Congress and State Legislatures: Structure, Powers, and Processes

Comprehensive fill-in-the-blank practice flashcards covering congressional leadership, committees, incumbency advantages, bicameral differences, types of state legislatures, and constitutional powers.

A person who lives in an electoral district and is represented by an elected official is called a __________.

constituent

Publicly funded projects secured by legislators to benefit their home districts or states are referred to as __________.

pork

The funds for publicly funded projects secured by legislators are said to come from the "__________," meaning the state or national treasury.

pork barrel

A permanent committee of legislators from either the House or Senate responsible for specific policy areas, such as foreign affairs or agriculture, is a __________.

standing committee

A permanent committee of legislators from both the House and Senate that deals with matters of common interest, such as economic policy, is a __________.

joint committee

A temporary committee of legislators from both the House and Senate created to work out differences in bills passed by both houses of Congress is a __________.

conference committee

Voters tend to trust incumbents more than unfamiliar challengers because they see incumbents in news coverage, an advantage known as __________.

Name recognition

Incumbents can use __________ such as staff, stationery, mailing privileges, and travel allowances to keep in touch with voters in their districts.

office resources

Individuals and organizations typically donate __________ in larger amounts to incumbents than to challengers.

campaign funds

Incumbents gain "__________" by pointing to federally funded projects—from roads and bridges to defense contracts—that they have won for their districts.

bragging rights

Members of the House of Representatives serve shorter terms of __________ years, are elected in districts, and operate under tighter rules.

$$2$$

The Senate has a total size of __________ members who serve longer terms of $6$ years and represent entire states.

$$100$$

The officer who holds more power and prestige than any other leader in Congress, presides over the House, assigns bills to committees, and appoints members to special committees is the __________.

Speaker of the House

Elected by their respective parties, the primary duty of majority and minority leaders in the House is to manage legislation on the __________.

House floor

Assistant floor leaders responsible for keeping leadership informed and persuading party members to vote along party lines are called __________.

Majority and minority whips

Most of the actual work of reviewing proposed legislation in Congress is performed by __________.

subcommittees

A temporary committee formed by either the House or Senate to investigate a specific problem is known as a select committee or __________.

special committee

The Constitution assigns the role of President of the Senate to the __________.

vice president of the United States

The senior senator of the majority party who presides over Senate sessions when the vice president is absent is the __________.

president of the Senate pro tempore

The Senate leader who serves as spokesperson for the party holding the most seats, but lacks the Speaker's ability to single-handedly control floor action, is the __________.

Majority leader

The leader who helps shape minority party policy and devises strategies for stopping majority-sponsored bills opposed by the party is the __________.

Minority leader

Funds allocated by a legislature for a stated purpose as part of a budget or spending bill are called __________.

appropriations

An official statement issued by both houses of Congress that attains the force of law once signed by the president is a __________.

joint resolution

Personal services provided by members of Congress to assist constituents with problems involving the federal bureaucracy are known as __________.

casework

Legislatures where members spend about half of their time as lawmakers and are commonly found in states with small populations are known as __________.

Citizen legislatures

Legislatures whose members are full-time lawmakers and are more common in states with larger populations are termed __________.

Professional legislatures

Members of hybrid legislatures fall between citizen and professional lawmakers, spending about __________ of their time on legislative business.

two-thirds

Congress exercises __________ when it oversees executive agencies to ensure they properly carry out the laws it has enacted.

Oversight

The Senate power to approve key officials appointed to office by the president is known as __________.

Confirmation

The House of Representatives initiates __________ against a federal official by voting on a formal accusation of wrongdoing, followed by a trial in the Senate.

impeachment

All treaties negotiated by the president must undergo __________ by the Senate before they can become law.

Ratification

Congress can vote to __________ a presidential veto in order to reverse it.

override

Congress can propose an __________ through a vote of both houses to change the Constitution, even if it means reversing a ruling of the Supreme Court.

amendment

__________ of the Constitution grants Congress "all legislative Powers," including levying and collecting taxes, coining money, regulating commerce, and declaring war.

Article I