US Gov Ch. 5

Constituents

The people who live within the particular geographic area a member of Congress represents.

Apportionment

The distribution of House seats among the states based on population.

Appropriation

A bill that sets aside funds for a specific purpose. (It is a special type of act used by Congress to approve spending).

Impeachment

The power of Congress to charge officials in the executive and judicial branches with wrongdoing and bring them to trial.

Oversight

Congress's broad powers to review how the executive branch is operating and to make sure it is following the laws Congress has passed.

Interest Groups

Organized groups of like-minded people who join together to influence government and its policies.

Necessary & Proper Clause

Article I, Section 8, Clause 18, which gives the national legislature the power to “make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the [expressed] Powers and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States." It allows Congress to take actions needed to carry out the expressed powers. (Also known as the elastic clause).

Indirect tax

A tax levied on one person but passed on to another for payment to the government.

Direct tax

A tax an individual pays directly to the government.

Deficit

A budget deficit occurs when there is not enough expected revenue to cover expenses, allowing the government to function by borrowing money.

Commerce Clause

Article I, Section 8, Clause 3, of the Constitution, which gives the federal government the right to regulate interstate commerce.

Subpoenas

Legal documents that require a person to testify in a certain matter.

Writ of habeas corpus

A court order that forces the police to present a person in court to face charges, except in cases of rebellion or invasion. Its purpose is to prevent a government from holding people in secret or without charge.

Bill of attainder

A law that punishes a person without a trial.

Ex post facto laws

Laws which criminalize an action that took place in the past and that were legal at that time. (Means "from after the fact").

Levy

To impose or collect.

Litigation

Legal dispute.

Reapportionment

The process where seats are redistributed among the states based on the results of the census (occurs every 10 years).

Gerrymandering

Drawing district boundaries for political advantage.

Speaker of the House

The most powerful member and the presiding officer of the House of Representatives.

Bill

Proposed laws.

Floor leader

Elected by each party to help manage the actions and strategy of the party in the House. (The majority leader assists the Speaker; the minority leader is the chief spokesperson for the minority party).

Chair

The head of a committee. (Chosen by the majority party, chairs have great power).

Whip

Elected by the two parties to encourage fellow party members to vote as the party leadership wants.

Party caucus

A meeting of all the House members from a particular political party.

Standing committees

Permanent committees that address the major areas in which most proposed laws fall.

Select committees

Committees created to carry out specific tasks not already covered by existing committees, such as investigations, usually serving for a limited duration.

Joint committees

Committees formed by the House and Senate to address broad issues that affect both chambers.

Disfranchise

Deprive of the right to vote.

President of the Senate

The job assigned by the Constitution to the vice president of the United States. (Largely ceremonial, presides over debate but cannot vote except to break a tie).

President pro tempore

The person who presides over the Senate in the absence of the president of the Senate. (By tradition, goes to the majority party senator with the longest record of service).

Senate majority leader

The most powerful position in the Senate, chosen by a vote of the majority party, serving as the spokesperson and main strategist for that party.

Seniority rule

The tradition where the chair of a committee goes to the most senior majority senator on that committee.

Filibuster

Occurs when opponents of a measure take the floor of the Senate and refuse to stop talking in an effort to prevent the measure coming up for a vote.

Cloture

An end to debate in the Senate, imposed by a vote (currently requires 60 votes).

Rider

A provision that bears little relationship to the bill's main topic, often added to an unpopular provision to a bill that is likely to be passed.

Joint resolution

A measure that follows the same procedures as a bill and has the force of law if passed by both houses and signed by the president; used for certain out-of-the-ordinary circumstances or to propose constitutional amendments.

Concurrent resolution

A measure by which both houses of Congress address matters that affect the operations of both chambers or express an opinion; not signed by the president and does not have the force of law.

Discharge petition

A measure in the House where a majority of members may sign to force a bill out of committee.

Committee of the Whole

A state where all House members become members of a single committee, allowing the House to function and debate with a lower quorum (100 members).

Quorum

The number needed to legally conduct business.

Roll-call vote

A record vote in which each member is required to publicly state his or her vote.

Conference committee

A committee whose job is resolving the differences between the House and Senate versions of major bills; members are drawn from each chamber.

Pocket veto

Occurs when the president chooses not to sign a bill and Congress adjourns during the 10-day period, preventing the bill from becoming law.