APGOV Unit 2 Test Vocab

Bicameral system

a legislature composed of two separate chambers, houses, or assemblies—commonly a lower house and an upper house (e.g., Senate and House of Representatives). It is designed to act as a check on legislative power, prevent hasty lawmaking, and ensure better representation.

Standing committees

committees that hold primary responsibility for auditing, editing, and reporting on legislation, as well as providing oversight of federal government agencies.

Conference committees

a temporary, ad hoc panel composed of House and Senate members formed to resolve bicameral differences on major legislation.

Joint committees

a legislative body composed of members from both chambers of a bicameral legislature—the House of Representatives and the Senate—designed to conduct studies, manage administrative tasks, or investigate specific policy issues

Speaker of the house

sets the agenda of the house

President of the senate

The vice president of the united states who comes to the senate to be the tiebreaker of votes

Filibuster

A political procedure used in the senate to delay or block a vote on legislation through prolonged debate or other obstructive actions.

Cloture

The vote to end a filibuster

Rules Committee

The committee that determines which bills reach the house floor.

Discharge petitions

a way to pull a bill out of committee to go to the full floor. It is the only way to save a bill that is dying

Discretionary spending

spending that is sent through annual appropriation bills that are voted on to decide where the money goes.

Mandatory spending

spending enforced by law to be spent in certain areas of the government .

Logrolling

Incentivizing the pass of a vote by agreeing to vote on another’s bill they want to propose.

Pork Barrel legislation

The action of giving money to special projects in certain districts to keep them '“happy”.

Gerrymandering

The manipulation of districts to get people of certain demographics to tip the voting power in the favor of the leaders of that district

Redistricting

The redrawing of district lines every 10 years to accommodate for population changes to keep each districts’ votes relatively equal.

Reapportionment

The process of reallocating the 435 house seats among states to accommodate population changes to keep representation fair.

Trustee model

The model where someone is voted in and leads on a larger scale and on their own agenda using their own personal judgement.

Delegate model

elected officials act strictly as agents for their constituents, voting according to the people's wishes rather than their own personal judgment.

Politico model

a model of government that blends the trustee and delegate model of government together, where in the end the different groups fighting for power will all vote the same way.

Executive order

a directive issued by the U.S. President to federal agencies, managing operations of the executive branch that hold the force of law

Executive agreement

a legally binding pact between the U.S. President and the leader of a foreign nation, made without Senate ratification.

Executive privilege

the presidential power to keep internal executive branch communications, documents, and deliberations confidential from Congress and the courts.

Signing statement

a written comment issued by a U.S. President upon signing legislation into law, offering their interpretation of the statute and directing executive branch implementation.

Bully Pulpit

a position that provides an opportunity to speak out and be listened to.

State of the union address

An annual message delivered by the U.S. President to a joint session of Congress, reporting on the nation's condition and recommending legislative measures.

22nd amendment

restricts the president from serving more than 2 years

Pendleton Act

A reform that replaced the old political patronage system with a merit based system for federal hiring.

Discretionary authority

Power granted to federal agencies to make judgement calls on how to affectively bring about policy.

Independent Executive Agency

Agency that acts outside of the cabinet departments but still is part of the executive branch and answers to the president (i.e CIA)

Independent regulatory commission

Created by congress to regulate a specific industry or economic activity with no direct presidential control (i.e Federal Communications Commission)

Government Corporation

Government-run organization that operates like a business offering a paid service (i.e United States Postal Service)

Committee hearings

meetings with the agencies of the bureaucracy that help them decide the effectiveness of the bureaucracy and if they need to reform it.

Power of the purse

The constitutional authority of Congress to control federal taxation and spending.

Article III

Establishes the judicial branch of the US government, creating the supreme court.

Stare Decisis

The idea that the courts follow historical precedents when ruling on similar cases to promote consistency.

Precedent

An earlier event/action that acts as a guide to be used in current and similar situations.

Judicial activism

The political ideology that court judges proactively interpret the constitution and laws to shape public policy and protect rights, often overturning precendents.

Judicial restraint

Political ideology that urges judges to limit their own power, only challenging laws unless they clearly violate the constitution.

Amicus curiae briefs

Briefs were non-parties with a peculiar interest in certain cases can provide courts with information and perspectives that help shape the overall court decision on a case.

Majority opinion

a judicial document joined by more than half the judges hearing an appellate case

Dissenting opinion

Written statement by one more more judges who disagree on the overall decision of an appellate case

Concurring opinion

written statement by one or more judges who agree with the decision of a case but not the reasoning or legal principles used

Writ of Certiorari

formal order by the Supreme Court demanding to send records of a case for review that involve significant legal or constitutional questions.

Rule of Four

Four or more judges out of the nine must vote to grant a Writ of Certiorari.