POL 101 Exam 2

Veto

The Constitutional power of the President to refuse to sign a bill passed by Congress, preventing it from becoming law.

President as Chief Clerk

Presidents as Chief Clerks merely stocked the federal bureaucracy with loyal members of their party, conducted tedious interviews, balance political loyalties within their party and essentially acted as a chief bureaucrat

Executive Order

A signed directive used by the President to mimic the legislative power of Congress, but these orders don’t have the durability of laws and they are subject to scrutiny in the courts.

Honeymoon period

A period at the beginning of a president’s term where there are the most popular, this period usually fades by the midterms.

“Take Care” Clause

A clause in Article II of the Constitution that mandates the President “Take care that the law be faithfully executed.

Principal Agent Dilemma

Occurs when elected officials (principals) delegate authority to bureaucrats or agents who may have different interests, goals, or information, leading agents to act in their own self-interest rather than the public’s

Types of Bureaucratic agencies

Cabinet Agencies such as the Defense, State, Treasury.

Independent Executive Agencies: NASA, CIA, EPA

Independent Regulatory Agencies: SEC, FCC, FDA

Government Corporations: USPS, Amtrak, FDIC

Red Tape

Is excessive or redundant regulation or bureaucratic procedures that create financial or time compliance costs.

Affective polarization

When citizens and politicians feel growing hostility, distrust, and animosity toward the opposing political party, while holding increasingly positive views of their own party.

First-past-the-post voting

A single-winner voting rule, each voter marks one candidate as their favorite, or first-preference,, and the candidate with more first-preference votes than any other candidate is elected, even if they do not have more than half of votes.

Fire Alarm Oversight

Congress enables citizens to monitor the bureaucracy.

Judicial Restraint

The opposite of activism, judges who believe in this believe that the courts are ill suited to make laws, and so they should cut the elected branches some slack

Judicial Review

The power of the Federal courts to interpret the constitution and invalidate actions of the elected branches that the courts deem to be unconstitutional.

Elite Polarization

The increasing ideological distance and diminishing overlap between Republican and Democratic elected officials and party activists.

Casework

the personalized services Members of Congress provide to constituents, assisting them in navigating, interacting with, or resolving disputes with federal administrative agencies.

Gerrymandering

The deliberate manipulation of electoral district boundaries to give one political party or group an unfair advantage, often resulting in skewed, unrepresentative election outcomes.

Pork Barrel Legislation

The appropriation of government spending for localized projects, often unnecessary, intended to benefit a specific constituency, secure votes, and aid a politician’s reelection.

Polarization; Affective/elite

The widening ideological and emotional gap between the two major political parties, resulting in deep division, increased resentment, and political gridlock

Committee system

The organizational structure within the U.S. Congress where legislative work is divided among specialized, smaller groups to draft, review, and investigate bills before they reach the House or Senate floor.

Conference Committee

A joint committee of the United States Congress appointed by Congress members to resolve disagreements on a specific bill

Filibuster

A tool used by Senators to block a bill from passing either done with 41 senators voting against or by a Senator extending debate by continuously speaking

Citizens United V FEC

A landmark Supreme Court case holding that the First Amendment prohibits the government from limiting independent political expenditures by corporations, unions, and associations; This rule gave rise to Super PACs

Calcification

A state of political gridlock, where representatives are unwilling to change and ideological differences halt decision making.

Candidate centered politics

Politics that focus on the candidate and their policies rather than their party and its values.

Executive Agreement

An agreement between the leaders of two or more nations that has not been ratified by the legislature as treaties are ratified.

Going Public

When a president appeals directly to the American people, through speeches and press conferences, in the hopes of pushing Congress to take up his preferred agenda.

Signing Statement

A declaration made by the President when signing a bill into law of how they plan to interpret the law.

Street-Level Bureaucrat

Street-Level Bureaucrats are persons who directly implement government legislation and are frequently “true believers” with a strong philosophic commitment to their department’s mission.

Presidential Cabinet

A system first implemented by President Washington and continued since, it is group of 15 executive officers appointed by each President whose portfolios cover areas as broad as all law enforcement in the US, public education, finances, etc.

Political Action Committees (PACs)

An organization through which corporations, labor groups, and wealthy individuals are free to spend as much as they want on their preferred candidate’s campaign. They only have one restriction: the PAC cannot be run by the same people who actively run the campaign, although it is not uncommon for someone closely affiliated with the party to run the PAC

Ranked Choice Voting

A system in which candidates are “ranked” by the voter on a scale of preference, if no candidate has 50% of the “1” vote, the candidate with the least amount of “1” votes is eliminated and their votes are redistributed until one candidate has 50%

“The Great Realignment”

Refers to the shift towards partisan politics, and has ultimately marked the end of “candidate centered” elections as voters focus more on overall partisan beliefs and not the candidate’s beliefs.

Judicial Activism

The judicial attitude or philosophy that the courts must be active on policing the actions of the elected branches

Police Patrol Oversight

Services like the GAO allow Congress to investigate the bureaucracy, and when they suspect wrongdoing, hold hearings to determine whether the agency is doing its job well (or at least to Congress’s liking).

Cloture

A procedural filibuster that requires 3/5ths of the senators (60 votes) to force a final vote and pass a bill in the Senate.

Marbury V. Madison

One of the first Supreme Court cases that ruled the Supreme Court had the power to invalidate acts of Congress.

Living Constitution Doctrine

A method of interpreting the Constitution (and statutes) that places an emphasis on interpreting its passages as “evolving” over time to adjust to new circumstances.

Speaker of the House

The most important leadership position in the House is ostensibly elected by the entire body of representatives and serves until his or her party loses, or until he or she is voted out of the position or chooses to step down.

Standing

A core concept of the judiciary, in order to bring a suit to court one must have a stake in the outcome of the lawsuit.

Proportional Representation

A system in which individuals vote for parties and parties are awarded seats in the national legislature in proportion to the percentage of the vote they receive.

Unitary Executive theory

A theory of constitutional law that states that the President holds total authority over the executive branch and any executive agencies.