Gov Chapter 6 Flashcards- Congress

Apportionment

Allotting congressional seats to each state according to its portion of the population

Bill

Proposed law, must be passed by both houses

Incumbency

Already holding an office

Redirecting

The process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases and decreases in seats allotted to states as well as population shifts (drawn by incumbents)

Gerrymandering

Drawing of congressional districts to produce a certain electoral outcome (disregarding shape)

Majority party

Most members

Minority party

2nd most members

Party caucus

Formal gathering of all party members in beginning of new congress

Speaker of the house

Only officer of house specifically in the constitution, chambers most powerful, traditionally member of the majority party. Presides over house, spokesperson, 2nd in line of presidential succession.

Majority leader

Head of party controlling most house seats, 2nd to speaker, in senate they are the most powerful

Minority leader

Head of party with second most reps in both the house and senate

Whip

Party leader that contacts closely with all members of the party, predicts votes on key legislature, summaries of bills, communication link

President pro tempore

Official chair of senate, usually most senior member of majority party

Standing committee

Proposed bills are referred here, continuous from one Congress

Joint Committee

Both houses, created for special investigation and cases

Conference committee

Created to reconcile differences in bills between the two houses

Select committee

Specific purposes such as 9/11 attacks, temporary

Discharge petition

Majority of house can bring a bill to floor in case of committee inaction

Seniority

Committee chairs in the house are not on the basis of seniority but by party loyalty

Rules Committee

controls when a bill goes to house floor and rules of debate on it. Majority party always makes up 2/3 of the the membership of the rules committee

3 main functions of Congress

Oversight, law making, budgetary

Markup

Committee can change a bill before sending it to house floor

Hold

If a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor, signals a possible objection to the bill

Filibusters

Given in the senate, formal way of halting senate action on a bill through a long speech, longest ever is 24 hours and 19 min

Cloture

Mechanism requiring vote of 60 senators to cut off debate or filibuster

Pocket veto

Congress adjourns before 10 days, president does not act on the bill for those 10 days, considered vetoed without a signature

Congressional budget act of 1974

Established congressional budgetary process by plan for congressional action on annual budget resolutions and revenue bills

Reconciliation

Consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to 20 hours in the senate with no filibusters

Pork

Legislation that allows reps to bring money and jobs to districts in form of public works or other programs

Programmic requests

Federal funds designated for specific purposes within a state or congressional district

War powers resolution

Passed by Congress in 1973, president limited to 60 day overseas deployment in peacetime unless expanded by Congress

Congressional review

Congress can nullify agency regulations by joint resolution of judicial disapproval

Senatorial courtesy

Presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering objection

Trustee

Role played by an elected rep who listens to opinions of constituents and then uses their own judgement to make decisions

Delegate

Votes by their constituents regardless of personal opinion

Politico

Acts as a trustee or delegate depending on the situation

Log rolling

Vote trading- I’ll vote for yours if you vote for mine

Baker V Carr

(1962) ruled that legislative apportionment and redistricting questions of justiciable under the 14th amendments equal protection clause, leading to the “one person, one vote” principle

• Tennessee had not redrawn districts since 1901, ignoring massive population growth in certain areas

• Baker, major from urban area, sued Secretary of State of Tennessee Carr

• Argued urban votes were diluted

Shaw V Reno (1993)

Held that congressional districts drawn explicitly based on race violate the Equal Protection Clause, striking down racial gerrymandering even when intended to help minority representation

• North Carolina gained a 12th seat in house, drew strange district to connect black communities and create a second majority minority district

4 reasons for bicameralism

1. Historical

2. Slow down lawmaking process

3. Representation compromise

4. Intrabranch check

House basic info

• 2 years in office

• Minimum age of 25

• 7 year citizen

• Elected by people originally, still elected by direct popular vote

Senate basic info

• 6 year term length (more August body)

• Minimum age of 30

• 9 year citizen

• originally elected by the current legislative of the state

• Currently elected by the people due to the 17th amendment (increased democracy)

Unique powers of house

Revenue bills- closer to the people

Unique powers of senate

Check over president- judgement in impeachment, approve presidential appointments

Does a lot of foreign policy and treaties

Roles in impeachment

House: Initiate charges

Senate: judgment in impeachment (intrabranch check)

Enumerated powers of Congress

• Coin money

• Lay and collect taxes

• Regulate commerce

• Raise an army

• Declare war

• Establish post offices

• Pay national debts

• Create inferior courts

House apportionment

• One seat for every 600k people

• Reapportioned every 10 years after the census

Crack vs pack a district

Crack: spread voters from an opposing party across many districts

Pack: putting as many people from an opposing party as possible into one district to neutralize their vote

Senate powers

• confirm nominations

• Ratify treaties

• Filibuster

• Holds

• Oversight

House powers

• Initiate all revenue bills

• Impeachment

• Rules committee

• Discharge petition

• Oversight

Checks on executive branch

• Override vetos

• Impeachment

• Funding power

• Approves appointments

Checks over judicial branch

• impeachments

• Senate confirmation

• Controls court structure and size