Unit 4 - Institutions

Question 1

Appropriation

Answer 1

money that Congress has allocated to be spent

Question 2

Appropriations Committee

Answer 2

congressional committee that deals with federal spending

Question 3

Appellate jurisdiction

Answer 3

authority of a court to hear an appeal from a lower court

Question 4

Bureaucracy

Answer 4

departments, agencies, bureaus, and commissions in the executive branch of government

Question 5

Casework

Answer 5

personal work done by a member of Congress for his constituents

Question 6

Civil law

Answer 6

concerns noncriminal disputes between private parties

Question 7

Class action lawsuit

Answer 7

lawsuit brought on behalf of a class of people against a defendant, e.g., lawsuits brought by those who have suffered from smoking against tobacco companies

Question 8

Closed rule

Answer 8

Rules Committee rule that bans amendments to a bill

Question 9

Cloture

Answer 9

Senate motion to end a filibuster that requires a 3/5 vote

Question 10

Concurring opinion

Answer 10

written by a Supreme Court Justice who voted with the majority, but for different reasons

Question 11

Conference committee

Answer 11

works out a compromise between differing House-Senate versions of a bill

Question 12

Constituents

Answer 12

the people who are represented by elected officials

Question 13

Discharge petition

Answer 13

a motion to force a bill to the House floor that has been bottled up in committee

Question 14

Dissenting opinion

Answer 14

written by a Supreme Court Justice (or Justices) who express a minority viewpoint in a case

Question 15

Executive agreement

Answer 15

an agreement between the President and another head of state that, unlike a treaty, does not require Senate consent

Question 16

Executive order

Answer 16

presidential rule or regulation that has the force of law

Question 17

Executive privilege

Answer 17

the privilege of a President and his staff to withhold their “privileged” conversations from Congress or the courts

Question 18

Filibuster

Answer 18

nonstop Senate debate that prevents a bill from coming to a vote

Question 19

Finance Committee

Answer 19

Senate committee that handles tax bills

Question 20

Franking privilege

Answer 20

allows members of Congress to send mail postage free

Question 21

Gerrymandering

Answer 21

redrawing district lines to favor one party at the expense of the other

Question 22

Hold

Answer 22

Senate maneuver that allows a Senator to stop or delay consideration of a bill or presidential appointment

Question 23

Impeachment

Answer 23

House action that formally charges an official with wrongdoing. Conviction requires 2/3 vote from the Senate

Question 24

Impoundment

Answer 24

refusal of a President to spend money that has been appropriated by Congress

Question 25

Injunction

Answer 25

court order that forbids a party from performing a certain action

Question 26

Judicial activism

Answer 26

philosophy that the courts should take an active role in solving problems

Question 27

Judicial restraint

Answer 27

philosophy that the courts should defer to elected lawmakers in setting policy, and should instead focus on interpreting law rather than making law

Question 28

Judicial review

Answer 28

power of the courts to review the constitutionality of laws or government actions

Question 29

Legislative oversight

Answer 29

ongoing process of congressional monitoring of the executive branch to ensure that the latter complies with the law

Question 30

Legislative veto

Answer 30

process in which Congress overturned rules and regulations proposed by executive branch agencies. Struck down in 1983

Question 31

Line item veto

Answer 31

power of most governors (and President Clinton for only a few years) to delete or reduce funding in a bill on a line by line basis

Question 32

Logrolling

Answer 32

when two members of Congress agree to vote for each other’s bill

Question 33

Majority opinion

Answer 33

written to express the majority viewpoint in a Supreme Court case

Question 34

Mark up

Answer 34

committee action to amend a proposed bill

Question 35

Merit system

Answer 35

system of hiring federal workers based upon competitive exams

Question 36

Open rule

Answer 36

House Rules Committee rule that allows amendments to a bill

Question 37

Original jurisdiction

Answer 37

authority of a court to first hear a case

Question 38

Patronage

Answer 38

power to appoint loyal party members to federal positions

Question 39

Pocket veto

Answer 39

presidential killing of a bill by inaction after Congress adjourns

Question 40

Political appointees

Answer 40

those who have received presidential appointments to office. Contrast with Civil Service employees, who receive federal jobs by competitive exams

Question 41

Pork barrel

Answer 41

wasteful congressional spending, e.g. funding for a Lawrence Welk museum in North Dakota

Question 42

Quorum

Answer 42

minimum number of members needed for the House or Senate to meet

Question 43

Reapportionment

Answer 43

reallocation of House seats to the states on the basis of changes in state populations, as determined by the census

Question 44

Redistricting

Answer 44

redrawing of congressional district boundaries by the party in power of the state legislature

Question 45

Red tape

Answer 45

complex rules and procedures required by bureaucratic agencies

Question 46

Remand

Answer 46

the Supreme Court’s sending of a case back to the original court in which it was heard

Question 47

Rider

Answer 47

amendment to a bill that has little to do with that bill. Also known as a nongermane amendment

Question 48

Rule of four

Answer 48

the Supreme Court will hear a case if four Justices agree to do so

Question 49

Rules Committee

Answer 49

the “traffic cop” of the House that sets the legislative calendar and issues rules for debate on a bill

Question 50

Senatorial courtesy

Answer 50

tradition in which the President consults with the senators within a state in which an appointment is to be made

Question 51

Seniority system

Answer 51

tradition in which the Senator from the majority party with the most years of service on a committee becomes the chairman of that committee

Question 52

Spoils system

Answer 52

see patronage above

Question 53

Standing committees

Answer 53

the permanent congressional committees that handle legislation

Question 54

Stare decisis

Answer 54

Latin for “let the decision stand.” Supreme Court policy of following precedent in deciding cases

Question 55

Sunset laws

Answer 55

laws that automatically expire after a given time

Question 56

Ways and Means Committee

Answer 56

House committee that handles tax bills

Question 57

Whistleblower

Answer 57

an employee who exposes unethical or illegal conduct within the federal government or one of its contractors

Question 58

Writ of certiorari

Answer 58

issued by the Supreme Court to a lower court to send up the records of a case so that it can be reviewed by the high court

Question 59

Writ of habeas corpus

Answer 59

court order that the authorities show cause for why they are holding a prisoner in custody. Deters unlawful imprisonment

Question 60

Writ of mandamus

Answer 60

court order directing a party to perform a certain action