Flashcards Unit 2 Vocab

Bill

A draft of a proposed law

Safe Seat

An elected office serving an area whose voters support a given political party or candidate by a large margin

Bureaucratic Rule-Making

The process by which federal agencies with the power to do so modify their policies

Politico (Model of Representation)

The model of representation that says lawmakers follow their constituents' desires on high visibility issues and use their own judgment on issues that are less prominent

Delegate (Model of Representation)

The model of representation that says lawmakers follow their constituents desires rather than their own personal judgment/opinions

Trustee (Model of Representation)

The model of representation that says lawmakers use their judgment when voting rather than honoring the desires of their constituencies

Gerrymandering

The drawing of legislative districts in such a way as to give an electoral advantage to a political party. Can be done either by grouping opponents' voters into a couple of safe seats or by diluting their votes by slicing them up to dilute their votes.

Redistricting

The process of redrawing legislative districts

Apportionment/ Reapportionment

The process of redistributing legislative representatives based on shifts in population

Party Caucus

A meeting of members of a legislative body who are all part of the same party

Closed Rule

A type of debate on proposed legislation where amendments cannot be proposed

Open Rule

A type of debate on proposed legislation where amendments can be proposed

Logrolling

The process by which politicians trade support for a colleague's amendment, provision, or bill in exchange for support from that colleague on a different amendment, provision, or bill. Can be conducted at scale by political parties.

Talking Filibuster

A long speech meant to prevent voting on an amendment or bill

Silent Filibuster

The use of procedural trickery to prevent a vote on a piece of proposed legislation

Cloture

A motion to end debate on proposed legislation in the senate. Requires 60 votes.

Censure

A procedural resolution to publicly reprimand a member of a legislative body or a government official. Less severe than expulsion.

Quorum

The minimum number of members required for a legislative body to conduct business

Conference Committee

A temporary committee of house reps and senators appointed to reconcile differences in house and senate versions of a bill

Select Committee

A temporary legislative committee appointed for a specific purpose (holding oversight hearings on controversial actions by an executive branch agency, investigating political assassinations, etc)

Joint Committee

A standing committee composed of members of both the House of Representatives and the Senate

Standing committees

Permanent legislative committees in each house of congress

Sub Committees

Subdivisions of existing legislative committees tasked with specific policy areas within the overall committee's purview

House Ways and Means Committee

The house committee that handles tax legislation

House Rules Committee

The house committee that sets rules for parliamentary procedure

Committee Chairs

The heads/most important members of congressional committees

Speaker of the House

The presiding officer of the house of representatives. Does not have to be an elected representative themselves.

Majority leader

The legislative leader of the the party with more than 50% control of a legislative body

Minority leader

The legislative leader of the the party with less than 50% control of a legislative body

Majority Whip

The member of the the party with more than 50% control of a legislative body who is tasked with ensuring the party has enough support to pass legislation

Minority Whip

The member of the the party with less than 50% control of a legislative body who is tasked with ensuring the party has enough support to pass legislation

Majority party

The party with more than 50% control of a legislative body

Minority party

The party with less than 50% control of a legislative body

President Pro-Tempore

Officer of the Senate selected by the majority party to chair Senate meetings when the Vice President is not there to do so (which is most of the time)

Legislative Oversight

The ability of congress to monitor executive branch agencies to ensure proper execution of laws and to investigate abuses of power, corruption, etc

Lobbyist

Someone whose job is to influence government policy

Pigeonholing

The ability of a committee to kill a bill by setting it aside and not acting on it.

Congressional Hearing

Congressional committee sessions in which members listen to witnesses who provide information and opinions on matters of interest to the committee, including pending legislation.

Incumbent

The current holder of a given elected office

Casework

The work that a lawmaker does to help constituents with a problem

Constituents

The residents of a congressional district

Pork-Barrel

Federal projects, grants, and contracts available to state and local governments, businesses, colleges, and other institutions in a congressional district

Legislative Veto

A provision in a law letting Congress overturn an executive or bureaucratic action by resolution, without passing a new law for the president to sign. Declared unconstitutional in 1983 as a violation of separation of powers

Congressional Budget Office

A staff agency that advises Congress on the likely economic effects of different spending programs and provides information on the costs of the proposed policies

Budget Resolution

A bill setting limits on expenditures based on revenue projections, agreed to by both houses of Congress in April each year

Authorization Bill

An act of Congress that establishes, continues, or changes a discretionary government program or an entitlement. It specifies program goals and maximum expenditures for discretionary programs

Appropriations Bill

An act of Congress that actually funds programs within limits established by authorization bills. usually covers one year

Continuing Resolution

A temporary funding law that Congress passes when an appropriations bill has not been decided by the beginning of the new fiscal year on October 1

Seventeenth Amendment

1913 constitutional amendment allowing American voters to directly elect US senators

Executive Office of the President

The cluster of presidential staff agencies that help the president carry out their responsibilities. Currently the office includes the Office of Management and Budget, the Council of Economic Advisers, and several other units

Office of Management and Budget

Executive office responsible for helping the President write the federal budget and monitoring federal spending

Impoundment

A decision by the president to refuse to spend money appropriated by congress for a project congress has voted to fund

Entitlements

Policies for which Congress has obligated itself to pay X level of benefits to Y number of recipients. Social Security benefits are an example

Civil Service

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

Federal Register

A publication of the U.S. government that prints executive orders, rules, and regulations

Horserace Journalism

The view that the media is more interested in covering political campaigns like a horse race focusing more on who is ahead rather than in-depth coverage of issues

Bully Pulpit

The ability to use the office of the presidency to promote a particular program and/or to influence Congress to accept legislative proposals

Executive Privilege

The privilege, claimed by the president for the executive branch of the US government, of withholding information in the public interest.

Cabinet

The group of officials who head government departments and advise the President

National Security Council

An agency in the Executive Office of the President that advises the president on national security

Chief of Staff

The person who oversees the operations of all White House staff and controls access to the president

Signing Statement

A written declaration that a president may make when signing a bill into law

Veto

The power of the president to prevent proposed legislation from being enacted. Can be overridden by a 2/3 vote of both houses of congress

Pocket Veto

The power of the president to kill proposed legislation when congress is not in session simply by not signing it

Twenty-Second Amendment

Passed in 1951, the amendment that limits presidents to two terms of office

Twenty-Fifth Amendment

A 1967 amendment to the Constitution that establishes procedures for filling presidential and vice presidential vacancies and makes provisions for presidential disability

Executive Order

A presidential directive to the executive branch that carries the force of law

Council of Economic Advisers

A group of advisors appointed by the president to advise the president on economic policy

War Powers Resolution

A law passed in 1973 spelling out the conditions under which the president can commit troops to military action without congressional approval

Sixteenth Amendment

The constitutional amendment adopted in 1913 that explicitly permitted Congress to levy an income tax

Tax Expenditures

Revenue losses that result from special exemptions, exclusions, or deductions on federal tax law

Social Security Act

The legislation which created a guaranteed pension for workers through a tax on workers and employers

Medicare

The federal health insurance program serving people ages 65+

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The sum total of the value of all the goods and services produced in a nation in a year

Fiscal Policy

Government policy that attempts to manage the economy through increases or decreases in government spending or taxation

Monetary policy

Government policy that attempts to manage the economy through the expansion or contraction of the money supply

Bureaucracy

A large, complex organization composed of appointed officials

Patronage

Granting favors or giving contracts or making appointments to office in return for political support

Pendleton Civil Service Act

Passed in 1883, an Act that created a federal civil service so that hiring and promotion would be based on merit rather than patronage

Merit Principle

The idea that hiring for the civil service should be based on entrance exams and promotion ratings to produce administration by people with talent and skill

Independent Regulatory Commission

A government agency or commission with regulatory power whose independence is protected by Congress

Government Corporation

A government owned enterprise. The classic example is the US Postal Service

Independent Executive Agency

Government agencies not accounted for by cabinet departments, independent regulatory agencies, and government corporations. Its administrators are typically appointed by the president and serve at the president's pleasure

Policy Implementation

The process of carrying out public policy

Administrative Discretion/Discretionary Authority

Authority given by Congress to the Federal bureaucracy to use reasonable judgment in implementing the laws

Incentive System

An alternative to command-and-control, with market like strategies such as rewards used to manage public policy

Deregulation

The lifting of government restrictions on business, industry, and professional activities

Iron Triangles

A mutually dependent relationship between a bureaucratic agency an interest group, and the congressional committees or subcommittees responsible for that agency

Amicus Curiae Brief

A friend of the court brief filed by an interest group or interested party to influence a Supreme Court decision

Original Jurisdiction

A given court's authority to hear cases of a particular kind

Appellate Jurisdiction

Court cases that fall under the jurisdiction of Federal appeals courts

Docket

The calendar of cases the Supreme Court has agreed to hear in the future

District Courts

The 91 federal courts with original authority to hear federal cases. They are the only federal courts in which trials are held and in which juries may be impaneled

Court of Appeals

A court with appellate jurisdiction that hears appeals from the decisions of lower courts

Solicitor General

Justice Department officer who argues the government's cases before the Supreme Court

Originalism

The belief that the language of the United States Constitution should be interpreted in the way the authors originally intended it

Judicial Implementation

How and whether court decisions are translated into actual policy

Judicial Restraint

A theory of judicial interpretation that encourages judges to limit the exercise of their own power and make narrow decisions rather than upending existing law

Judicial Activism

A theory of judicial interpretation that judges should consider not just what the law says but also the broader societal consequences of their decisions when crafting their rulings

Precedent

Earlier court cases dealing with similar substantive issues as a current case