unit 5

Seventeenth Amendment

established the direct election of senators in each state.

Filibuster

prolonged talking by a senator or senators for the purpose of delay, in the hope of forcing the majority to give up the proposal being debated.

McCulloch v Maryland

established that federal law always wins over state laws.

President Pro Tempore

deals with the day to day objectives and is the oldest member of the house.

Markup Sessions

congressional committees and subcommittees that debate, amend and rewrite proposed legislation.

Partisanship

strong adherence to a political party or ideology.

Speaker of the House

elected from majority vote, delegates members to committee, sends bills to committee, signs bills that pass, sets agenda, decides what bills should be considered and when.

Reapportionment

Every ten years, after the census is completed each states, electoral votes may be reallocated based on the changes in population.

Pigeonhole

to not assign or dear debate on a bill.

pork barrel spending

legislation that directs specific funds to projects within a district or state.

Shaw v Reno

Redistricting based on race must be held to a standard of strict scrutiny under the equal protection clause while bodies doing redistricting must be conscious of race to the extent that they must ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act.

Caucuses

a state's voters meet to select delegates to represent their preferences in the nomination process.

Advice and consent

the power to review presidential appointments.

Franking privilege

ability to send mail by one's signature rather than by paying for postage.

equal representation

One man, one vote, or one person, one vote, expresses the principle that individuals should have equal representation in voting.

Discharge petition

motion filed by a member of congress to move a bill out of committee and onto the floor for a vote.

Cloture

motion or process in procedure aimed to bring debate to a quick end.

Gibbons v. Ogden

case that decided the federal government has the power to regulate interstate commerce.

Bicameral

having two branches, chambers, or houses, such as the United States Congress, which is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Earmark

legislative provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects.

Ways and Means Committee

responsible for raisins revenue to finance the federal government

Riders

an unrelated controversial measure attached to a congressional bill in order to compel the President to accept the bill with its amendments or do without the bill.

Rules Committee

determines when a bill should be debated on the floor, how long it will be debated and if amendments are allowed on the floor.

Majority Leader

second in command, acts as the floor manager.

Baker v Carr

The redistricting of state legislative districts is not a political question, and thus is justiciable by the federal courts.

Politico model

representatives can fulfill the role of a trustee or delegate depending on an issue.

expressed powers

powers explicitly granted to the national government through the constitution.

Omnibus bill

a bill that converts a number of diverse topics.

Delegate model

elected representatives are delegated to act in the interest of the people who elected them, they should consider their electorate, or state when making decisions.

War Powers Act

law passed over Nixon's veto, restricts power of the president to maintain troops in combat for more than 60 days without congressional authorization.

Sponsor of bill

a person who presents a bill to a legislature for consideration.

Minority Leader Whips

member of the minority parts who assists the minority leader in coordinating the party and its response to legislation.

implied powers

power of the federal government to carry out powers not explicitly granted in the constitution, but are considered necessary to carry out enumerated powers.

Enumerated powers

powers explicitly granted to the national government through the constitution

Power of the Purse

ability of one group to manipulate and control the actions of another by withholding funding

Commerce Clause

gives congress the power to regulate interstate commerce

Impeachment Powers

The Senate has the constitutional power to hold the impeachment trial and votes to determine if the officeholder will be removed from office

Gerrymandering

Political parties through their legislatures manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) to favor one party or class

Conference Chair

directs day to day operations

Standing Committees

permanent committees by the House and Senate

Joint Committee

committees consisting of both House and Senate members

Select Committee

congressional committee that performs a special function that is beyond the authority  of a standing committee

Germane Amendments

the proposition that an amendment must address the same subject as the matter being amended

Non-germane amendments

amendment that would add new and different subjects to the bill or other legislature that it seeks to amend

Logrolling

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

Congressional Budget Office

federal agency tasked with producing analysis of both budgetary and economic issues in effort to support the congressional budget process

Trustee Model

idea that members of congress should act as trustees, making decisions based on their own knowledge

overriding veto

congress can override a veto by passing the act by a 2/3rds vote in both the house and senate

Sources of Revenue

most revenue of the government comes from contributions from individual taxpayers and businesses

Tariffs/excise tax

tax imposed on sales of specific goods or services

Redistricting

states redrawing of boundaries of electoral districts following each census