unit 2 terms

this units so long its a pain in the ass

delegate

mirrors the view of their districts

trustee

chooses what they believe is best

politico

mix of delegate and trustee; typically follows the trustee model until their constituents push them towards delegate on certain issues

filibuster

can be used only in the SENATE to stall a bill from being debated on, no time restraint yap

rider

unrelated amendment added to a bill

hold

prevents bill from being brought to the floor for debate (SENATE)

cloture

motion to stop debate on a bill and ends filibusters (requires 60/100 members) (SENATE)

unanimous consent agreements

agreement to set terms/rules before considering a bill, typically used to restrict debates or speed up the process (SENATE)

discharge petition

majority of the HOUSE can vote to force a bill out of committee and onto the floor for debate

committee of the whole

consists of the entire HOUSE, called to consider a specific bill with different rules than the regular House meeting in order to make it faster/easier to consider complex bills

standing committee

permanent, proposed bills go here first, where they are edited and marked up and either passed or killed (most bills die here)

joint committees

include both House and Senate, normally used for investigations or communicating with the public

select committees

temporary committees created in each house for a special reason

Conference Committee

temporary committees made from members of both house committees who wrote a bill in order to compromise differences between the version in order to pass the bill

pork barrel legislation

bills made by a representative to get funding/money to their home state

logrolling

“if you vote for my bill i’ll vote for yours”

“power of the purse”

Congress has the power to create and pass the federal budget

discretionary spending

must be authorized by Congress and President every year (defense, education)

mandatory spending

does NOT have to be approved yearly (“entitlement programs” like Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare)

fiscal policy

taxing, gov spending, federal budget

reapportionment

changing number of seats in House of Reps

formal powers of president

ceremonial head of state, handles foreign policy, enforces laws, veto, appoint federal judges, SCOTUS justices, department secretaries, ambassadors to be approved by Congress, negotiates treaties that must be ratified by 2/3 of Congress, executive agreements (agreements between country leaders, do NOT have to be approved by Congress), commander in chief

informal powers of president

chief of party, bully pulpit, set legislative agenda, build morale, executive order

impeachment

House impeaches (brings charges against) president by majority vote, Senate holds trial with Chief Justice

bureaucracy

ensures that policies and programs created by Congress and executive branch are carried out and enforced

cabinet departments

work directly under the president, heads of these departments are part of the president’s cabinet

independent regulatory commissions

created to regulate some aspects of society (eg: FCC, FEC)

government corporations

created when there are services the government wants to offer to the public but the free-market is the best way to do it (eg: US Postal Service)

iron triangle

relationship between bureaucratic agencies, congressional committees, and interest groups

issue network

a close working relationship formed when issues affect many groups by pro/con coalitions of interest groups, Congress members, and bureaucrats