Chapter 7 Congress Vocabulary

These flashcards contain key vocabulary terms from Chapter 7 regarding Congress, providing definitions to aid in exam preparation.

Bicameral Legislature

A two-house legislature.

Apportionment

The process of allotting congressional seats to each state following the decennial census according to their proportion of the population.

Bill

A proposed law.

Impeachment

The power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice president, or other civil leaders with treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

Incumbency

Already holding an office.

Redistricting

The process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state.

Gerrymandering

The drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district.

Majority Party

The political party in each house of Congress with the most members.

Minority Party

The political party in each house of Congress with the second most members.

Party Caucus or Conference

A formal gathering of all party members.

Speaker of the House

The only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the constitution; the chamber’s most powerful position.

Majority Leader

The head of the party controlling the most seats in the House or Senate.

Minority Leader

The head of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House or Senate.

Whip

Party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, takes vote counts on key legislation, and prepares summaries of bills.

President Pro Tempore

The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party.

Standing Committee

Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next.

Joint Committee

Standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies.

Conference Committee

Special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate.

Select or (Special) Committee

Temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose.

Discharge Petition

Petition that gives a majority of the House of Representatives the authority to bring an issue to the floor in the face of committee inaction.

Seniority

Time of continuous service on a committee.

Markup

A session in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor.

Hold

A tactic by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor.

Filibuster

A formal way of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate.

Cloture

Mechanism requiring sixty senators to vote to cut off debate.

Veto

The formal, constitutional authority of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress.

Pocket Veto

If Congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill, the bill is considered vetoed without the president's signature.

Congressional Budget Act of 1974

Act that established the congressional budget process by laying out a plan for congressional action on the annual budget resolution.

Reconciliation

A procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours.

Pork

Legislation that allows representatives to bring money and jobs to their districts.

Earmark

Funds that appropriations bills designate for specific projects within a state or congressional district.

War Powers Act

Passed by Congress in 1973; limits the president's deployment of troops overseas to a 60-day period unless Congress gives approval.

Congressional Review

A process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations by a joint resolution of legislative disapproval.

Senatorial Courtesy

A process by which presidents defer to the senators in whose state a judicial vacancy occurs.

Trustee

Role played by an elected representative who listens to constituents' opinions and uses their judgment to make decisions.

Delegate

Role played by an elected representative who votes according to constituents' wishes.

Politico

Role played by an elected representative who acts as a trustee or delegate, depending on the issue.

Divided Government

The political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and Congress.

Unified Government

The political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and Congress.

Logrolling

Vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support.