AP Gov Unit 2

House of Reps

House of Reps

Represents districts (popualtion), 435 members, serve 2 year terms,

more formal processes

Senate

Represents states (100 members), 6 year terms

less formal processes

Standing committees

permanent, bills sent here first, hold hearings, edit/revise/markup bills, oversee implementation

Conference committees

a joint committee that makes a compromise version of a bill between house and Senate versions

House of Reps Discharge petition

a majority vote of the full House to force a bill out of a committee

Committee of the Whole

used to expedite the passage of legislation, members may debate and propose amendments

Filibuster

long speech intended to delay action and prevent a vote, usually used by minority party

Cloture

vote to cut off debate on a bill, requires a 3/5 majority

Silent filibuster

senators just need to announce their intention to filibuster for it to get put aside

Power of the purse

congress creates a budget, president signs it into law

Discretionary spending

authorized annually by Congress as a part of budget bills

Mandatory spending

spending required by law, can only be changed by new legislation

Entitlement programs

(Social security, medicare) programs people are entitled to by law

Pork barrel legislation

provides tangible benefits, jobs, money to a district

Logrolling

vote trading by Congress, “I vote for yours, you vote for mine”

Delegate model

representative should follow public opinion, even if they personally disagree

Trustee model

representative votes their conscience regardless of what constituents want

Politico model

blend of both delegate and trustee models

Reapportionment

Every 10 years, alters number of seats each state has in the House

Redistricting

redrawing congressional districts, done by state legislatures

Baker v Carr

allowed court to review redistricting plans, use 14th amendments equal protection clause, “one person, one vote” principle requires that districts be roughly the same size

Gerrymandering

drawing congressional districts in bizarre shapes to benefit their party

Shaw v Reno

racial gerrymandering is unconstitutional, even if district is being drawn based on race to increase minority representation

Party polarization

increasing ideological division between democrats and republicans

Role of president

head of executive branch, job is to enforce laws made by congress, commander in chief of armed forces, though ONLY CONGRESS has power to declare war

Veto

rejects legislation, Congress can override with 2/3 vote in both houses

pocket veto

president takes no action and the session of Congress ends within 10 days of receiving bill

Executive agreements

(informal power of president) agreements with foreign heads of state, like a treaty but don’t require senate ratification

(presidential) Persuasion

presidents lack extensive constitutional powers, so they need support for agenda from Congress and the public

Signing statements

provides presidents interpretation of the bill being signed

executive order

have power of a law, don’t require congressional approval, generally used to direct the bureaucracy and foreign policy

Nominations that require senate confirmation

federal judges, cabinet secretaries, ambassadors, heads of executive agencies

Nominations that don’t require senate confirmation

white house office/staff, chief of staff, pres secretary, advisors

judicial appointments

presidents longest lasting influence because they have life terms

Federalist 70

• Alexander Hamilton argues for a single, unitary executive

• says that it's necessary for the executive to be able to quickly respond in moments of disaster or war

• says that public opinion is a stronger check on a single executive than a plural executive because the people would know who to blame or credit for a situation

22nd amendment

2 term limit for presidents

Bully pulpit

a position of authority that allows the president to speak out on any issue

state of the union address

nationally televised address to congress, attempts to gain support for his agenda and pressure congress

Bureaucracy

implements federal policies

4 types of bureaucrat agencies

cabinet departments, independent executive agencies, regulatory agencies, and government corporations.

Cabinet departments

major area of responsibility over a broad policy area

(justice, defense, treasury)

independent regulatory agencies

makes rules regulating specific industries, more narrow area of responsibility

(environmental protection agency, NASA, CIA)

independent executive agencies

perform public services, reports directly to president

(Social security, federal reserve)

Government corporations

provide services that could be provided by private companies, but aren’t profitable

(AmTrak, US postal service)

Administrative discretion

congress allows agencies to choose how to implement and enforce legislation

Congressional oversight

committee hearings and investigations into an agency’s activities

Federalist 78

• Alexander Hamiltion argued for an independent judiciary where judges served life terms

• argued that they were able to use judicial review (strike down on laws contrary to the Constitution)

Marbury v Madision

• established judicial review

• supreme court had the power to rule constitutionality of federal laws, executive orders and actions, and state laws

stare decisis

“let the decision stand”, means to follow precedent

judicial restraint

courts should defer to the democratically elected branches whenever possible

Judicial activism

the court can and should be free to overrule other branches