AP Gov Unit 3 Vocab

17th Amendment

established that US Senators should be elected by the people

Oversight

congress can monitor the executive branches, agencies, bureaus, cabinet officials and their officials.

Mandatory Spending

spending mandated by law and cannot be changed

Discretionary Spending

spending fro programs and politics at discretion of Congress and President

Budget Surplus

amount of money left over after spending (uncommon)

Budget Deficit

when government owes more than they are spending (in debt)

Constituency

body of voters in a given area who elect a representative or senator

House Majority Leader

second in command in the House

Whip

member of congress: chosen his or her party members, whose job is to ensure party unity and discipline

Minority Leader

the head of the party with the second highest number of seats in Congress

Senate Majority Leader

person who has the most power in the senate and the head of the party with the most seats in senate

Committee Chair

Leader of a congressional committee who has authority over the committees agenda

Standing Committee

where most of the work is done, it is permanent and divided by policy area. Members serve for multiple terms based on expertise. They consider legislation and executive oversight of executive branch agencies

Joint committee

contain members of both the House and the Senate. They focus public attention on an issue and gather information

Conference Committee

it is a temporary joint committee that resolves differences between House and Senate versions of a bill

select or special committee

temporary committees that are usually called upon to investigate an issue in response to a crisis or scandal

Rules Committee

determines when a bill will be subject to debate and vote on the House Floor, how long the debate will be and whether changes to the bill will be allowed on the House floor.

Filibuster

the power of an individual senator to talk and talk and talk to delay a motion or vote on the floor

Cloture

a vote of 60 senators can shut down a debate and end a filibuster

Apportionment

determining the number of representatives using the census

Gerrymandering

the intentional use of redistricting to benefit a specific interest or group of voters

Partisan Gerrymandering

drawing boundaries to benefit a political party

Majority - Minority Districts

districts in which voters of a minority ethnicity constitute an electoral majority in a district

Packing

packing as many voters as possible of an opposing party into one district

Cracking

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

14th amendment

places several limits on state actions, all persons born or naturalized in the US are citizens. (Equal protection clause, due process clause, voting rights act of 1965)

Equal Protection Clause

states may not deny people equal protection under the law

Due Process Clause

prevents states from denying persons due process under the law

Voting Rights Act of 1965

prevents systematic and widespread voter discrimination: Established majority - minority districts

Malapportionment

population is not evenly distributed when determining congressional districts

Baker v. Carr (1962)

supreme court ruled they do have authority to review state redistrciting plans

one person one vote

equal protection, clause requires districts to be drawn with similar # of constituents, equal representation while voting

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

Supreme court ruled that the shape of the proposed district in NC was bizarre enough that it could not be explained as anything other than an attempt to separate voters along racial lines.

Delegate Role

the idea the main duty of a member of Congress is to carry out constituents wishes

Trustee Role

the idea that members of congress should act as trustees making decisions based on their knowledge and judgement

Politico Role

representation where members of Congress balance their choices with the interests of their constituents and parties in decision making

Bipartisanship

when both parties work together

Gridlock

slow down in congress’ ability to legislate and overcome decisions

22nd amendment

limits the president to serving only 2 terms

12th amendment

vote for both the president and vice president together in the election instead of separately

Formal Powers

powers given to the president in the constitution

• vetoes and pocket vetoes
• execute laws
• nominate officials (w/ senate consent)
• act as commander in chief of armed forces
• make treaties (w/ senate ratification)
• nominate ambassadors (w/ senate consent)
• grant reprieves
• grant pardons
• nominate federal judges
• recommend legislation to Congress
• State of the Union Address
• Veto Legislation

Informal Powers

powers not laid out in the constitution that are necessary to carry out Presidential duties (negotiating with members of Congress)

• executive agreements
• signing statements
• executive orders

Chief Executive

the president carries out the laws of the nation and overseas a large and complex system of agencies and bureaucracies

Chief Diplomat

president is responsible for guiding US Foreign policy and interacting with the heads of other nations

Commander in Chief

president is the leader of the armed forces

Chief Legislator

president has legislative agendas that they promote to the people

State of the Union Address

an annual live televised speech given before congress

Pocket Veto

president doesn’t directly veto a bill

Head of State

president is the living symbol of the nation, greets visiting kings, prime ministers, etc.

Party Leader

President is generally considered the leader of their political party

Executive Order

rule or command having the force of law

Pardon

declaration of forgiveness & freedom from punishment

Reprieve

order to delay punishment

Amnesty

pardon toward a group of people

Executive Privilege

a right claimed by presidents to keep certain conversations, records and transcripts from outside scrutiny, especially that of congress

Executive Agreements

an agreement between the president and another nation that does not have the same durability as a treaty but does not require senate ratification

Signing Statements

written comments by the president while signing a bill into law that usually consists of political statements or reasons for signing the bill but may also include the presidents interpretation of the law itself

War Powers Resolution

president must notify congress within 48 hours of sending troops and must be brought home after 60 days without Congress’ approval

Bully Pulpit

a platform that presidents can use to talk to the American People

Fireside Chats

talking to the american people through the radio

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

works in the West Wing of the Whit House; the president’s closest advisers

Chief of Staff

most powerful political adviser; controls the president’s schedule and always has access to the president

National Security Council

Helps the president coordinate US Military and foreign policy; oversees the CIA

Council of Economic Advisors

gives the president advice about complex economist matters such as employment, tax, policy, inflation and foreign trade.

Bureaucrat

officials employed with government agencies

Spoils System

giving out administrative positions as a reward for support

Pendleton Act of 1883

an act of Congress that create the first United States Civil Service Commissions to draw up and enforce rules on hiring, promotion and tenure of office within the civil service

Merit System

based on qualifications

Iron Triangle

works with each other to achieve shared goals (bureaucracy, congress and interest groups)

Issue Network

webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates. (temporary, address specific policy problems, can create another issue network)

Implementation

the bureaucracy’s role in putting into action the laws that congress has passed

Bureaucratic Discretion

leaving some power to the bureaucrats to decide how a law is implemented

Regulation

process through which the federal bureaucracy fills in critical details of a law

Bureaucratic Discretion

leaving some power to the bureaucrats to decide how a law is implemented

Regulation

process through which the federal bureaucracy fills in critical details of a law

Bureaucratic Adjudication

bureaucracy may have to settle disputes between parties that arise over the implementation of federal laws and presidential executive orders or determine which individuals or groups are covered under a regulation or program.

Jurisdiction

authority to decide specific cases

original jurisdiction

authority to hear the case for the first time

appellate jurisdiction

authority to review the decision of a lower court to overturn or revise that decision

US District Courts

 lowest level court, 94 courts, original jurisdiction in federal cases, trials w/ juries and witnesses

US court of appeals

middle level courts, 13 courts, appellate jurisdiction - review + hear appeals from federal district courts, no juries = panel of judges. 

Supreme Court

highest level court, 9 justices, original and appellate jurisdiction

Marbury v. Madison

Federalist John Adams defeated by Thomas Jefferson for presidency in the election of 1800, the Judiciary Act of 801 created 16 new federal judge positions. Adams filled the positions with Federalist judges the night before he left office (midnight judges). Madison refused to deliver appointment papers because Adam was no longer president. William Marbury was appointed, but didn’t get his papers from Madison, Marbury Sued madison. SCOTUS declared the Judiciary Act of 1798 unconstitutional because the constitution doesn’t say the SCOTUS should force the executive branch to deliver appointment papers. Sided with Madison. This case established judicial review.

Judicial Review

the power of SCOTUS to evaluate the constitutionality of laws

Rule of Four

the court will hear a case if at least 4 justices vote to do so

Precedent

a judicial decision that acts as a basis for decide similar cases in the future

Stare decisis

the Supreme Court may avoid creating a new precedent by allowing a previous decision to stand

Judicial Restraint

court should seldom use the power of judicial review and whenever possible defer to eh judgment of the legislative and executive branches

Judicial Activism

justices should be willing to overturn laws when necessary, sometimes creating bold new policy

Criminal Law

covers actions that harm the community such as committing an act of violence against another person

Prosecution

to institute legal proceedings with reference to. prosecute a claim

Civil Law

covers cases involving private rights and relationships between individuals and groups

Plaintiff

party who argues that she or he has been wronged

Defendant

party accused of violating a person's right or breaking an agreement

Majority Opinion

consists of the ruling and reasoning behind it - of the majority of justices of the case

Concurring Opinion

 justice voting with majority that may have differences in the logic or reasoning behind their decision

Dissenting Opinion

justice voting in the minority that wants to state their reasoning for not supporting the ruling.