Government 2nd Semester Exam

Convene

To meet

Partisans

Legislators that owe their first allegiance to their political party

Bills

Proposed laws

Adjourn

Suspends

Franking Privilege

Congress can use the U.S. mail for free

Special Session

The President can call Congress into session

Trustees

Each question a representatives face must be based on its merits

Term

Amount of time served

Delegates

Agents of the people that elected them

Prorouge

The power of the president to dismiss Congress

Politicos

Attempt to combine the basic element of all three representative roles.

Floor Consideration

A bill is considered by the whole floor

Oversight Function

The process in which Congress oversees the Executive branch

Session

A specific period of time

Recess

The time not in session

Incumbent

The person who currently holds office

At-large

Elect from the State as a whole

Apportioned

To divide and allocate

Single-member district

Voters in each district elect a representative

Off-year election

Congressional elections between Presidential elections

Constituency

The people a member of Congress represents

Continuous Body

All the seats are never up for election at the same time

Gerrymandering

The drawing of of legislative districts for partisan advantage

Reapportion

The process of reallocating House seats

Legal Tender

Any kind of money that a creditor must by law accept in payment

Copyright

Exclusive right of an author to reproduce, publish and sell their creative work

Tax

A charge levied by government on person or property to raise money to meet public needs

Deficit Financing

Spending more money than you take in

Naturalization

The process of becoming a citizen

Public Debt

All of the money borrowed by the Federal government

Commerce Power

The power of Congress to regulate interstate and foreign trade

Eminent Domain

The inherent power to take private property for public use.

Inherent Powers

Powers that you get by forming a government

Bankruptcy

The legal proceeding in which someone's assets are distributed to their debtors

Expressed Powers

Specifically worded in the Constitution

Patent

Grants a person the sole right to manufacture, use or sell any new product

Territory

Parts of the U.S. that are are not states but have their own systems of government

Implied Powers

Powers that can be reasonably deduced from the Constitution

Perjury

Lying while under oath

Strict Constructionist

People who believed the Constitution should be interpreted in a narrow way

Appropiate

Assigns to a particular use

Liberal Constructionist

People who believed the Constitution should be interpreted in a broad way

Impeach

To accuse or bring charges against

Censure

Formal condemnation of his behavior

Necessary and Proper Clause

The Constitutional power given to Congress to do what is necessary to run the government

Consensus

A general agreement

Successor

A replacement

Acquit

Return a verdict of not guilty

Subpoena

A legal order to appear in court

Minority Leader

The floor leader with the minority of seats in the house

President Pro Tempore

Presiding officer of the Senate

Standing Committee

A permanent committee

Majority Leader

The floor leader with the majority of seats in the house

Party Caucus

Closed meeting of party members

President of the Senate

The Vice President

Subcommittee

Divisions of the committee that do most of the work

Speaker of the House

Leader of the House

Conference Committee

A temporary committee of members of both house to work on differences of a bill

Seniority Rule

The informal rule that those with the most years in get the best assignments

Whips

Assistant to the floor leaders and helps organize votes

Floor Leader

Party officer that leads the legislative action during sessions of Congress

Select Committee

Set up for a limited time and for a special purpose

Committee Chair

The person in charge of an individual committee

Joint Committee

A committee with members of both houses

Joint Resolution

Bills that deal with unusual or temporary matters

Concurrent Resolution

A bill in which both House and Senate must act together

Resolution

An action that deals with only one house

Engrossed

The final version of a bill

Bill

A proposed law

Pocket Veto

The President does nothing to a bill after Congress has been adjourned for 10 days

Cloture

The ability to end debate in the Senate, needs 3/5th vote to pass

Veto

Presidential power to refuse to sign a bill

Discharge Petition

The action that forces a bill out of committee

Filibuster

Used in the Senate, the ability to stall voting by refusing to stop debate

Pigeonhole

Burying a bill in committee

Quorum

A majority of the full membership, needed to vote

Rider

A provision attached to a bill that would not pass on its own

Omnibus Measure

One bill contains numerous issues and topics

Chief Citizen

The President is the representative of the people

Chief of State

The President is the ceremonial head of the government

Chief Administrator

The director of the executive branch of the Federal government

Chief of Party

The President is the head of their party

Chief Legislator

The President is the main author of public policies sent to Congress

Commander In Chief

The President is in charge of the armed forces

Foreign Affairs

Things the President deals with outside of the United States

Presidential Succession

The scheme in which a Presidential vacancy is filled

Impeachment

To charge the President with wrongdoing

Chief Diplomat

The President is the main architect of American foreign policy

Chief Economist

The President is in charge of the economy

First Lady

Official title for the President's wife or the White House hostess

Domestic Affairs

Things the President deals within the United States

Presidential Succession Act of 1947

The law that fixed the Presidential line of succession

Chief Executive

The President is vested with executive power from the Constitution

Balance the ticket

A presidential nominee chooses a running mate who strengthen their chance of winning because they are different

Amnesty

A blanket pardon for a group of people

Commutation

The power to reduce a fine or the length of a sentence

Treaty

A formal agreement between two or more sovereign states

Clemency

Mercy or leniency

Executive Agreement

A pact between the President and the head of a foreign state

Pardon

A legal forgiveness of a crime