Structure of the United States Government

Question 1

What is implied power

Answer 1

a power not expressly defined in the Constitution but permitted to Congress through a loose interpretation of the Necessary and Proper clause

Question 2

What is inherent power

Answer 2

powers of the president or Congress that are neither enumerated nor implied but assumed to exist as a direct result of the country’s existence

Question 3

What is oversight

Answer 3

the right and responsibility of one body or branch of government to review and monitor other bodies; for example, Congress oversees federal agencies and programs, which are managed by the executive branch

Question 4

What are committees

Answer 4

a small set of representatives tasked with considering, researching, introducing, and investigating particular policy areas

Question 5

What is discretionary spending

Answer 5

in the context of the U.S. budget, spending that can be altered from year to year through the congressional appropriations process, including spending on scientific research, housing assistance, veterans’ healthcare, education, and transportation

Question 6

What is a budget resolution

Answer 6

a plan for government will receive in revenue and spend over the next fiscal year, including a set of budget priorities and discretionary spending limits

Question 7

What is pork-barrel spending

Answer 7

spending on often unnecessary local projects that benefit a specific member of Congress’s district or state

Question 8

What is a line-item veto

Answer 8

the ability of an executive to reject specific portions of a piece of legislation rather than reject the entire bill. In the United States, most governors have this power, but the power of line-item vetoes for the president has been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

Question 9

What is the Interstate Commerce clause

Answer 9

one of the enumerated (express) powers of Congress; this is the power to regulate commerce and trade between two or more states

Question 10

What is advice and consent

Answer 10

a Constitutional power stating that presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate; also, foreign treaties become official only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote

Question 11

What is a supermajority

Answer 11

also referred to as an absolute majority, this is any number greater than 50 percent

Question 12

What is filibuster

Answer 12

a political procedure conducted by a legislator (in the United States, a senator) to delay or prevent debate on a proposal, usually by holding the floor and speaking continuously, refusing to yield. To break a filibuster, three-fifths of senators (60/100) present must vote to end it (cloture).

Question 13

What are administrative agencies

Answer 13

government organizations created by Congress to enforce laws, policies, and government programs. Administrative agencies are organized under the president in the executive branch and collectively employ millions of federal workers.

Question 14

What are the 7 congressional powers

Answer 14

Tax citizens.
Set the budget.
Regulate commerce.
Declare war.
Provide advice and consent on appointments.
Impeach individuals.
Oversee the powers of the judicial and executive branches.

Question 15

What is the Necessary and Proper Clause aka Elastic Clause

Answer 15

directs Congress “to make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers.

Question 16

What are appropriations committees in Congress

Answer 16

panels that control government spending. no money can be spent from the Treasury without their approval

Question 17

What is a standing committee

Answer 17

This is also known as a permanent committee. A standing committee addresses timeless issues that will recur. These committees introduce, research, and write proposed pieces of legislation.

Question 18

What is a select committee

Answer 18

are temporary committees. They often exercise investigative rather than law-making powers. At different points in time, there may be a need to investigate a particular issue that one of the standing committees does not address. In this instance, a select committee would be formed

Question 19

What are joint committees

Answer 19

committees with members from both the House of Representatives and the Senate. They may be temporary or permanent. Standing committees exist separately in the House of Representatives and the Senate, but joint committees have both members of the House and Senate serving on that one committee at the same time.

Question 20

What is a conference committee

Answer 20

Conference committees are made up of members of both houses of Congress. Unlike the other joint committees, conference committees consider individual pieces of legislation passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate. Before a bill can be presented to the president, it must pass through both chambers of Congress. A bill may go through the House and Senate with changes made by one group but not the other. In this instance, the job of the conference committee is to address those differences. It then sends a single unified version of the bill back to both houses of Congress for their approval

Question 21

What is the rules committee

Answer 21

In the House of Representatives, the Rules Committee is the next step in the process of a bill becoming a law. This is after it is considered by a standing committee.

Question 22

What is a majority party and minority party

Answer 22

Majority and minority of house and senate is

Question 23

Who picks speaker of the house

Answer 23

Majority party of house of representatives

Question 24

Who is speaker of the senate

Answer 24

Vice president

Question 25

What is a majority and minority whip

Answer 25

Picked by majority and minority to help coordinate strategy

Question 26

What does the president of the senate do

Answer 26

Only votes in cases of a tie

Question 27

What is a president pro tempore

Answer 27

Selected by the senate in cases where vice president is not available for the senate

Question 28

What is a cloture

Answer 28

Stops filibustering by a supermajority vote and limits debate to 30hours

Question 29

What is reapportionment

Answer 29

done every 10 years to determine how many seats each state gets for the house of representatives since its based on population

Question 30

What is redistricting

Answer 30

state-by-state process that determine how many people live in the state for legislative purposes

Question 31

What is gerrymandering

Answer 31

using redistricting process to create legislative districts that give one party a significant advantage. means drawing electoral boundaries to favor a particular political party or group.

Question 32

What is the purpose of majority-minority districts

Answer 32

were created to avoid gerrymanders that diluted the voting power of minorities.

Question 33

What is commander in chief

Answer 33

a constitutional power giving the president authority over all parts of the U.S. military, including promoting and dismissing military commanders and officers

Question 34

What is bipartisan

Answer 34

means "two factions," consensus on a particular government action, issue, or law between both major political parties

Question 35

What is the Monroe Doctrine

Answer 35

a principle of U.S. policy, first articulated by President James Monroe, declaring that interventions by European powers in the affairs of the nations of the Western Hemisphere would be considered as intolerable acts of aggression by the United States

Question 36

What is one of the things the Constitution requires the president to do

Answer 36

Deliver a state of the union address

Question 37

What are the duties of the president

Answer 37

present Congress with information about the state of the union call Congress into session when needed veto legislation if necessary make recommendations for legislation and policy call on the heads of various departments to make reports and offer opinions

Question 38

What are formal and informal powers of the presidency

Answer 38

Formal Powers: Clearly stated in the Constitution Informal Powers: Not clearly stated in the Constitution

Question 39

Why was the Twenty-Second Amendment proposed by Congress and ratified by the states, limiting the president to two terms in office?

Answer 39

Franklin D. Roosevelt won four consecutive terms, violating the principle established by George Washington of serving only two terms.

Question 40

What is Executive Order 9066

Answer 40

authorized the removal of people from military areas as necessary to avoid Japanese Americans from forming a fifth column in the US after pearl harbor

Question 41

What are executive agreements

Answer 41

formal agreements negotiated between the leaders of 2 countries, but they are not ratified by a legislature as a treaty must be

Question 42

How long are executive agreements valid for

Answer 42

as long as both leaders are in power (or accepted by the new president)

Question 43

When did the US establish national intelligence agencies

Answer 43

After WW2

Question 44

What is a key element of a new president's transition into office?

Answer 44

Indicating to foreign leaders which executive agreements they will continue to honor

Question 45

What is a recess appointment

Answer 45

a constitutional power that allows the U.S. President to temporarily fill vacant government positions without Senate confirmation while Congress is in recess.

Question 46

What is executive privilege

Answer 46

the ability of the president to withhold information from Congress

Question 47

What are civil cases

Answer 47

court cases based on civil law, not criminal law. Civil law regulates disagreements between individuals and companies, individuals and government agencies, and foreign individuals or governments, including questions of constitutionality.

Question 48

What is judicial review

Answer 48

a principle that courts have the power to overturn laws passed by Congress and even actions of the president if such laws or actions conflict with the Constitution. This power was established in the case Marbury v. Madison.

Question 49

What is stare decisis

Answer 49

meaning “let the decision stand,” this is a principle that courts should rely on previous decisions and established precedents as they make decisions

Question 50

What is judicial activism

Answer 50

a viewpoint that U.S. courts should defend individual rights and liberties and stop actions by other branches of government that they see as infringing on those rights

Question 51

What is strict construction

Answer 51

an approach to interpreting the Constitution based on the idea that the national government can only do those things that are specifically mentioned in the Constitution

Question 52

What is loose construction

Answer 52

an approach to interpreting the Constitution based on the idea that judges can reinterpret constitutional language to create new legal standards, appropriate for changing conditions

Question 53

What is judicial restraint

Answer 53

a viewpoint that judges should be reluctant to overturn the acts of Congress, the president, or the states, deferring decisions (and thus, policy-making) to elected branches of government. Proponents of judicial restraint focus on a narrow, strict interpretation of the Bill of Rights.

Question 54

What are the 3 levels of federal courts

Answer 54

District courts Circuit Courts Supreme Court

Question 55

What is original and appellate jurisdiction that the Supreme Court has

Answer 55

Original jurisdiction reviews cases heard for the first time Appellate jurisdiction reviews cases appealed from lower courts

Question 56

When does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction

Answer 56

in very rare cases where there are disputes between states or involving foreign diplomats

Question 57

What is the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution

Answer 57

establishes the Constitution as highest law

Question 58

What does the Supreme Court meant for

Answer 58

final interpretation of Constitution

Question 59

What is Judicial Activisim

Answer 59

Courts should actively engage in issues

Question 60

What is Marbury v. Madison

Answer 60

Established judicial review (power to declare laws unconstitutional)

Question 61

What is McCulloch v. Maryland

Answer 61

supported loose interpretation, established states can't tax federal property, and established a national bank

Question 62

What does it mean if the Supreme Court declares an issue a "political question"

Answer 62

makes it so it is decided by elected branches

Question 63

What is the "Rule of Four"

Answer 63

at least 4 justices must agree to hear a case

Question 64

How many justices in Supreme Court

Answer 64

9

Question 65

What do District Courts do

Answer 65

handle original jurisdiction criminal and civil. in each state

Question 66

What do Circuit Courts do

Answer 66

court of appeals. review district court decisions. dont hold trials. decisions often final as supreme court takes limited cases

Question 67

What did the 14th amendment do

Answer 67

extended Bill of Rights protections to state-level actions gives federal courts more oversight over state actions making state laws subject to judicial review

Question 68

What is Miranda v. Arizona

Answer 68

state courts handled criminal charges and Supreme Court ruled on constitutional issues regarding police questioning leading to "Miranda rights"

Question 69

What is federalism

Answer 69

a system and structure of government that divides constitutional power and authority between the national government and state governments

Question 70

What are expressed powers

Answer 70

also known as the enumerated powers of the Constitution, these powers are to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, raise and support armies, declare war, coin money, and conduct foreign affairs.

Question 71

What are reserved powers

Answer 71

any powers not prohibited by the Constitution or delegated to the national government; powers reserved to the states and denied to the federal government as outlined in the Tenth Amendment

Question 72

What are concurrent powers

Answer 72

powers shared by state and federal governments to tax, to borrow money, to build infrastructure, to establish courts, to establish legal punishments, and to declare eminent domain

Question 73

What is the Full Faith and Credit Clause

Answer 73

requires the states to accept court decisions, public acts, and contracts of other states.

Question 74

What is the Privileges and Immunities Clause

Answer 74

says that states are prohibited from discriminating against out of state residents

Question 75

What is Gibbons v. Ogden

Answer 75

Focused on interpreting the Commerce Clause and interstate commerce regulation. Involved favoring a federal authority on a dispute over steamboat licensing between New York State and federal authorities.