American Government: Power and Purpose Chapter 6

Constituency

the district making up the area from which an official is elected

Delegate

a representative who votes according to the preferences of his or her constituency

Trustee

a representative who votes based on what he or she thinks is best for his or her constituency

Agency representation

the type of representation according to which representatives are held accountable to their constituents if they fail to represent them properly. They have to power to hire and fire their representatives.

Bicameral legislature

a legislative assembly composed of two chambers or house

money bill

a bill concerned solely with taxation or government spending

incumbency

holding the political office for which one is running

casework

an effort by members of congress to gain the trust and support of constituents by providing personal services. One important type of casework consists of helping constituents obtain favorable treatment from the federal bureaucracy

patronage

the resources available to higher officials, usually opportunities to make partisan appointments to offices and confer grants, licenses, or special favors to supporters

pork-barrel legislation

the appropriations made by legislative bodies for local projects that often are not needed but are created so that local representatives can carry their home district in the next election

gerrymandering

the apportionment of voters in districts in such a way as to give unfair advantage to one political party

party caucus

a normally closed meeting of a political or legislative group to select candidates or leaders, plan strategy, or make decisions regarding legislative matters

speaker of the house

the chief presiding officer of the house of representatives. also elected at the beginning of every congress on a straight part vote. He or she is the most important party and house leader

majority leader

the elected leader of the party holding a majority of the seats in the house of representatives or the senate. in the house they are subordinate in the party hierarchy to the speaker

minority leader

the elected leader of the party holding less than a majority of the seats in the house or senate

standing committee

a permanent legislative committee that considers legislation within its designated subject area; the basic unit of deliberation in the house and senate

gatekeeping authority

the right and power to decide if a change in policy will be considered

proposal power

the capacity to bring a proposal before the full legislature

after-the-fact authority

the authority to follow up on the fate of a proposal once it has been approved by the full chamber

conference committee

a joint committee created to work out a compromise for house and senate versions of a piece of legislation

oversight

the effort by Congress through hearings, investigations, and other techniques to exercise control over the activities of executive agencies

seniority

the priority or status ranking given to an individual on the basis of length of continuous service on a congressional committee

agency loss

the difference between what a principal would like an agent to do and the agent's performance

staff agencies

the agencies responsible for providing Congress with independent expertise, administration and oversight capability

congressional caucus

an association of members of Congress based on party, interest, or social characteristics such as gender or race

closed rule

the provision by the house rules committee that permits floor debate and the addition of amendments to a bill

fillbuster

a tactic used by members of the Senate to prevent action on legislation they oppose by continuously holding the floor and speaking until the majority backs down. once given the floor senators have unlimited time to speak, and it requires a cloture votes of 3/5 of the senate to end a fillbuster

cloture

a rule allowing a supermajority of the members of a legislative body to set a time limit on debate over a given bill

veto

the president's constitutional power to turn down acts of congress within 10 days of their passage while congress is in session. A presidential veto may be overridden by 2/3 vote of each house of Congress

pocket veto

a veto that is effected when congress adjourns during the time a president has to approve a bill and the president takes no action on it

distributive tendency

the tendency of congress to spread the benefits of a policy over a wide range of members districts

party vote

a roll call vote in the house or senate in which at least 50 percent of the members of one party take a particular position and are opposed by at least 50 percent of the members of the other party. Less common today than they were in the 19th century

roll-call votes

votes in which each legislator's yea or no vote is recorded

whip system

a communications network in each house of congress. whips poll the membership to learn their intentions on specific legislative issues and assist the majority and minority leaders in various tasks

logrolling

a legislative practice wherein reciprocal agreements are made between legislators usually in voting for our against a bill. In contrast to bargaining, logrolling unites parties that have nothing in common but their desire to exchange support

executive agreement

an agreement between the president and another country that has the force of a treaty but does not require the Senate's "advice and consent"

impeachment

the charging of a government official (president or otherwise) with "Treason, Bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors"

Bicameral legislature

a legislative assembly composed of two chambers or houses

how may house of representatives are there

435

how long is the house of representatives term

2 years

how long is the senates term

6 years (staggered)

how many senates are there

100 and 2 for every 50 states