American Federal Gov Exam 2

Designated Survivor

A member of the presidents cabinet that sits out of the State of Union address in order to ensure a successor to the president in the event of a terrorist attack

Supreme Court Oral Arguments

An allotted 30 minutes for each party to argue their side of the case. This time is the justices time so they are able to intercept at anytime, however many times with questions for the petitioners.

Hatch Act of 1939

An act passed to limit the political activities of federal employees

• employees could vote and contribute to candidates but cannot work for candidates or for political parties

• Essentially made to keep gov employees neutral when working

• ex. the ongoing Gov shutdown, and how certain agencies are saying the “radical left” which is violating this act

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

The group of policy-related offices that serves as support staff to the president

• One of the most important duties of the EOP is helping Presidents achieve their policy goals and get reelected

• Most EOP staff are presidential appointees who retain their position as long as the president who picked them stays in office

• When the President appoints people to EOP positions there is expected loyalty rather than their best interest in the public/ policy expertise.

• Ex of EOP organization is Home Land Security Council

Executive Agreement

An agreement between the executive branch and a foreign government, which acts as a treaty but not require Senate approval

• President makes them normally because they are seen as the figurehead/ representative of the United states which is why Presidential duties often include communicating with foreign leaders 

• Current president can undo past executive agreements issued by older presidents 

• Can voluntarily abide by a treaty (ex. pairs climate accord) 

Executive Order

Proclamations made by the President that change government policy without congressional approval 

• Not a stated power in the constitution but have always existed

• Earlier presidencies used them rarely, but has changed over time. The current record of ordered issued is by FDR

• Most aren’t consequential but do have potential to implement large changes in federal policy

• More recently (particularly with Trump administration) orders can be used to signal intentions rather than directly change policy (sways agencies to determine what changes would be needed to implement a new practice)

• Often used when President knows they cannot secure congressional support for the policy changes they want to implement

• Sitting Presidents have the power to strike down past president’s executive orders

• Congress has power to overrule president but often don’t go through the steps or have other matters to attend too

Fire alarm oversight

A method of oversight (oversight is congressional efforts to make sure laws are properly implemented by the bureaucracy)  

• Method is used by congress to respond to complaints about the bureaucracy / problems of implementation ONLY AFTER they arise rather than give said implementation/ bureaucracy constant monitoring 

• Important because it tells Congress/ President where to focus their efforts regrading monitorization of the bureaucracy 

• Ex. is lobbyists or regular citizens reaching out to a committee / Presidents staff to file complaint with the way the bureaucracy is handling something 

State of the Union Address

When the President addresses Congress to report on the condition of the Country and to recommend polices

• Given once a year, typically towards the early months (Jan/ Feb)

• President cannot formally introduce legislation so it’s easier to rally and find a member of Congress to sponsor a presidential proposal

• Typically a speech comprising of a list of updated goods and bad state of the country

• In modern day big televised event and the address is more of a campaign speech, as many eyes of the public are watching

Amicus Curiae

“friend of the court” referring to an interested group or person who shares relevant information about a case to help the court reach a decision

• Supreme court hears briefs written by each side because the court cannot call witnesses or gather new evidence 

• often submitted by interest groups (signals strong importance of a case) 

• Case briefs that convey opinions to the court 

Conference Committee 

Committees formed (as needed) to resolve differences between the House and Senate version of legislation that are passed in each chamber

• temporary not permanent

• Created when House and Senate pass different versions of a bill

• made to patch up/align differing opinions in pieces of legislation so it can be passed

• If committees efforts fail sometimes another one is made with different members, if both fail then the piece of legislation dies

• Can only address points where the two chambers disagree, no new points can be brought up

• Conference Committee existed over the Affordable Care Act

Select Committee 

Committees made to address a specific topic

• no legislative power

• They collect information, provide policy options, and draw attentions to given issues

• forms temporality to investigate a designated matter, write a report and gather information, report is published, and the committee disbands

• Ex. Jan 6th committee

Pocket Veto

The automatic death of a bill passed by the House and Senate when the President fails to sign the bill in the last 10 days of the legislative session 

• if a president doesnt act within 10 days and congress is in session the bill becomes law without pres approval 

Red Tape

Excessive or unnecessarily complex regulations imposed by the bureaucracy

• Some regulations are necessary for accountability and safety but too much red tape can lead to public frustration and inefficiency

• Appears as complex regulations, lengthy procedures, and requiring numerous approvals within bureaucratic agencies

Presidential Pardon

The power of the President to pardon criminals

• Only can pardon criminals prosecuted at the federal level

• Cannot pardon anyone who has been impeached and convicted by Congress

• Don’t typically pardon people who have commit heinous crimes such as terrorism, president has power to do so but would be highly controversial/ negative reaction from public

Party Vote (Congress)

A vote in which the majority of one party opposes the position of the majority of the other party

• increased political party tension keeps increasing each year highest was in 2008 but lowered recently in 2017 in both the house and senate 

Electoral Connection

The idea that congressional behavior is centrally motivated by members desire for reelection

• Theory proposed and written by David Mayhew 

• 3 parts: position taking, credit claiming, Advertising 

• Position taking: taking positions on anything (ex. voting on a bill or making a speech) 

• Credit Claiming: a member of Congress claims credit for something done (ex. delivered money for federal funding) 

• Advertising: advertising your position and claims to gain support 

Bank Account Presidency

The idea that the Presidency is like a bank account

• the higher a president’s approval ratings (more money in the bank) → the more they can accomplish (more money to spend) 

• Approval ratings are typically higher at beginning of term and drop at the end (like a pay check period) 

• Approval ratings are most important things Presidents look at and will influence how they behave 

• ex. Geroge Bush, had higher approval ratings during times of crisis like 9/11 and his ratings dropped towards end of his term bc of continuing war in Iraq 

Missouri Plan

State Supreme Court decision making plan that originated in Missouri to balance judicial independence and accountability. The governor typically picks nominees from a list made by non-partisan committee. If selected the judge will serve for a set period of time (one year). Once that time is up the judge can run for a kind of “reelection” where voters can say yes or no. This lets the person running be held both accountable by the state government and voters. 

Writ of Certiorari 

The most common way for a case to reach the Supreme Court by having at least 4/9 justices agree to hear a case that has reached them via an appeal from a losing party in a lower courts ruling 

• most common way a case reaches the Supreme Court 

Original Jurisdiction

The authority of a court to handle a case first, as in the Supreme Court’s authority to initially hear disputes between two states. Can also be assigned to a lower court 

• Basically where a case starts in the court system 

• Typically orginiantes from the district court and RARELY the supreme 

Judiciary Act of 1789

The law in which Congress laid out the organization of the federal judiciary, set the amount of Supreme Court Justices at 6. Also created the office of the attorney general and established lower federal courts 

• Numbers of SCOTUS judges was fluid at the beginning and is now at 9 

• Each justice appointed to one district court and 3 to a circuit court 

Executive Privilege 

The right of the president to keep executive branch conversations and correspondence confidential from the legislative and judicial branches 

• what does and doesn’t fall under executive privilege isn’t clearly defined yet 

• ex. What doesn’t count as an executive privilege is Nixon in watergate scandal

• weakens accountability of the executive branch in the eyes of the public, because voters/ citizens don’t know what an administration is doing 

• Serves as a way to keep executive conversation, plans, national security secrets safe without fear of those said things becoming politically embarrassing or costly

Partisan Gerrymandering

Elected officials from one party draw district lines that benefit candidates from their party

• usually occurs when one party has a majority in both the House and Senate and can enact redistricting legislation without the minority party giving input 

Trustee Model of Representation

Someone who represents the constituents interests from a distance 

• more concerned with being responsible  

• Will do what’s they think is best for long-term interests of their constituents and the nation 

• Typically Senate Members 

• Elected and and entrust the person with our best interests 

Stare Decisis

“Let the Decision stand” - when a Supreme Court issues an opinion they look at previous rulings and how those will influence them to move forward 

• often relies on Precedent (previous case rulings) 

• important because it gives the law consistency and makes the interpretation of the law more predictable  

Descriptive Representation

Representation in which a member of Congress shares the characteristics of their constituents (race, gender, religion) 

• public believes this is a distinct value because having positive role models leaders from different demographics creates greater trust in the system 

• Constituents benefit from being represented by someone who shares same characteristics 

Signing Statement

a document issues by the president when signing a bill into law explaining their interpretation of the law (which often differs from that of Congress’) in an attempt to influence how the law will be implemented

• That interpretation is like instructions for how they want the executive branch to implement this law 

• Way for a President to try and control implementation of laws 

• Also issued so if the courts have to resolve uncertainties about the bill’s intent, they can reference both Congress’ intent and the President’s interepretation of it 

Bureaucratic Drift

Bureaucrats tendency to implement policies in a way that favors their own political objectives rather than following the original intentions of the legislation

• when bureaucrats pursue their own goals rather than their assignments from office holders or appointees 

Home Style

The idea that a representative presents themselves and acts as their constituents would

• a way for representatives to relate to their district

• ex. rural districts it’s important for voters to have extensive contact with members and have their representatives have local roots

Law Clerk (Supreme Court)

Most often Law School Graduates from top law schools that help justices with research, writing and analysis during hearings

17th Amendment

Established the direct election of U.S. Senators by popular vote rather than letting them be chosen by state legislature

• aimed to make Senators more accountable

• aimed to reduce corruption and influence by state governments over their Senators

• Ratified in 1913 

• Because of 17th amendment Senators are more likely to focus on public opinion and voters to get reelected 

• Helped public sentiment play a role in legislative law making 

Majority Opinion

The opinion of the “winning” side within a court hearing, written by a selected judge who voted in the majority

• important because it sets legal binding precedent for lower courts to follow 

Federal Register 

The daily publication of the US government that notifies the public about changes to the federal law 

• updated DAILY 

• mostly bureaucrat rules