Chapter 4: Congress

Pork Barrel Spending

Pork Barrel Spending

legislation that directs specific funds to projects within districts or states

Logrolling

trading of votes on legislation by members of Congress to get their earmarks passed into legislation

Oversight

efforts by Congress to ensure that executive branch agencies, bureaus, and cabinet departments, as well as their officials, are acting legally and in accordance with congressional goals

Constituency:a body of voters in a given area who elect a representative or senator

Apportionment

the process of determining the number of representatives for each state using census data

Redistricting

states’ redrawing of boundaries of electoral districts following each census

Gerrymandering

the intentional use of redistricting to benefit a specific interest or group of voters

Safe District

an electoral district in which a certain political party dominates the electorate

Majority-minority district

a district in which voters of a minority ethnicity constitute an electoral majority within that electoral district

Malapportionment

the uneven distribution of the population among legislative districts

Incumbency

being already in office as opposed to to running for the first time

Speaker of the House

the leader of the House of Representatives, chosen by an election of its members

Political Action Committee (PAC)

an organization that raises money for candidates and campaigns

Majority Leader

the person who is the second in command of the House of Representatives

Minority Leader

the head of the party with the second-highest number of seats in Congress, chosen by the party’s members

Whip

a member of Congress chosen by his or her party members, whose job is to ensure party unity and discipline

Standing Committee

considers legislation and exercises oversight of bureaucratic agencies, usually recommending funding levels for them; divided into subcommittees that specialize even further

Conference Committee

a temporary joint committee that resolves differences between the House and Senate versions of a bill, which is required by the Constitution before a president can sign a bill into law

Congressional Caucus

a group of members of the United States Congress that meet to pursue common legislative objectives

Discharge Petition

a motion filed by a member of Congress to move a bill out of committee and onto the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote

House Rules Committee:a powerful committee that determines when a bill will be subject to debate and vote on the House floor, how long the debate will last, and whether amendments will be allowed on the floor

Open Rule

permit the offering of any amendment that otherwise complies with House rules, and allows debate under the 5-minute rule

Closed Rule

effectively eliminate the opportunity to consider amendments, other than those reported by the committee reporting the bill

Hold

a delay placed on legislation by a senator who objects to a bill

Filibuster

a tactic through which an individual senator may use the right of unlimited debate to delay a motion or postpone action on a piece of legislation

Cloture

a procedure through which senators can end debate on a bill and proceed to action, provided 60 senators agree to it

Office of Management and Budget

the executive branch office that assists the president in setting national spending priorities

Entitlement Program

a program that provides benefits for those who quality under the law, regardless of income

Mandatory Spending

spending required by existing laws that is "locked in" the budget

Discretionary Spending

spending for programs and policies at the discretion of Congress and the president

Delegate

the idea that the main duty of a member of Congress is to carry out constituents’ wishes

Trustee

the idea that members of Congress should act as trustees, making decisions based on their knowledge and judgment

Politico

representation where members of Congress balance their choices with the interests of their constituents and parties in making decisions

Quorum

principle that a certain number of members of a governing body be present at a given meeting for the body to exercise its powers

Bipartisanship

agreement between the parties to work together in Congress to pass legislation

Gridlock

a slowdown or half in Congress’s ability to legislate and overcome divisions, especially those based on partisanship

Divided Government

control of the presidency and one or both chambers of Congress split between the two major parties