Unit 4 Vocab

Question 1

friend of the court” brief filed by an interest group to influence a Supreme Court decision.

Answer 1

Amicus curiae brief

Question 2

money that Congress has allocated to be spent

Answer 2

Appropriation

Question 3

congressional committee that deals with federal spending.

Answer 3

Appropriations Committee

Question 4

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

Answer 4

Appellate jurisdiction

Question 5

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

Answer 5

Bureaucracy

Question 6

personal work done by a member of Congress for his constituents

Answer 6

Casework

Question 7

concerns noncriminal disputes between private parties

Answer 7

Civil law

Question 8

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

Answer 8

Class action lawsuit

Question 9

Rules Committee rule that bans amendments to a bill

Answer 9

Closed rule

Question 10

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

Answer 10

Cloture

Question 11

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

Answer 11

Concurring opinion

Question 12

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

Answer 12

Conference committee

Question 13

the people who are represented by elected officials

Answer 13

Constituents

Question 14

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

Answer 14

Discharge petition

Question 15

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

Answer 15

Dissenting opinion

Question 16

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

Answer 16

Executive agreement

Question 17

presidential rule or regulation that has the force of law

Answer 17

Executive order

Question 18

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

Answer 18

Executive privilege

Question 19

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

Answer 19

Filibuster

Question 20

Senate committee that handles tax bills

Answer 20

Finance Committee

Question 21

allows members of Congress to send mail postage free

Answer 21

Franking privilege

Question 22

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

Answer 22

Gerrymandering

Question 23

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

Answer 23

Hold

Question 24

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

Answer 24

Impeachment

Question 25

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

Answer 25

Impoundment

Question 26

an informal association of federal agency, congressional committee, and interest group that is said to have heavy influence over policy making

Answer 26

Iron triangle

Question 27

These consist of political executives, career bureaucrats, management and policy consultants, academic researchers, journalists, foundation officers, and White House aides, all of whom want fundamental change in the way a bureau operates its programs. They think about the issues in a broader context than do members of iron triangles

Answer 27

Issue network

Question 28

court order that forbids a party from performing a certain action

Answer 28

Injunction

Question 29

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

Answer 29

Judicial activism

Question 30

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

Answer 30

Judicial restraint

Question 31

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

Answer 31

Judicial review

Question 32

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

Answer 32

Legislative oversight

Question 33

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

Answer 33

Legislative veto

Question 34

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

Answer 34

Line item veto

Question 35

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

Answer 35

Logrolling

Question 36

written to express the majority viewpoint in a Supreme Court case

Answer 36

Majority opinion

Question 37

committee action to amend a proposed bill

Answer 37

Mark up

Question 38

system of hiring federal workers based upon competitive exams

Answer 38

Merit system

Question 39

House Rules Committee rule that allows amendments to a bill

Answer 39

Open rule

Question 40

authority of a court to first hear a case

Answer 40

Original jurisdiction

Question 41

power to appoint loyal party members to federal positions

Answer 41

Patronage

Question 42

presidential killing of a bill by inaction after Congress adjourns

Answer 42

Pocket veto

Question 43

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

Answer 43

Political appointees

Question 44

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

Answer 44

Pork barrel

Question 45

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

Answer 45

Quorum

Question 46

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

Answer 46

Reapportionment

Question 47

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

Answer 47

Redistricting

Question 48

complex rules and procedures required by bureaucratic agencies

Answer 48

Red tape

Question 49

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

Answer 49

Remand

Question 50

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

Answer 50

Rider

Question 51

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

Answer 51

Rule of four

Question 52

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

Answer 52

Rules Committee

Question 53

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

Answer 53

Senatorial courtesy

Question 54

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

Answer 54

Seniority system

Question 55

power to appoint loyal party members to federal positions (but not patronage)

Answer 55

Spoils system

Question 56

the permanent congressional committees that handle legislation

Answer 56

Standing committees

Question 57

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

Answer 57

Stare decisis

Question 58

laws that automatically expire after a given time

Answer 58

Sunset laws

Question 59

House committee that handles tax bills

Answer 59

Ways and Means Committee

Question 60

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

Answer 60

Whistleblower

Question 61

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

Answer 61

Writ of certiorari

Question 62

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

Answer 62

Writ of habeas corpus

Question 63

court order directing a party to perform a certain action

Answer 63

Writ of mandamus