American Gov Study Guides

Congress and its Components:

Legislative branch; responsible for making laws; divided into two branches. House of Representatives and the Senate

Bureaucracy

State officials make important decisions compared to elected officials/representatives 

Implementation:

The process of putting a plan, policy, or decision into action

Types of government agencies:

Cabinet departments, independent agencies, and government corporations.

Cabinet departments:

major administrative units within the executive branch, each headed by a secretary who serves as a member of the President's cabinet (Department of Education, Department of Agriculture)

Independent Agencies:

Operate outside of cabinet departments and have specific focused mandates

Government corporations:

Operate like businesses, often providing services that might be handled by the private sector (U.S. Postal Services)

Judicial Review:

Laws/bills reviewed by the judicial branch before being implemented. Highest form of review

Open v. Closed Rule: r

Refer to the type of procedures that govern how a bill is considered on the House floo

Open Rule:

Any member of the House can propose changes to the bill during debate

Closed Rule: l

Prohibits the introduction of amendments from the floor, limiting debate and amendment opportunities to those who proposed by the committee reporting the bil

Devolution:

Transfer of political power and responsibilities from a central or national government to a lower level such as local government.

Privatization:

Transfer of ownership or control of assets or services from the public sector to private sector

Substantive:

Focuses on the actions and policies of representatives. Do they advocate for and represent the interests of their constituents?

Descriptive:

Focuses on the demographic characteristics of the representative (Race, Gender, Ethnicity)

Apportionment:

The process of dividing the 435 seats in the House among the 50 states based on their respective population. Ensures that each state representation in Congress is roughly proportional to its population size

Gerrymandering/Redistricting:

Redrawing district lines in a way that makes it easier for one party to win elections

Pork barreling:

Government spending that is allocated to specific projects in a politician district to secure votes or political support

Types of Congressional Committees:

Standing, Joint, Select/Special

Standing:

Permanent panels with specific legislative jurisdiction

Joint:

Members from both House and Senate, often focusing on studies or oversight functions

Select or Special:

Temporary and formed for specific purposes, such as investigations

Congressional Staff:

Employees who work for members of Congress, supporting them in their official duties

Cloture:

Closing or limitation of debate in a legislative body by calling for a vote

Filibuster:

Tactic used in legislative bodies to delay or block a vote on a bill or other measure by prolonging debate

Bill:

A proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law

Party Unity Voting:

A role-call vote in the House or Senate in which at least 50% of the members of one party take a particular position

Type of Vetoes:

Regular and Pocket

Regular Vetoes:

When a president rejects a bill and sends it back to Congress with objections

Pocket Vetoes:

Happens when the president doesn’t sign a bill and Congress adjourns within the 10-day period for presidential action. Bill doesn’t become law

Government:

A system that governs an organized community

Politics:

Set of activities that are associated with making decisions in a group

Articles of Confederation:

Created a weak central government: (1776)

Federalism: .

A system of government where power is divided between a national government and a regional government

Dual:

States and federal government have distinct powers

Cooperative:

States and federal government share power and collaborate

Logrolling:

Legislators agree to work together on a bill with the promise of future support

Congressional Oversight:

Congress has committees that oversee federal executive agencies.

War Powers Resolution of 1973:

A check on the president by Congress that prohibits the president from declaring war without consent of Congress.

Civil Servicce Act of 1883:

Mandated that federal government positions be awarded based on merit and not privilege.

Powers of the president:

Commander-in-chief, pardons, veto laws, write laws, appoints federal justices.

Regulatory Review:

The process of examining proposed and existing regulations to ensure that they are effective, efficient, and consistent with legal and policy objectives.

Iron Triangle:

Interest groups, Congressional Committees, and Executive Agencies. Interest groups lobby Congress for legislation, Congress makes the legislation, the executive agency enforces the legislation.

Electoral College:

The body that elects the president. How many electors a state gets depends on the congressional representation of the state added together. For example, GA has 2 senators plus 14 House representatives which means GA has 16 electors.

Private Bills:

Bills that benefit a specific group or interest rather than the entire nation.

Judicial Restraint:

A federal court decides not to make a ruling that would significantly affect public policy based solely on interpretation of the current laws.

Judicial Activism:

A federal court makes a ruling that significantly affects public policy based on personal political leanings

Civil Rights:

Government usually steps forward to make sure people have equal rights

Civil Liberties:

Spaces that are protected from government (Government steps out to give citizens “freedom”)

Checks and Balances:

Provides each branch of government with individual powers to check the other branches and prevent any branch from becoming too powerful

Bill of Rights:

First 10 Amendments

Political Ideology:

A cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about government

Party Identification:

Political Party

Political Parties:

Democratic, Republican, Independent

Interest Groups:

People or organizations that share a common interest to influence public policy in their favor. (Lobbying groups, Pressure groups, Advocacy groups)

Divided Government:

When the government branches are controlled by different political parties