AP Government Congress: Committees, Elections, and Procedures

Senate

one of the two chambers of Congress. It has 100 members, with two senators representing each state. Senators serve six-year terms and help make laws, approve presidential appointments, and ratify treaties.

Bill

a proposed law introduced in Congress. It must pass both the House of Representatives and the Senate and usually be signed by the president to become law.

Trustee

representative who uses their own judgment and beliefs to make decisions for their constituents. They decide what they think is best for the public rather than simply following voters' opinions.

Delegate

representative who votes according to the wishes and opinions of their constituents. Their goal is to represent what the people they serve want.

Partisan

someone who strongly supports a particular political party. Partisans usually support their party's policies and candidates.

Filibuster

Senate tactic used to delay or block a vote by extending debate. Senators can generally end a filibuster by invoking cloture, which usually requires 60 votes.

Oversight

A shared power of Congress to monitor the executive branch through investigations, committee hearings, and subpoenas for witness testimony.

Impeachment

An exclusive power of the House of Representatives to draft and approve formal charges of wrongdoing against federal officials, including the president and federal judges.

Baker v. Carr

1962 Supreme Court case that allowed federal courts to hear challenges to unfair legislative district maps. It helped establish the principle that legislative districts should have roughly equal populations.

Shaw v. Reno

1993 Supreme Court case involving a congressional district drawn primarily based on race. The Court ruled that racial gerrymandering could violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Logrolling

occurs when legislators agree to support each other's bills to help get their proposals passed. For example, one representative votes for another's bill in exchange for support for their own.

Earmark

provision in legislation that directs government money toward a specific project or location. Legislators often use earmarks to fund projects in their districts.

Redistricting

process of redrawing electoral district boundaries to reflect population changes, usually after the census. Districts should have roughly equal populations.

President Pro Tempore

senator who presides over the Senate when the vice president is absent. The position is traditionally held by a senior senator from the majority party.

Whip

party leader in Congress who encourages members to vote according to their party's position. Whips count votes and help maintain party unity.

Gerrymandering

drawing electoral district boundaries to give a political party or group an unfair advantage. It can help a party win more seats than its share of the vote might suggest.

17th Amendment

ratified in 1913, established the direct election of U.S. senators by voters. Before this amendment, state legislatures selected senators.

House of Representatives

one of the two chambers of Congress. It has 435 voting members, with each state's number of representatives based on its population. Members serve two-year terms.

Reapportionment

redistribution of the 435 House seats among the states after the census. States can gain or lose seats based on population changes.

Bicameral Legislature

lawmaking body with two chambers. The U.S. Congress is bicameral because it consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Majority Party

political party that holds more than half the seats in a legislative chamber. It usually has greater control over leadership positions and the legislative agenda.

Minority Party

political party with fewer seats than the majority party in a legislative chamber. It can challenge the majority party's proposals and offer alternative policies.

Speaker of the House

the presiding officer and leader of the House of Representatives. The Speaker manages House proceedings, helps set the legislative agenda, and is usually a member of the majority party.

Standing Committee

permanent congressional committee that focuses on a specific policy area, such as agriculture, education, or defense. It reviews bills, holds hearings, and conducts investigations.

Conference Committee

temporary committee made up of members from both the House and Senate. It works to resolve differences between the two chambers' versions of a bill.

Cloture

Senate procedure used to end debate and move toward a vote. It generally requires 60 votes to limit debate on most legislation.

Pork Barrel Legislation

involves government spending on projects intended to benefit a particular district or state. Legislators may support these projects to provide benefits to their constituents.

Hold

informal Senate practice in which a senator signals that they object to or want to delay consideration of a bill or nomination. It can slow down Senate action.

Discharge Petition

a procedure in the House of Representatives that can force a bill out of committee and bring it to the floor for consideration. It generally requires signatures from 218 House members.

Rules Committee

House committee that determines the conditions for debating and amending many bills before they reach the House floor. It sets rules such as how long debate will last and which amendments may be considered.

Shared Powers

Constitutional responsibilities held jointly by the House of Representatives and the Senate, requiring both chambers to work together to enact federal policy.

Enacting Legislation

The joint constitutional power of passing identical bills through both chambers to be signed by the president, or overriding a presidential veto with a two-thirds vote in each chamber.

Financial Authority

Shared powers allowing Congress to levy and collect taxes, borrow money, establish the federal budget, and coin or regulate currency.

War and Military Powers

Shared constitutional authorities allowing Congress to formally declare conflict as well as raise, fund, and maintain armed forces.

Domestic and Legal Authority

Shared powers granting Congress the ability to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, establish lower federal courts, and set naturalization rules.

Originate Revenue Bills

An exclusive constitutional power of the House of Representatives requiring all tax and government spending proposals to start in the lower chamber.

Elections (Electoral College Tie)

An exclusive power of the House of Representatives to select the president of the United States if no candidate wins a majority of electoral votes.

Advice and Consent

An exclusive power of the Senate to confirm or reject presidential appointments for federal judges, cabinet secretaries, and senior executive branch officials.

Treaty Ratification

An exclusive power of the Senate to approve international agreements negotiated by the executive branch by a two-thirds vote.

Try Impeachments

An exclusive constitutional power of the Senate to act as a court and jury for accused federal officials, requiring a two-thirds vote to convict and remove from office.