Unit 2A Flashcards
House of Representatives Qualifications
must be at least 25 years old, a United States citizen for at least seven years and an inhabitant of the state he or she represents
Senate Qualifications
age (at least thirty years of age); U.S. citizenship (at least nine years); and residency in the state a senator represents at time of election
Powers of the House
the power to initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an Electoral College tie
Powers of the Senate
takes action on bills, resolutions, amendments, motions, nominations, and treaties by voting; voting in a variety of ways, including roll call votes, voice votes, and unanimous consent
Process of a Bill Becoming a Law
if a bill has passed in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and has been approved by the President, or if a presidential veto has been overridden, the bill becomes a law and is enforced by the government
Speaker of the House
the speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House and is simultaneously its presiding officer, de facto leader of the body’s majority party, and the institution’s administrative head; speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions
Senate Majority Leader
the majority leader is seen as the de facto leader of the Senate, especially in modern times, and thus, in accordance with Senate rules, the presiding officer of the day gives the majority leader priority in obtaining recognition to speak on the floor of the Senate and they determine which bills get voted on
Whips
an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology or the will of their donors or constituents; party enforcers
House Rules Committee
is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for the rules under which bills will be presented to the House of Representatives, unlike other committees, which often deal with a specific area of policy
Standing Committee
a permanent committee in congress that oversees bills that deal with certain kinds of issues
Conference Committee
exist to draft a compromise bill that both houses can accept
House Only
discharge petition, committee of the whole
Senate Only
filibuster, cloture, hold, unanimous consent
Discharge Petition
a means of bringing a bill out of committee and to the floor for consideration without a report from the committee by “discharging” the committee from further consideration of a bill or resolution
Committee of the Whole
a committee of the House on which all Representatives serve and which meets in the House Chamber for the consideration of measures from the Union calendar
Filibuster
is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision
Cloture
a procedure for ending a debate and taking a vote - 60 votes
Hold
indication of disapproval for a bill, strong hesitation will likely lead to a filibuster - 60 votes to cancel
Unanimous Consent
nobody objects - all agree
Reapportionment
the process by which congressional districts are redrawn and seats are redistributed among states in the House
Redistricting
process of redrawing the boundary lines of the districts from which public officials are elected and typically follows the release of each federal decennial census
Gerrymandering
manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class
Baker v. Carr
Baker v. Carr (1962) is the U.S. Supreme Court case that held that federal courts could hear cases alleging that a state’s drawing of electoral boundaries, i.e. redistricting, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution
Shaw v. Reno
using the Shaw v. Reno decision, the justices decided that using racial reasons for redistricting is unconstitutional. Since Georgia’s General Assembly used “race for its own sake and not other districting principles,” their actions were rendered unconstitutional
Logrolling
the practice of exchanging favors, especially in politics by reciprocal voting for each other’s proposed legislation
Pork Barrel
the use of government funds for projects designed to please voters or legislators and win votes
Politico
role played by elected representatives who vote the way their constituents would want them to, regardless of their own opinions
Trustee
make decisions based off what they think is best for the people “you voted for me, you should trust what I believe”
Delegate Theories
the view that an elected representative should represent the opinions of his or her constituents
Lame Duck President
A president is a lame duck after a successor has been elected, during which time the outgoing president and president-elect usually embark on a transition of power
