Government Unit 4: Representation, Executive Branch, and Judicial Process

Vocabulary practice covering the structure of the House of Representatives, the Executive departments, presidential roles, judicial procedures, and foreign policy agencies.

Speaker of the House

Ultimately responsible for watching over the house / maintaining order; has the exclusive power to control the house agenda.

Majority/minority floor leaders

Leaders for each party; the voice of their political party.

Majority and minority whips

Rallying the members at large for voting.

Standing committees

Permanent work on specific areas.

Special and select committees

Formed temporarily to investigate an issue.

Joint committees

Members from both houses.

Majority party committee influence

Assigns the 20 committee chairs and majority of each committeeɹs members.

Department of Defense

Employs military and civilian workers; maintains defense cites around the world.

Department of State

Settles dispute with other countries; travels and operates embassies as a representative of the us.

Department of Homeland Security

Helps in emergencies; works to prevent terrorism.

Department of Justice

Upholds the law; contains agencies such as the fbi.

Department of Treasury

Promotes economic growth; oversees money production.

Department of Health and Human Services

Administers medicare and medicaid; runs hundreds of programs designed to promote american health.

Department of Transportation

Oversees travel/transportation.

Department of Labor

Helps create jobs / ensure equality.

Department of Commerce

Promotes business development / trade.

Commander in chief

Presidential role serving as head of the military, appointing military officials, and overseeing over 1.4 million military employees.

Executive privilege

A right claimed by the president.

Executive orders

Used for quick response to an economic/social/political need; they must enforce the law.

Trial courts

Courts with original jurisdiction over civil and criminal cases involving federal laws.

Precedent

Verdicts from previous cases considered by courts when making a decision.

Writs of certiorari

Meaning ‘to be informed of’; a process where the Supreme Court chooses to hear about 100 cases a year if 4 of 9 supreme justices agree.

Supreme justices term

Hold office for life; only voted out through impeachment.

Central Intelligence Agency (cia)

Executive agency that conducts foreign affairs and gathers intelligence on foreign issues.

National Security Agency (nsa)

Executive agency that conducts foreign affairs and gathers intelligence on foreign issues.

National Security Council (nsc)

Receives daily reports from executive agencies like the cia and nsa.