who makes decisions purely based on what their constituents want
Trustee
A role played by representatives in which they listen to their constituent’s opinions, but make final decisions based on their best judgement on what would contribute to the greater good.
Politico
A representative who acts as a trustee and a delegate on the issue
Impeachment
A formal process in which a president is accused of something.
Incumbent
A representative who is already in office
Joint committee
A committee that has membership from the HOR and senate
Logrolling
Voting to support a colleague’s bill in exchange for future support.
Majority Leader
Elected leader of the party who has the most seats in the HOR or Senate.
What power does the Majority Leader have in the HOR
It has second authority to the speaker of house.
Speaker of House
The elected leader of the House of Representatives
What does the Speaker of House do?
They maintain order, manage proceedings, counts and declares votes, appointing members to committees, signing bills that pass in house, etc.
Minority Leader
Elected leader of the party who has the second most seats in the HOR or Senate
What power does the Majority Leader have in Senate?
The Majority Leader is the most powerful member of the Senate.
Malapportionment
When district boundaries are drawn in such a way that they have a disproportionate ratio of voters to representatives.
Markup
A process in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor in either house for a vote.
17th amendment
There must be 2 senators of each state who serve 6 year terms. They all must be chosen by the people.
Oversight
When the congress reviews the actions of an institution
Political Action Committees
An organization that raises money for campaigns
Discretionary spending
Portion of spending that the president requests and the congress appoints every year.
Coalition
When two or more parties join together to form a majority in a national legislature
President pro tempore
Person who is chosen to preside over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer.
Redistricting/apportionment
The process of changing election districts to make them equal to the population as possible
House Rules Committee
A committee that determines when a bill will be debated on, how long the debate will last, whether amendments will be allowed on the floor, etc
Standing committee
Permanent committee within congress that are in charge of a particular area or public policy.
War Powers Resolution
The president can only send troops abroad if congress approves.
what is the purpose of the HOR
to be the voice of the people, directly represent their constituents (they represent fewer people, so they know their wants better!!)
what is the purpose of the Senate
they check the passions of the people
which branch is more structured?
HOR
how can congress check bureaucracies
by cutting their budget or using congregational oversight and public hearing to monitor their behavior
how can interest groups impact lawmaking?
they can give information + analyses when bill is in the committees and subcommittees
how can a bill die at committees
it can be tabled or rejected by vote
enumerated powers of congress
- federal funding
- foreign policy
- military legislation
- pass a budget
- raise armies
- pass draft laws
whips of parties
render party discipline, ensure people walk in line with party goals
majority and minority leaders in the HOR:
direct debates, guide their members in policy making issues
who is the president of the senate
the vice presedent
what role does the V.P have in congress
break ties + is the president of the senate
Senate: President Pro Tempore
most senior member of the majority party, can act as the president of the senate when the VP can’t
Senate Majority Leader
sets legislative agenda by determining what bills can reach the floor for debate
select committees
temporary congressional committees created for a specific purpose
(a select committee was created to investigate Nixon’s Watergate scandal)
discharge committee
forces bills out of house for debate
the closure rule
a 3/5th vote that can end a filibuster
entitlement spending
programs that benefit all those that qualify (social security, medicare)
earmarks/pork
an addition to a piece of legislation that addresses the specific needs of a certain state or district
