U.S. Government and Politics: Key Concepts in Congress, Presidency, and Judiciary

Bicameralism

the political process that results from dividing a legislature into two separate assemblies

Redistricting

redrawing voting maps every 10 years.

Gerrymandering

If one party controls the legislature and the governorship, it may draw lines to favor its own candidates

Congressional oversight

Congress keeping tabs on the president and bureaucracy to make sure they're doing their jobs right

Surge and decline theory of congressional turnout

A theory proposing that the surge of stimulation occurring during presidential elections subsides during midterm elections, accounting for the differences we observe in turnouts and results

Incumbency advantage

the benefit current officeholders have over challengers when running for re-election, because they're already known, experienced, and have more resources

Representation - trustee versus delegate model

A model representation in which representatives feel at liberty to act in the way they believe is best for their constituents

Descriptive representation

The extent to which a body of representatives represents the descriptive characteristics of their constituencies, such as class, race, ethnicity, and gender

Pork barrel politics

Federal spending intended to benefit a particular district or set of constituents

Collective representation

The relationship between Congress and the United States as a whole, and whether the institution itself represents the American people

Committee system

Deals with problems of information, workload efficiency

Major leader

The leader of the majority party in either the House or Senate; in the House, the majority leader serves under the Speaker of the House, in the Senate, the majority leader is the functional leader and chief spokesperson for the majority party

Minority leader

The party member who directs the activities of the minority party on the floor of either the House or the Senate

Congressional whips

In the House and in the Senate, a high leadership position whose primary duty is to enforce voting discipline in the chambers and conferences

Filibuster

A parliamentary maneuver used in the Senate to extend debate on a piece of legislation as long as possible, typically with the intended purpose of obstructing or killing it

Cloture

A parliamentary process to end a debate in the Senate, as a measure against the filibuster; invoked when three-fifths of senators vote for the motion

Electoral College

A group of people (electors) chosen by each state who formally vote for president and vice president

Impeachment

The act of charging a government official with serious wrongdoing, which in some cases may lead to the removal of that official from office

Commander in chief

The president's role as the head of the U.S. military

Presidential war powers

The president's ability to send troops or take military action, even without Congress officially declaring war

Presidential pardon

The president's power to forgive someone for a federal crime and remove their punishment

Executive privilege

The president's right to withhold information from Congress, the judiciary, or the public

Executive order

A rule or order issued by the president without the cooperation of Congress and having the force of law

Executive agreement

An international agreement between the president and another country made by the executive branch and without formal consent by the Senate

Recess appointment

When the president fills a government position while the Senate is on break; the person serves temporarily until the next session

Signing statement

A statement a president issues with the intent to influence the way a specific bill the president signs should be enforced

Cabinet government

A group of advisors to the president, consisting of the most senior appointed officers of the executive branch who head the fifteen executive departments

Executive Office of the President

The administrative organization that reports directly to the president and made up of important offices, units, and staff of the current president and headed by the White House chief of staff

Going public

A term for when the president delivers a major television address in the hope that public pressure will result in legislators supporting the president on a major piece of legislation

Veto

The president's power to reject a bill passed by Congress so it doesn't become law

Line-item veto

A power created through law in 1996 and overturned by the Supreme Court in 1998 that allowed the president to veto specific aspects of bills passed by Congress while signing into law what remained

Bureaucracy

An administrative group of nonelected officials charged with carrying out functions connected to a series of policies and programs

Civil servants

The individuals who fill nonelected positions in government and make up the bureaucracy; also known as bureaucracy

Patronage

The use of government positions to reward individuals for their political support

Spoils system

A system that rewards political loyalties or party support during elections with bureaucratic appointments after victory

Pendleton Act

A law passed in 1883 that made federal government jobs based on merit instead of political connections; it ended the 'spoils system.'

Merit-based selection

A system of filling civil service positions by using competitive examinations to value and experience and competence over political loyalties

Cabinet departments

The main executive offices that handle broad areas of government policy, like Defense, State, or Education; each is led by a secretary who reports to the president

Independent executive agencies

Government agencies that work outside the main cabinet departments and handle specific tasks or services, like NASA or the EPA

Independent regulatory agencies

Agencies that make and enforce rules for specific parts of the economy or society, such as the FCC (communications) or SEC (financial markets)

Government corporations

A corporation that fulfills an important public interest and is therefore overseen by government authorities to a much larger degree than private business.

Bureaucratic oversight

The process by which Congress, the president, or the courts monitor and control what government agencies do to make sure they follow laws and don't abuse power.

Privatization

Measures that incorporate the market forces of the private sector into the function of government to varying degrees.

Whistleblowers

A person who publicizes misdeeds committed within a bureaucracy or other organization.

Original jurisdiction

The power of a court to hear a case for the first time.

Appellate jurisdiction

The power of a court to hear a case on appeal from a lower court and possibly change the lower court's decision.

Marbury v. Madison

The 1803 Supreme Court case that established the courts' power of judicial review and the first time the Supreme Court ruled an act of Congress to be unconstitutional.

Three-tiered federal court system

The structure of U.S. federal courts, made up of three levels, district courts (trial courts), courts of appeals (appellate courts), and the Supreme Court.

Judiciary Act of 1789

A law passed by the first Congress that created the basic structure of the federal court system and set up the number of Supreme Court justices.

Writ of mandamus

A court order that commands a government official to perform a specific duty required by law.

Stare decisis

The principle by which courts rely on past decisions and their precedents when making decisions in new cases.

Senatorial courtesy

An unwritten custom by which the president consults the senators in the state before nominating a candidate for a federal vacancy there, particularly for court positions.

Writ of certiorari

An order of the Supreme Court calling up the records of the lower court so a case may be reviewed, sometimes abbreviated cert.

Solicitor general

The lawyer who represents the federal government and argues some cases before the Supreme Court.

Case briefs

Written summaries prepared by lawyers that outline the main facts, issues, and arguments of a court case.

Amicus curiae

Literally a 'friend of the court' and used for a brief filed by someone who is interested in but not party to a case.

Majority opinion

An opinion of the Court with which more than half the nine justices agree.

Concurring opinion

An opinion written by a justice who agrees with the Court's majority opinion but has different reasons for doing so.

Dissenting opinion

An opinion written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion of the Court.

Judicial activism

A judicial philosophy in which a justice is more likely to overturn decisions or rule actions by the other branches unconstitutional, especially in an attempt to broaden individual rights and liberties.

Judicial restraint

A judicial philosophy in which a justice is more likely to let stand the decisions or actions of the other branches of government.

Judicial review

The power of the courts to review actions taken by the other branches of government and the states and to rule on whether those actions are constitutional.