AP Gov: Congress Quiz Terms

Congress Terms

Bicameral Legislature

a lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts

Speaker of the House

the leader of the majority party who serves as the presiding officer of the House of Representatives

Congress Terms

House: 2 years

Senate: 6 years

House Rules Committee

The committee in the House of Representatives that reviews most bills coming from a House committee before they go to the floor

Majority leader

the legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House or Senate

Minority leader

The principal leader of the minority party in the House of Representatives or in the Senate.

Whips

assistant to the floor leaders, keeps a head count of votes, rounds up members for important votes

Census

the official count of a population every 10 years

Reapportionment

the process of reassigning representation based on population, after every census

Baker v. Carr

Ruling: Supreme Court has jurisdiction over legislative apportionment under the equal protection clause.

Gerrymandering

the drawing of legislative district boundaries to benefit a party, group, or incumbent

partisan gerrymandering

drawing of district boundaries into strange shapes to benefit a political party

racial gerrymandering

drawing of legislative boundaries to give electoral advantages to a particular racial group.

Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act

prohibits voting practices or procedures that dilute minority vote

Shaw v. Reno

Ruling: race cannot be the sole or predominant factor in redrawing legislative boundaries

Cracking

spreading voters of one type over many districts where they will comprise minorities that are unable to influence elections

Packing

concentrating partisan voters in a single district in order to maximize the number of representatives that can be elected by the opposition in other districts

Committees

small groups of representatives who work out the details of bills

Discharge Petitions

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

Committee of the Whole

consists of all members of the House and meets in the House chamber but is governed by different rules, making it easier to consider complex and controversial legislation

unanimous consent agreement

an agreement in the Senate that sets the terms for consideration of a bill

filibuster

A procedural practice in the Senate whereby a senator refuses to relinquish the floor and thereby delays proceedings and prevents a vote on a controversial issue.

cloture

A procedure for terminating debate, especially filibusters, in the Senate. Requires 3/5ths of the senate (60 ppl)

non-germane amendments

amendments which are unrelated to the subject matter of the original measure

Pigeonholing

Occurs when a committee ignores a bill and doesn't report it out. Also known as "tabling" or "death by committee." Major cause of bill death.

legislative oversight

Congress's monitoring of the bureaucracy and its administration of policy, performed mainly through hearings.

McGrain v. Daugherty

Congress has the power to investigate and compel testimony as part of its legislative function. Congress should be allowed to investigate to understand and inform law in the future

fire alarm oversight

members of Congress respond to complaints about the bureaucracy or problems of implementation only as they arise

police patrol oversight

members of congress constantly monitor the bureaucracy to make sure that laws are implemented correctly

Trustee

A legislator who acts according to her or his conscience and the broad interests of the entire society.

Delegate

A legislator who acts according to the wants of the area they represent

Politico

Role played by elected representatives who act as trustees or as delegates, depending on the issue.

cacus (congressional)

A group of members of Congress sharing some interest or characteristic. Many are composed of members from both parties and from both houses.

earmarks/pork-barrel legislation

Legislation added to appropriation bills that benefits one state or district

hold (congress)

delay on legislation by objecting senator