PS 103 final study set: short answer reponses

Cut point

The halfway point between two proposed policies. Midpoint is used to determine policy outcomes

Message votes

Votes that allow parties or individuals to symbolically take a position on an issue beyond simply legislating France Lee claimed party uses this type of message to alter their own reputation or to slander the opposition.

party median

The median preference of each party. This is significant as they will both help determine what the floor median will be

Conditional party government theory

A theory that posit that if partisians share common policy views, and confront the opposing party with sharply different policy preferences, then these dual conditions favor a strong party leadership. Strong party leaders is important is reaching party goals, but can contribute to the increasing polarization

Reed's rules

A set of rules passed by the former speaker of the house, Thomas Reed, that granted the speaker secure control over the order of business and curbed the minority party's ability to construct the floor agenda. This included the death of the house filibuster in the 1890s.

Revolt against speaker Cannon

By 1910, Speaker Joseph Cannon dominated the house by using his power as chair to the committee on rules to control the flow of bill and floor debates. As a response, progressive republicans joined the minority party to rebel against cannon and lead to a greater division among republicans. Decline of speaker power, taken off of rules committee and couldn’t appoint committee/chairs, giving more powers (like the power of committee appointments) to the party ( which marked an era of powerful committees until 1970s)

committee government

After 1910, there was a rise in committee government in which there was a minimization of speaker power. This means committees had more independence and a "seniority system" took hold.

Seniority system

When every committee is led by its longest-serving members, who retain their position until death or retirement. The 1970s reforms worked to weaken the seniority system by implementing the Australian ballot in committee appointments

1970s reforms

After the revolt against Cannon, liberal lawmakers, upset by the conservative title of committees, joined forces to curb the power of committee chairs by restoring power to the speaker. Two main reforms included the adoption of the Australian ballot for electing committee chairs and giving party leadership appointment power over the rules committee.

Closed Rule

A closed rule is a restrictive rule used in a party government to strategically prevent troublesome amendments from being debated and voted on. A closed rule is the most restrictive and introduces legislation as take-it-or-leave it , meaning no additional amendments for bills on the floor.

Hastert Rule (gatekeeping)

A practice in congress in which the house majority party leadership will not being a bill to the floor, unless the majority of their party supports it. This is significant because it shows one of the ways the majority party can block the aspiration of the minority party to further their agenda.

discharge petition

a Petition that, if signed by 218 House Representatives, will force a bill from committee onto the floor for consideration. This is one of the checks that can be applied to majority gatekeeping.

Unanimous Consent agreement

Agreements negotiated between the majority and minority party leaders to waive certain procedural rules and requirements to expedite the consideration of a bill. These agreements can limit debate and amendments. This is significant because it gives party leaders more control over the legislative process.

Cloture rules

A rule establishing that 60 votes in the Senate are needed to end debate on a bill. Cloture has the power to end Filibusters.

Talking Filibuster

A filibuster is a senate procedure often used by the minority party to stall legislation. The talking filibuster refers to long oral speeches that are meant to block bills by yielding the floor for hours, or even days. This function has created gridlock during times of polarization.

The 60 Vote Senate

The idea is that merely any motion to pass in the Senate requires a 60-vote majority because of the threat of a filibuster. Bypasses minority party obstruction. During polarization, this is a hard threshold to reach.

Nuclear option

A voting procedure that would overrule Senate rules and close debates with a 51 senate majority rather than 60, effectively ending the filibuster. The majority party could evoke such action without minority support and at anytime, but controversy surrounds such action.

Negative Committee Power

Negative power refers to the committee's ability to prevent and block proposed bills they don't agree with. Committee "gatekeeping" is common as 90% of bills die in committee, which reinforces their influence.

Distributive view of committees

This view highlights individual MCs in Congress. When the legislature organizes committees to give lawmakers policy influence over areas that are critical to their re-election. Committees are used in this way by MCs to bring home "pork" and to position take.

Unorthodox lawmaking

Beyond traditional lawmaking and agenda setting, Unorthodox lawmaking occurs when party leaders write and negotiate a bills before they reach the floor. Nearly 1/3 of important legislation has been enacted this way.

Presidential success scores

A success rate on roll calls; The percentage of times that a president's formal position aligns with House and Senate roll call bills. This score makes the president hesitant to take positions, and has gone down in the last few years of polarization.

Authorization to Use Military Force in Iraq, 2002

In Oct 2002, Bush persuaded Congress to enact a joint resolution granting the president unilateral authority, with no expiration date, to launch a military strike in Iraq. Once enacted, it required no congressional review. This strengthened the president's authority and its ability to declare war.

police patrol oversight

a method of oversight in which members of Congress constantly monitor the bureaucracy to make sure that laws are implemented correctly. This method is used less than others as it is costly and time consuming.

backdoor spending

backdoor spending are budget laws that mandate a pre-determined amount of expenditures from federal funds, which is set by Congress. A rise in these backdoor provisions, also known as mandatory spending, has forced MCs to adjust congressional procedures and has constrained policy making.

Budget resolution

The first step in the budget process is forming a resolution thats drafted by the Senate and House budget committees. It sets the spending targets and the bottom line for all federal spending for all programs.

Imperial Presidency

Refers to the president's increase of power as chief legislator . The president is expected to set the agenda, can shape legislation through bureaucracies, and has more authority over foreign policy. The framers did not intend for the executive branch to have this much authority, but a lack of constraint from congress have allowed for this to happen.

Outside lobbying

The outside strategy to lobbying mobilizes votes and support to shape legislators electoral incentives. If MCs believe they will lose voters, they will have the motivation to comply with mobilizers' requests. This is effective among broad-based interest groups on high-salience issues.

Politicization (of bureaucracy)

The president can increase the number of appointed officials from their own party to bureaucracies, which does not require Senate approval. This gives the president greater leverage in shaping policy and strengthening their own power.