Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
37 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
bicameral legislature
|
A legislature divided into 2 houses; the U.S. Congress and the state legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska, which is unicameral
|
|
Apportionment
|
The process of allotting congressional seats to each state following the decennial census according to their proportion of the population
|
|
redistricting
|
the redrawing of congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts w/in a state.
|
|
bill
|
a proposed law.
|
|
impeachment
|
the power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the pres., vice pres., or other "civil officers, including federal judges, which "Treason, Bribery or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." This is the first step in the constitution process of removing such gov't officials from office.
|
|
majority party
|
The political party in each house of Congress w/the most members
|
|
minority party
|
The political party in each house of Congress w/ the second most members.
|
|
Speaker of the House
|
The only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the Constitution; elected at the beginning of each new Congress by the entire House; traditionally a member of the majority party.
|
|
party caucus or conference
|
A formal gathering of all party members
|
|
majority leader
|
The elected leader of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or in the Senate; is second in authority to the Speaker of the House and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member
|
|
minority leader
|
The elected leader of the party w/the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Rep. or the Senate
|
|
whip
|
Key representative who keeps close contact w/all members and takes nose counts on key votes, prepares summaries of bills, and in general acts as comm. link w/in the party.
|
|
pres. pro tempore
|
The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party.
|
|
standing committee
|
Committee to which proposed bills are referred
|
|
joint committee
|
Includes members from both houses of Congress; conducts investigations or special studies.
|
|
conference comittee
|
joint committee created to iron out differences btwn Senate and House versions of a specific piece of legislation.
|
|
select (or special) committee
|
Temporary committee appointed for specific purpose, such as conducting a special investigation or study.
|
|
discharge petition
|
petition that gives a majority of the House of Rep. the authority to bring an issue to the floor in the face of committee inaction.
|
|
pork
|
Legislation that allows representatives to bring home the $$ to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs designed to benefit their districts directly
|
|
earmark
|
Funds that an appropriations bill designates for a particular purpose w/in a state or congressional district.
|
|
seniority
|
Time of continuous service on a committee
|
|
incumbency
|
the fact that being in office helps a person stay in office because of a variety of benefits that go w/the position
|
|
trustee
|
Role played by elected representatives who listen to constituents' opinions and then use their best judgment to make final decisions.
|
|
delegate
|
role played by elected representatives who vote the way their constituents would want them to, regardless of their own opinions.
|
|
politico
|
role played by elected representatives who act as trustees or as delegates, depending on the issue
|
|
divided gov't
|
the political condition in which different political parties control White House and Congress
|
|
logrolling
|
Vote trading, voting yea to support a colleague's bill in return for a promise of future support.
|
|
markup
|
A process in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor in either house for a vote.
|
|
hold
|
A tactic by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill is brought to the floor. This stops the bill from coming to the floor until the hold is removed
|
|
filibuster
|
A formal way of halting action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate in the Senate
|
|
cloture
|
mechanism requiring sixty senators to vote to cut off debate
|
|
veto
|
formal constitutional authority of the pres. to reject bills passes by both houses of the legislative body, thus preventing their becoming law w/out further congressional activity.
|
|
pocket veto
|
If congress adjourns during the ten days the pres. has to consider a bill passed by both houses of congress, w/out the pres's signature, the bill is considered vetoed.
|
|
oversight
|
Congressional review of the activities of an agency, department or office
|
|
congressional review
|
a process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations by a joint resolution of legislative disapproval.
|
|
War Powers Act
|
Passed by congress in 1973; the pres is limited in the deployment of troops overseas to a 60 day period in peacetime (which can be extended for an extra 30 days to permit withdrawl) unless Congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period.
|
|
senatorial courtesy
|
a process by which pres, when selecting district court judges, defer to the senator in whose state the vacancy occurs.
|