Exam 2 GOVT

expressed powers

specific powers granted by the Constitution to Congress (Article I, Section 8) and to the president (Article II)

commander in chief

the role of the president as commander of the national military and the state National Guard units (when called into service)

executive agreement

an agreement, made between the president and another country, that has the force of a treaty but does not require the Senate's “advice and consent”

executive privilege

the claim that confidential communications between a president and close advisers should not be revealed without the consent of the president

veto

the president's constitutional power to turn down acts of Congress; a presidential veto may be overridden by a two-thirds vote of each house of Congress

pocket veto

a presidential veto that is automatically triggered if the president does not act on a given piece of legislation passed during the final 10 days of a legislative session

implied powers

powers derived from the Necessary and Proper Clause of Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution; such powers are not specifically expressed but are implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers

delegated powers

constitutional powers that are assigned to one governmental agency but are exercised by another agency with the express permission of the first

inherent powers

powers claimed by a president that are not expressed in the Constitution but are inferred from it

Cabinet

the secretaries, or chief administrators, of the major departments of the federal government; Cabinet secretaries are appointed by the president with the consent of the Senate

White House staff

analysts and advisers to the president, each of whom is often given the title “special assistant”

Executive Office of the President

(EOP) the permanent agencies that perform defined management tasks for the president; created in 1939, the EOP includes OMB, the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), the NSC, and other agencies

National Security Council (NSC)

a presidential foreign policy advisory council composed of the president, the vice president, the secretary of state, the secretary of defense, and other officials invited by the president

executive order

a rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect and formal status of legislation

signing statements

announcements made by the president when signing bills into law, often presenting the president's interpretation of the law

bureaucracy

the complex structure of offices, tasks, rules, and principles of organization that is employed by all large-scale institutions to coordinate the work of their personnel

implementation

the efforts of departments and agencies to translate laws into specific bureaucratic rules and actions

principal-agent problem

a conflict in priorities between an actor and the representative authorized to act on the actor's behalf

executive departments

the 15 departments in the executive branch headed by Cabinet secretaries and constituting the majority of the federal bureaucracy

independent regulatory commission

a government agency outside the executive department usually headed by commissioners

government corporation

a government agency that performs a market-oriented public service and raises revenues to fund its activities

merit system

a product of civil service reform, in which appointees to positions in public bureaucracies must objectively be deemed qualified for those positions

political appointees

the presidentially appointed layer of the bureaucracy on top of the civil service

Senior Executive Service (SES)

the top, presidentially appointed management rank for career civil servants

privatization

the process by which a formerly public service becomes a service provided by a private company but paid for by the government

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

the agency in the Executive Office of the President with control over the federal budget and regulations

oversight

the effort by Congress, through hearings, investigations, and other techniques, to exercise control over the activities of executive agencies

“police patrol” oversight

regular or even preemptive congressional hearings on bureaucratic agency operations

“fire alarm” oversight

episodic, as-needed congressional hearings on bureaucratic agency operations, usually prompted by media attention or advocacy group complaints

inspectors general (IGs)

independent audit organizations located in most federal agencies

whistleblowers

employees who report wrongdoing in public or private organizations, including federal agencies

regulatory capture

a form of government failure in which regulatory agencies become too sympathetic to interests or businesses they are supposed to regulate

criminal law

the branch of law that regulates the conduct of individuals, defines crimes, and specifies punishment for proscribed conduct

plaintiff

the individual or organization that brings a complaint in court

defendant

the one against whom a complaint is brought in a criminal or civil case

civil law

the branch of law that deals with disputes that do not involve criminal penalties

precedent

a prior case whose principles are used by judges as the basis for their decision in a present case

trial court

the first court to hear a criminal or civil case

court of appeals

a court that hears appeals of trial court decisions

supreme court

the highest court in a particular state or in the United States; this court primarily serves an appellate function

plea bargain

a negotiated agreement in a criminal case in which a defendant agrees to plead guilty in return for the state's agreement to reduce the severity of the criminal charge or prison sentence the defendant is facing

jurisdiction

the sphere of a court's power and authority

original jurisdiction

the authority to initially consider a case; distinguished from appellate jurisdiction, which is the authority to hear appeals from a lower court's decision

due process of law

the right of every individual against arbitrary action by national or state governments

habeas corpus

a court order that the individual in custody be brought into court and shown the cause for detention; habeas corpus is guaranteed by the Constitution and can be suspended only in cases of rebellion or invasion

chief justice

justice on the Supreme Court who presides over the Court's public sessions and whose official title is “chief justice of the United States”

class-action suit

a legal action by which a group or class of individuals with common interests can file a suit on behalf of everyone who shares that interest

judicial review

the power of the courts to review actions of the legislative and executive branches and, if necessary, declare them invalid or unconstitutional; the Supreme Court asserted this power in Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Supremacy Clause

Article VI of the Constitution, which states that laws passed by the national government and all treaties are the supreme law of the land and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision

standing

the right of an individual or organization to initiate a court case, on the basis of having a substantial stake in the outcome

mootness

a criterion used by courts to screen cases that no longer require resolution

writ of certiorari

a court process to seek judicial review of a lower court or government agency; the Latin word certiorari means “to make more certain”

rule of four

a decision of at least four of the nine Supreme Court justices to review a decision of a lower court

solicitor general

the top government lawyer in all cases before the Supreme Court where the government is a party

amicus curiae

literally, “friend of the court”; individuals or groups who are not parties to a lawsuit but who seek to assist the Supreme Court in reaching a decision by presenting additional briefs

briefs

written documents in which attorneys explain, using case precedents, why the court should find in favor of their client

oral argument

the stage in the Supreme Court procedure in which attorneys for both sides appear before the Court to present their positions and answer questions posed by the justices

opinion

the written explanation of the Supreme Court's decision in a particular case

concurring opinion

a written opinion by a judge agreeing with the majority opinion but giving different reasons for the decision

dissenting opinion

a decision written by a justice in the minority in a particular case, in which the justice wishes to express the reasoning for dissenting in the case

stare decisis

deciding cases on the rules and principles set forth in previous court rulings; the Latin phrase stare decisis means “to let the decision stand”

originalism

a theory of constitutional interpretation that treats the meaning of the Constitution at the time of its ratification as authoritative for purposes of later interpretation

living constitutionalism

a theory of constitutional interpretation that emphasizes that the meaning of the Constitution changes over time as societal norms shift

judicial restraint

a view that the exercise of judicial review should be limited and that deference be given to established precedent and the elected branches

judicial activism

an approach to judicial review that emphasizes a greater willingness to invalidate the actions of elected branches