Unit 2: Interactions Among the Branches- CONGRESS

casework

activities of members of Congress that help constituents- particularly cutting through red tape to get people what they think they have a right to get

pork barrel

federal projects, grants, and contracts available to state and local governments, businesses, etc. Congress will try to get them to benefit their district/state

Rules Committee

most powerful committee in House- sets rules for debate- schedule, length, open/closed rule, etc

filibuster

strategy unique to Senate- opponents of legislation use unlimited debate to prevent a vote from taking place. Need 60 members to end it (cloture)

standing committee

subject matter committees in Congress, permanent to handle bill in a certain policy area

conference committee

formed when the House and Senate pass different versions of legislation. This committee works to iron out the differences and come up with 1 version

House Ways and Means

Committee in House dealing with tax legislation. All revenue bills start here in Congress= House is closer to the people

iron triangle

Congressional committee, interest group, executive agency. They develop dependent, mutually exclusive relationships to make and implement policy

bicameral

two houses- differences bw House & Senate. House= more formal/more rules, more done in committee

Senate= approval/consent power, filibuster, less rules, less loyalty to party

caucus

a group of congressional members sharing some interest or characteristic. Often composed of members from both house and senate and from both parties.

Ex: Black Caucus, Freedom Caucus

closed rule

an order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on debate and forbids a particular bill from being amended on the floor

cloture

rule used by the Senate, providing to end or limit filibuster

need 60 votes

committee chair

Assigned by party leaders. In Senate tend to use seniority- longest serving party member becomes chair.

Chairs play dominant role in scheduling hearings, appointing subcommittees, scheduling debate and vote in the committee

delegate model

elected officials who seek to vote the way their constituents want them to, even if it goes against what they want/how they personally feel

discharge petititon

A device by which any member of the House, after a committee has had a bill for thirty days, may petition to have it brought to the floor. If a majority of members agree, the bill is discharged from the committee and sent to floor for debate

earmark

Special spending projects that are set aside on behalf of individual members of Congress for their constituents.

franking privilege

free mail given to Congress members- helps with incumbent advantage bc they can send newsletters to postcards to constituents detailing their accomplishments

legislative oversight

Congress' monitoring of the bureaucracy and its administration of policy, preformed mainly through hearings

logrolling

legislator supports a proposal favored by another in return for support for his or her proposal

Senate majority leader

most powerful member of the Senate- schedules votes, influences committee assignments, sets policy agenda for his party in Senate

open rule

procedural rule in the House of Representatives that permits floor amendments during floor debate

override

Congress can override a Pres. veto by 2/3 vote in both houses to make something a law. Diffcult to do- uncommon

party polarization

the split between the political parties in Congress. Drastic polarization has caused gridlock. Becoming more of a problem

rider

Amendments to bills, often in the form of appropriations, that sometimes have nothing to do with the intent of the bill itself

select committees

Congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation.

speaker of the house

most powerful member in the House of Reps- chosen by the majority party. Schedules and runs debates, influences committee assignments, sets policy agenda for majority party in House

trustee model

Legislators should consider the will of the people but act in ways that they believe are best for the long-term interest of the nation

whips

a legislator appointed by the party to enforce discipline and work to obtain votes for/against a bill based on what the party wants

Congressional authorization

Money that is budgeted on a yearly basis; for example, Congress may set yearly limits on what agencies can spend

constituent

a person whom a member of Congress has been elected to represent

Politico Model

Legislators sometimes as a trustee or a delegate depending on issue

They might be more of a trustee voting using their own judgement until the public opinion becomes such that they then vote based on their constituency opinions

Or they might vote mostly based on what their constituents want except in matters that involve their conscience and then vote based on their own judgements

policy agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actively involved in politics at the time.

Power of the Purse

The constitutional power of Congress to raise and spend money. Congress can use this as a negative or checking power over the other branches by freezing or cutting their funding.

Congressional Appropriation

money that Congress has allocated to be spent

divided government

one party controls the White House and another party controls one or both houses of Congress

Slows the policy making process down, could cause gridlock

President of the Senate

Vice President presides over the Senate- only votes in cases of tie

President Pro Tempore

Officer of the Senate selected by the majority party to act as chair in the absence of the vice president- doesn't have any real power

Judiciary Committee

Key Senate committee that is responsible for recommending presidential judicial appointments to the full Senate for approval.

Appropriations Committee

A committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is in charge of setting the specific expenditures of money by the government

Committee of the Whole

A device used in the House of Representatives to expedite the passage of legislation. The quorum is reduced from 218 members to 100, and the Speaker appoints a member of the majority party as chair. Time allotted for debating the bill in question is split equally between its proponents and opponents. The committee cannot itself pass legislation but may debate and propose amendments.

unanimous consent

A Senate requirement, applied to most of that body's business, that all senators agree before an action can proceed.

advice and consent

Terms in the Constitution describing the U.S. Senate's power to review and approve treaties and presidential appointments.