Our American Government: Principles, Legislative Process, and Governance

A set of 16 vocabulary flashcards covering the legislative process, constitutional powers, congressional procedures, and federal election structures.

Bill of Rights

The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, ratified on December 15, 1791, which enumerate fundamental individual liberties and define the relationship among the people, the States, and the Federal Government.

Conference Committee

An ad hoc committee composed of Members ("managers") from both the House and the Senate appointed to resolve differences and negotiate a settlement on legislation passed by both chambers in different forms.

Committee of the Whole

A parliamentary forum in the House of Representatives encompassing all Members, used to expedite debate and amendments on legislation under streamlined rules and a reduced quorum of 100 Members.

Special Rule

A resolution reported by the House Rules Committee that sets the order of business, limits debate time, and regulates which floor amendments may be offered during the consideration of a specific bill.

Pocket Veto

An absolute presidential veto that cannot be overridden by Congress, taking effect when the President does not sign a bill within 10 days (excluding Sundays) and Congress has adjourned, preventing its return.

Discharge Petition

A House procedure that allows a majority of Representatives (218) to remove a bill from a committee that has held it for more than 30 days and bring it directly to the floor for consideration.

District System (Electoral College)

An electoral method adopted by Maine in 1972 and Nebraska in 1992 where the popular vote winner in each congressional district receives one electoral vote, and the statewide winner receives two additional electoral votes.

Cloture

A Senate parliamentary procedure under Rule 22 requiring a petition of 16 Senators and a three-fifths vote (60 Senators) to limit debate and end a filibuster on a pending measure.

Filibuster

The practice in the Senate of using extended debate by one or more Senators to delay or entirely prevent a final vote on a pending bill or nomination.

Germaneness

A House rule requiring that any proposed floor amendment must strictly relate to the subject matter of the specific bill under consideration.

Continuing Resolution

A joint stop-gap appropriations measure passed by Congress to provide temporary funding to keep Federal agencies operating when regular appropriation bills have not been enacted prior to the start of the fiscal year.

Method of Equal Proportions

The mathematical procedure used by Congress since 1941 to distribute House of Representatives seats among the 50 States following each decennial census to minimize population differences across districts.

Line Item Veto

A statutory authority granted under the 1996 Act permitting the cancellation of specific spending items and targeted tax benefits, which was invalidated by the Supreme Court in Clinton v. City of New York (1998) under the Presentment Clause.

Sequestration

An across-the-board reduction in Federal spending triggered by Presidential order when Congress fails to meet established statutory budget limits or deficit targets.

Advice and Consent

The constitutional authority of the Senate to confirm presidential nominations for executive and judicial offices by a majority vote and to approve treaties by a two-thirds vote.

President Pro Tempore

The officer elected by the Senate to preside over the chamber in the absence of the Vice President, an honor traditionally given to the senior Senator of the majority party.