AP Government Review - Unit 2 Interactions Among Branches

Congress

Legislative Branch

Senate

the upper house of Congress, consisting of two representatives from each state

House of Representatives

lower house of congress based on state population

constituencies

a body of voters in a specified area who elect a representative to a legislative body.

Coalitions

a combination or alliance, especially a temporary one between persons, factions, states

Term Length

President

- one term of four years

- only two terms

Senate

- serve six-year terms

- staggered over even years so that only about 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection during any election

HOR

- two-year terms

- considered for reelection every even year

Formal Powers Examples

Veto power, command armed forces, pardoning power, appointment powers, make treaties, convene Congress

Informal Powers Examples

The power to go public, power of persuasion, make executive agreements, issue executive orders, issue signing statements, create & use bureaucracy, personality and leadership, and make legislative proposals.

Enumerated Powers

political power specifically delegated to a governmental branch by a constitution

Implied Powers

powers of U.S. government which have not been explicitly granted by the Constitution but that is implied by the necessary and proper clause to be delegated for the purpose of carrying out the enumerated powers.

Federal Budget

a plan for the federal government's revenues and spending for the coming year

Raising Revenue

income tax, cooperate tax, estate tax, customs

Coining Money

the power of the legislative branch to print money (coins and bills) for use

Necessary & Proper Clause

constitutional authorization for Congress to make any law required to carry out its powers

Social Issues

Challenges caused by larger social factors that require collective solutions.

Debate rules

In the House, the Rules Committee has a lot of power in controlling time and rules of debate.

In the Senate, there is no Rules Committee, so limits on debate come through unanimous consent, cloture, or filibuster.

Speaker of the House

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

Paul Ryan

President of Senate

The vice president acts as the president of the Senate. In the vice president's absence, that position is filled by the president pro tempore, who is usually the most senior senator of the majority party.

Filabuster

the process or an instance of obstructing legislation by means of long speeches and other delaying tactics

Cloture motion

debate on the topic at hand must end, and a vote is taken immediately.

Unanimous consent

an agreement by all members present on anything requiring a yes or no decision

Holds

parliamentary procedure permitted by the Standing Rules of the Senate which allows one or more Senators to prevent a motion from reaching a vote on the Senate floor.

EXAMPLES

secret or anonymous hold - Senator told privately.

Senatorial hold-objects on the Senate floor or the hold is publicly revealed,

Rules Committee

a legislative committee responsible for expediting the passage of bills.

Committee of the whole

a device in which a legislative body or other deliberative assembly sits as a single committee with all assembly members being committee members.

discharge petition

a special tactic used to extract a bill from a committee to have it considered by the entire House

Treaty Ratification

Senate ratifies a treaty with 2/3 majority

Confirmation

Senate confirmations became the arena for bitter partisan battles, particularly in regard to appointments to the Supreme Court and to cabinet or sub-cabinet positions.

Discretionary spending

government spending implemented through an appropriations bill. This spending is an optional part of fiscal policy

Mandatory spending

Required govt spending by permanent laws

Entitlement programs

Government benefits that certain qualified individuals are entitled to by law

Pork Barrel Legislation

The practice of legislators obtaining funds through legislation that favors their home districts.

logrolling

the practice of exchanging favors, especially in politics by reciprocal voting for each other's proposed legislation.

partianship

loyalty to a political cause or party

Ideology

a system of ideas and ideals, especially one which forms the basis of economic or political theory and policy.

gridlock

A situation in which government is incapable of acting on important issues.

trustee

exercises his own judgment

delegate politico

is a representative who acts according to the wishes of his constituents

Presidential veto

When a regular veto is used, the president rejects a bill sent to him/her by Congress. Congress can overturn a regular presidential veto with a 2/3 majority vote of both houses.

pocket vetoes

slightly sneaky way for a president or governor to veto a bill. If Congress gives the president a bill and the president doesn't sign or reject it, the bill isn't passed.

lame duck

in politics, is an elected official who is approaching the end of their tenure, especially one whose successor has already been elected

Foreign Policy

a government's strategy in dealing with other nations.

Commander in chief

A person who is in control of all the armed forces of a nation

Executive agreements

routine international agreements/pacts w/ foreign Head of State, DO NOT require Senate approval.

Signing Statments

a statement issued by a president upon the signing of a bill into law by which the president indicates his or her interpretation of the law.

Executive Branch Appointments

president must seek Senate approval of many different appointments. Once a president appoints the individual, the Senate holds hearings in the appropriate committee, if the committee approves the appointment the name is sent to the full Senate for approval with a simple majority. Called "advice and consent".

Cabinet Members

Person appointed to head an executive department of the United States Government.

Ambassadors

an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country.

White House Staff

The president's personal assistants and advisers

Life-tenured

service during good behavior is a term of office that lasts for the office holder's lifetime

Executive order

presidential statements that have the force of law and do not need congressional approval unless appropriations are needed to carry out the order.

Executive privilege:

power of the president to protect the privacy interests of the executive branch.

Independent regulatory agencies:

issue regulations, enforce penalties for violations of their regulations. The heads of the independent regulatory agencies are appointed by the president and require Senate approval. Key examples include: FTC, FDA, FCC, OSHA, EPA, CPSC, FEC.

Government corporations:

non-profit companies owned by the federal government. Key examples: Amtrak, FDIC, TVA, USPS.

Independent Executive Agencies:

CIA, National Science Foundation, NASA.

Pendleton Act (1883):

did away with the Jacksonian spoils system, set up merit as the criteria for hiring, promoting, and firing federal employees. Also enforced the regulation that civil service employees could not take part in partisan politics.

Presidential appointment process:

president must seek Senate approval of many different appointments. Once a president appoints the individual, the Senate holds hearings in the appropriate committee, if the committee approves the appointment the name is sent to the full Senate for approval with a simple majority. Called "advice and consent".

Formal qualifications for the President:

35 years old, natural-born citizen, resident of the US for 14 years.

civil service

the group of people whose job it is to carry out the work of the government

Merit system

A system of employment based on qualifications, test scores, and ability, rather than party loyalty

State of the Union

a yearly address delivered each January by the president of the US to Congress, giving the administration's view of the state of the nation and plans for legislation.

Bully pulpit

a position of authority or public visibility, especially a political office, from which one may express one's views (President)

Reforms

Political changes to make things better

Rule making authority

process by which federal agencies implement legislation passed by Congress and signed into law by the President.

Precedents

How similar cases have been decided in the past.

Stare decisis

In court rulings, a reliance on past decisions or precedents to formulate decisions in new cases

Judicial activism

the practice in the judiciary of protecting or expanding individual rights through decisions that depart from established precedent or are independent of or in opposition to supposed constitutional or legislative intent — compare judicial restraint.

Judicial Restraint

theory of judicial interpretation that encourages judges to limit the exercise of their own power. It asserts that judges should hesitate to strike down laws unless they are obviously unconstitutional,

Expansive Interpretation

liberal interpretation that employs a statutory provision (expand on the subject matter of the statute, or law, to provide more information about who the law applies to, when it applies and what the penalties are for violating it) to a case involving ambiguity in its literal words.

Marbury v Madison

forms the basis for the exercise of judicial review in the United States under Article III of the Constitution

Judicial Review

The power of a court to determine the constitutionality of a governmental action

Federalist # 78

Hamilton begins by telling the readers that this paper will discuss the importance of an independent judicial branch and the meaning of judicial review. The Constitution proposes the federal judges hold their office for life, subject to good behavior.

appropriation

refers to the act of designating a certain amount of money for a specific use. The term is often used in reference to budgeting and the creation of spending bills.

Article III

judicial branch of the federal government. The judicial branch comprises the Supreme Court of the United States and lower courts as created by Congress.

Dept Homeland

responsible for protecting the United States and its territory from terrorism and large-scale disasters, and for responding to such events when they occur. It was established in 2002 in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Dept of Transportation

Office of the Secretary and eleven individual Operating Administrations:

the Federal Aviation Administration,

the Federal Highway Administration,

the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration,

the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Federal Transit Administration,

the Maritime Administration,

the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation,

the Research and Innovative Technologies Administration,

the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration,

Surface Transportation Board.

Department Veterans Affairs

second-largest cabinet department, the VA coordinates the distribution of benefits for veterans of the American armed forces and their dependents. The benefits include compensation for disabilities, the management of veterans' hospitals, and various insurance programs.

Department of Education

federal executive branch responsible for providing federal aid to educational institutions and financial aid to students, keeping national educational records, and conducting some educational research.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

December 1970 by an executive order of United States President Richard Nixon. The EPA is an agency of the United States federal government whose mission is to protect human and environmental health.

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

independent regulatory agency whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections.

Created in 1974- duties as "to disclose campaign finance information, to enforce the provisions of the law such as the limits and prohibitions on contributions, and to oversee the public funding.

Security and Exchange Commission (SEC)

regulatory body that was established as a result of the Securities Act of 1934. Founded after the stock market crash of 1929, the SEC is the federal agency responsible for the oversight and enforcement of laws pertaining to the securities industry

whips

Party leaders who work with the majority leader or minority leader to count votes beforehand and lean on waverers whose votes are crucial to a bill favored by the party.

minority leader

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

Committees

small groups of representatives who work out the details of bills

Iron Triangle:

interrelationship among

1. Angencies

2. Congressional committees

3. special interest groups.

in specific policy areas.

EXAMPLE: "military industrial complex";

1. the Department of Defense

2. the armed services Congressional committees

3. defense related industries

develop policies that were advantageous for those industries.

Congressional oversight:

the watchdog responsibility of congressional committees with the goal of preventing waste and fraud, ensuring civil liberties and civil rights, gathering information in the lawmaking process, and evaluating the executive branch.

joint committees

congressional committees on a few subject-matter areas with membership drawn from both houses.

conference committees

Congressional committees formed when the Senate and the House pass a particular bill in different forms. Party leadership appoints members from each house to iron out the differences and bring back a single bill

select committees

Congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation.

committee chairs

The most important influences of the congressional agenda. They play dominant roles in scheduling hearings, hiring staff, appointing subcommittees, and managing committee bills when they are brought before the full house.

incumbents

Those already holding office.

caucus

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

Bill

A proposed law, drafted in precise, legal language. Anyone can draft a bill, but only a member of the House of Representatives or the Senate can formally submit a bill for consideration

Bureacracy

A large, complex administrative structure that handles the everyday business of an organization

gerrymandering

manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class.

redistricting

the process by with district lines are drawn within the confines of the mandate number of representatives per state-controversial power that is governed by state law.

reapportionment

reallocating House seats every 10 years based on census

Shaw V. Reno

no racial gerrymandering

Baker V Carr

Established the principle of one man, one vote. Guidelines for drawing congressional districts.

Concurrent resolution

a resolution adopted by both houses of a legislative assembly that does not require the signature of the chief executive and that does not have the force of law.