AP GOV - Unit 4 Congress, Bureaucracy, Executive, Judiciary Test

Incumbency

The person holding office that’s running for re-election

Franking privilege 

Congress members can use mail without having to pay for postage

Powers of House

Power of the purse, initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an Electoral College tie

Powers of Senate

The sole power to confirm those of the President's appointments that require consent, and to provide advice and consent to ratify treaties

Pork Barrell

Money spent of “wasteful” things to get re-elected

Log Rolling

Trading votes with another congress member for a bill

Congressional Budget Office

Providing Congress with objective, nonpartisan, and timely information, analyses, and estimates related to federal economic and budgetary decisions

House Ways and Means and Rule Committees

Committee for making the rules for bills, rules for the House, and schedule billls

Speaker of House

Elected by the majority of the House, the constitutional role of presiding over debates in the House, determining who can speak, and maintaining order.

Majority Leader

Assistant speaker that unites factions and assigns committees

Minority Leader

The face of the media for the minority party that can also assign committees

President Pro Tempore

Constiutional role in the senate that is given to the most senior member. This person presides over the senate when the vice president is not there

Whips

They get people to vote with their party

Vice President

Constitutional role where this person presides in the senate and breaks ties

Committee Chairs

Voted on chairs that are typically given to senior members schedule hearings and manage bills in committee

Filibuster

A senate tradition that used to talk a bill to death but now talking is not required to suspend the voting of a bill

Motion of Cloture

60 members needed to vote in order to end a filibuster

Senate Hold

An anonymous filibuster

Senatorial Courtesy

A senator from the same state as a presidential nominee can deny that nominee

Caucus

A group of law makers who meet to pursue common interest goals. Less important than a committee

Standing Committee

A permanent committee in each house that often recommends funding for government agencies

Joint Committee

A more permanent committee than a conference committee that has membership by the House and Senate

Conference Committee

A temperory committee established to make a compromise

Select Committee

A narrow focused committee that may be permanent of temporary

Checks and Balances

The discharge petition for party leadership, congressional oversight to review an agency, department, or office

Add or Remove Flashcards

Red Tape

Complex bureaucratic rules and procedure that must be followed to get something done

Department of Agriculture

1. Helps farmers during droughts and economic crises
2. Oversees school lunch programs
3. Promotes good nutrition
4. Works to ensure a safe and adequate food supply

Department of Commerce

1. Decides who should get patents to new products
2. Every 10 years conducts the U.S. Census, the official population count
3. Promotes a positive business climate and trade with other countries

Department of Defense

1. Operates the Army, Navy, Marine Corp, and Air Force
2. Oversees policies that affect the U.S. Military
3. Trains and equips soldiers

Department of Education

1. Gathers ideas to improve education
2. Promotes “Race to the Top” law and standardized testing
3. Provides government loans/scholarships for college students

Department of Energy

1. Conducts scientific research to improve energy resources
2. Keeps U.S. nucleur facilities safe
3. Monitors oil drilling

Department of Health and Human Services

1. FDA makes sure medicines are safe
2. Oversees the CDC
3. Provides help for the elderly
4. Works to improve people’s health

Department of Homeland Security

1. Citizenship and immigration services decides who should be allowed in the U.S.
2. Coordinates effort between multiple government agencies to fight terrorism
3. Helps president develop policies to keep America safe
4. TSA provides airport security

Department of Housing and Urban Development

1. Helps improve run down neighborhoods
2. Insures help for affordable homes
3. Makes sure that people who want to buy homes aren’t discriminated against

Department of Interior

1. Helps native Americans with education and health care
2. Manages national park system
3. Protects natural resources such as water, minerals, plants, and endangered species

Department of Justice

1. FBI inverstigates crimes
2. Operates our federal prisons
3. Represents the U.S. in legal matters and helps the president make legal decisions

Department of Labor

1. Enforces laws about workers rights
2. Keeps statistics about the economy and working conditions
3. Provides programs to help the unemployed

Department of State

1. Issues passports and protects U.S. citizens in other countries
2. Manages U.S. foreign policy
3. Sends ambassadors

Department of Transportation

1. Makes sure airlines follow safety regulations
2. Improves the national highway system
3. Promotes safe and environemtally sound rail transportation

Department of Treasury

1. Collects taxes through the IRS
2. Makes paper currency and coins
3. Manages the government’s finances

Department of Veterans Affairs

1. Helps homeless veterans find a place to live
2. Operates all the military cementaries
3. Provides services such as education and helath care to veteransbv

Commander in chief

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president that allows him to lead the military

Grant Pardons

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president so he can forgive a prisoner

Call congress into session

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president to call both houses in order to discuss a nominee

Receive amabassadors

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president to negotiate with foreign countries

State of the Union address

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president to deliver a speech on what he has done in his presidency so far

Sign a bill into law

Exclusive Enumerated Power (Formal Power) of the president that makes legislation

Veto/Pocket Veto

Doesn’t sign the bill and the sessions ends within 10 days and it is an Exclusive Enumerated Power of the president

Executive agreement

An informal power of the president that makese International agreements like treaties that don’t require Senate confirmation

Threatening a veto

An informal power of the president that makes congress change a bill

Bargaining and Persuasion

Informal power of the president that is relied on to secure congressional action which is typically more successful at the start of the term

Honeymoon period

100 days to get legislation passed

Coat tail effect

People hold on to the presidents coat tail after an election

Executive order

Rule issued by the president that has the power of law and is an informal power

Signing statements

An informal power that is a written comment issued by the president when signign a bill and it informs congress and the public of the president’s interpretation of the law

Line-item veto

Presidential power to strike, or remove, specific items from a spending bill without vetoing the entire package

Executive privilege

An implied presidential power that allows the president to refuse to disclose information regarding confidential conversations or national security to Congress or the judiciary

25th Amendment Order

Succesion order of the president - Vice President. Speaker of the House. President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Secretary of State.

The Imperial Presidency

Presidency has gained power over time, compares to the power of a King

Press Secretary

Primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the executive branch of the United States government administration

Chief of Staff

Controls the president's calendar, limits access to the president, manages the staff, and helps the president in all aspects of domestic and foreign policy

War Powers Act

An act that checked and limit the power of the president by requiring the approval of congress to put American troops in combat areas

Office of Management and Budget

Presidential staff the agency that serves as a clearinghouse for budgetary requests and management improvements for government agencies.

Economic council

They study the economy to see how economic events can affect the president's economic policy and how the president's policy is affecting the economy. Then, they advise the president on what to do.

National Security Council

A link between the president's key foreign and military advisers and the president

Office of Personnel Management

Manages the civil service of the federal government, coordinates recruiting of new government employees, and manages their health insurance and retirement benefits programs.

Iron Triangle

The connection between Congress, interest groups, and the bureaucracy

Spoils System/Patronage

A system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends

Congressional Oversight

Power used by Congress to gather information useful for the formation of legislation, review the operations and budgets of executive departments and independent regulatory agencies, conduct investigations through committee hearings, and bring to the public attention the need for public policy.

Hatch Act

To prohibit government employees from active participation in partisan politics.

Pendleton Civil Service Act

Provided that federal government jobs be awarded on the basis of merit and that government employees be selected through competitive exams

Independent execuitve agencies

Narrow areas of responsibilty to perform public services like NASA

Independent regulatory commisions

Experts who make rules regulating specific industries to protect the publc like the FED and FCC

Government corporations

Provide services that could be provided by private companies but aren’t profitable

Cabinet departments

Major administrative responsibilites over a broad area of policy

Securites and Exchange Commission

Independent regulatory agency that regulates the various stock exchanges

Federal Reserve

Independent regulatory agency that with a board to control monetary policy

Stare Decisis

“Let the decision stand” - Using PRECEDENT in earlier cases to help reach a decision on another case so people know what a law means

Amicus Curiae

“Friend of the court” - Allows interest groups to write letters to the court detailing how a decision would impact them

Writs of Certiorari

Rule of 4 meaning 4 justices are needed to hear a court case

Judicial Restraint

Belief that the Supreme Court should rely on precedent in making decisions so it favors less court involvment

Judicial Activism

Belief that the Supreme Court can correct injustices

Judiciary Act of 1789

Established 6 justices for the Supreme Court and established lower courts

Plaintiff

A person who brings a case against another in a court of law.

Defendant

The person being sued in a court of law

Court Packing

The idea of adding justices to the Supreme Court or lower courts to shift the balance in a liberal, conservative or other direction.

District Courts

Courts of original jursidiction meaning no appeals

Courts of Appeals

Reviews cases from district courts but has original jurisdiction for bureaucracy cases

Supreme Court

Has the rule of 4 and it interprets te counstitution and how it applies to laws with judicial review

Original Jurisdiction

1st time hearing a case

Appellate Jurisdiction

Not a new trial and questioning if the law itself is constitutional

Background on selection of supreme court nominees

President nominates someone, a background investigation begins, a senate judiciary committee holds hearings, committee votes to recommend the nominee to the entire senate, the entire senate debates the nomination, they vote to confirm the nominee, and the nominee is sworn in