american politics exam 3

constitutional authority - presidential

powers derived from the provisions of the constitution that outline the president's role in government

statutory authority - presidential

powers derived from laws enacted by congress that add to the powers given to the president in the constitution

vesting clause

Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution, which states that "executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America," making the president both the head of government and the head of state.

head of government

one role of the president, through which he or she has authority over the executive branch

head of state

One role of the president, through which he or she represents the country symbolically and politically.

recess appointment

selection by the president of a person to be an ambassador or the head of a department while the senate is not in session, therefore bypassing senate approval. Unless approved by a subsequent senate vote, recess appointees serve only to the end of the congressional term.

executive orders

proclamations made by the president that change government policy without congressional approval.

executive agreement

an agreement between the executive branch and a foreign government, which acts as a treaty but does not require senate approval.

state of the union

An annual speech in which the president addresses Congress to report on the condition of the country and recommend policies.

executive privilege

the right of the president to keep executive branch conversations and correspondence confidential from the legislative and judicial branches

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

The group of policy-related offices that serves as support staff to the president.

cabinet

The group of 15 executive department heads who implement the president's agenda in their respective positions.

unilateral action - presidential

Any policy decision made and acted upon by the president and presidential staff without the explicit approval or consent of Congress.

signing statement

A document issued by the president when signing a bill into law explaining his interpretation of the law, which often differs from the interpretation of Congress, in an attempt to influence how the law will be implemented.

presidential approval rating

the percentage of Americans who think that the president is doing a good job in office

going public

A president's use of speeches and other public communications to appeal directly to citizens about issues the president would like the House and Senate to act on.

Bureaucracy

The system of civil servants and political appointees who implement congressional or presidential decisions; also known as the administrative state.

civil servant

a person who works for a government. employees of bureaucratic agencies within the government.

political appointees

people selected by an elected leader, such as the president, to hold a government position

regulation

a rule that allows the government to exercise control over individuals and corporations by restricting certain behaviors

notice-and-comment procedure

A step in the rule-making process in which proposed rules are published in the Federal Register and made available for debate by the general public.

state capacity

The knowledge, personnel, and institutions that the government requires to effectively implement policies.

problem of control

A difficulty faced by elected officials in ensuring that when bureaucrats implement policies, they follow these officials' intentions but still have enough discretion to use their expertise.

principal-agent game

The interaction between a principal (such as the president or Congress), who needs something done, and an agent (such as a bureaucrat), who is responsible for carrying out the principal's orders.

red tape

excessive or unnecessarily complex regulations imposed by the bureaucracy

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

rules that lower-level bureaucrats must follow when implementing policies

federal civil service

A system created by the 1883 Pendleton Civil Service Act in which bureaucrats are hired on the basis of merit rather than political connections.

office of management and budget

EOP agency that helps the President prepare annual budget proposal and evaluates budget priorities and effectiveness of federal agencies (oversight)

independent agencies

government offices or organizations that provide government services and are not part of an executive department

budget maximizers

bureaucrats who seek to increase funding for their agency whether or not that additional spending is worthwhile

bureaucratic drift

Bureaucrats' tendency to implement policies in a way that favors their own political objectives rather than following the original intentions of the legislation.

oversight

Congressional efforts to make sure that laws are implemented correctly by the bureaucracy after they have been passed

police patrol oversight

a method of oversight in which members of congress constantly monitor the bureaucracy to make sure that laws are implemented correctly

fire alarm oversight

A method of oversight in which members of Congress respond to complaints about the bureaucracy or problems of implementation only as they arise rather than exercising constant vigilance.

original jurisdiction

the authority of a court to handle a case first, as in the supreme court's authority to initially hear disputes between two states. however, original jurisdiction for the supreme court is not exclusive; it may assign such a case to a lower court.

Judiciary Act of 1789

The law in which Congress laid out the organization of the federal judiciary. The law refined and clarified federal court jurisdiction and set the original number of justices at six. It also created the Office of the Attorney General and established the lower federal courts.

district courts

Lower-level trial courts of the federal judicial system that handle most U.S. federal cases.

appellate jurisdiction

the authority of a court to hear appeals from lower court and change or uphold the decision

Judicial Review

The Supreme Court's power to strike down a law or executive branch action that it finds unconstitutional.

constitutional interpretation

The process of determining whether a piece of legislation or governmental action is supported by the Constitution.

statutory interpretation

The various methods and tests used by the courts for determining the meaning of a law and applying it to specific situations. Congress may overturn the courts' interpretation by writing a new law; thus, it also engages in statutory interpretation.

plaintiff

the person or party who brings a case to court

defendant

The person or party against whom criminal or civil charges are brought in a lawsuit

plea bargaining

Negotiating an agreement between a plaintiff and a defendant to settle a case before it goes to trial or the verdict is decided. In a civil case, this usually involves an admission of guilt and an agreement on monetary damages; in a criminal case, this often involves an admission of guilt in return for a reduced charge or sentence.

class action lawsuit

a case brought by a group of individuals on behalf of themselves and others in the general public who are in similar circumstances

common law

Law based on the precedent of previous court rulings rather than on legislation. It is used in all federal courts and 49 of the 50 state courts.

precedent

a legal norm established in court cases that is then applied to future cases dealing with the same legal questions

standing

legitimate justification for bringing a civil case to court

jurisdiction

the sphere of a court's legal authority to hear and decide cases

appeals courts

The intermediate level of federal courts that hear appeals from district courts. More generally, an appeals court is any court with appellate jurisdiction.

senatorial courtesy

A norm in the nomination of district court judges in which the president consults with his party's senators from the relevant state in choosing the nominee.

writ of certiorari

The most common way for a case to reach the Supreme Court, in which at least four of the nine justices agree to hear a case that has reached them via an appeal from the losing party in a lower court's ruling.

mootness

the irrelevance of a case by the time it is received by a federal court, causing the court to decline to hear the case

cert pool

A system initiated in the Supreme Court in the 1970s in which law clerks screen cases that come to the Supreme Court and recommend to the justices which cases should be heard.

solicitor general

A presidential appointee in the Justice Department who conducts all litigation on behalf of the federal government before the Supreme Court and supervises litigation in the federal appellate courts.

amicus curiae

Latin for "friend of the court," referring to an interested group or person who shares relevant information about a case to help the Court reach a decision.

oral arguments

spoken presentations made in person by the lawyers of each party to a judge or an appellate court outlining the legal reasons their side should prevail

strict construction

a way of interpreting the constitution based on its language alone

Living Constitution

A way of interpreting the Constitution that takes into account evolving national attitudes and circumstances rather than the text alone.

judicial restraint

The idea that the Supreme Court should defer to the democratically elected executive and legislative branches of government rather than contradicting existing laws.

judicial activism

The idea that the Supreme Court should assert its interpretation of the law even if it overrules the elected executive and legislative branches of government.

public policy

a course of action pursued by government to address a specific problem

policy agenda

the set of desired policies that political leaders view as their top priorities

fiscal policy

government decisions about how to influence the economy by taxing and spending

monetary policy

government decisions about how to influence the economy using control of the money supply and interest rates

budget making

The processes carried out in Congress to determine how government money will be spent and revenue will be raised.

United States Trade Representative (USTR)

An agency founded in 1962 to negotiate with foreign governments to create trade agreements, resolve disputes, and participate in global trade policy organizations. Treaties negotiated by the USTR must be ratified by the Senate.

National Economic Council (NEC)

A group of economic advisers created in 1993 to work with the president to coordinate economic policy

Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)

The federal welfare program in place from 1935 until 1996, when it was replaced by Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) under President Clinton.

Federal Reserve System

An independent agency that serves as the central bank of the United States to bring stability to the nation's banking system.

Treasury Department

A cabinet-level agency that is responsible for managing the federal government's revenue. It prints currency, collects taxes, and sells government bonds.

full employment

the theoretical point at which all citizens who want to be employed have a job

economic depression

A deep, widespread downturn in the economy, like the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)

A group of economic advisers, created by the Employment Act of 1946, that provides objective data on the state of the economy and makes economic policy recommendations to the president.

inflation

the increase in the price of consumer goods over time

deflation

a decrease in the general price of goods and services

gdp

the total market value of all final goods and services produced annually in an economy

balanced budget

A spending plan in which the government's expenditures are equal to its revenue.

budget deficit

the amount by which a government's spending in a given fiscal year exceeds its revenue

keynesian economics

The theory that governments should use economic policy, like taxing and spending, to maintain stability in the economy.

supply-side economics

The theory that lower tax rates will stimulate the economy by encouraging people to save, invest, and produce more goods and services.

business cycle

the normal pattern of expansion and contraction of the economy

mandatory spending

Expenditures that are required by law, such as the funding for Social Security.

discretionary spending

expenditures that can be cut from the budget without changing the underlying law, which is everything other than defense, entitlements, and interest on the debt

regressive

Describes taxes that take a larger share of poor people's income than wealthy people's income, such as sales taxes and payroll taxes.

progressive

describes taxes that require upper-income people to pay a higher tax rate than lower-income people, such as income taxes

monetarist theory

the idea that the amount of money in circulation (the money supply) is the primary influence on economic activity and inflation

reserve requirement

the minimum amount of money that a bank is required to have on hand to back up its assets

discount rate

The interest rate that a bank must pay on a short-term loan from the Federal Reserve Bank.

Federal Funds Rate (FFR)

the interest rate that a bank must pay on an overnight loan from another bank

open market operations

The process by which the Federal Reserve System buys and sells securities to influence the money supply.

social policy

an area of public policy related to maintaining or enhancing the well-being of individuals

welfare

financial or other assistance provided to individuals by the government, usually based on need

new deal

the set of policies proposed by FDR and enacted by congress between 1933-35 to promote economic recovery and social welfare during the great depression

great society

The wide-ranging social agenda promoted by President Lyndon Johnson in the mid-1960s that aimed to improve Americans' quality of life through governmental social programs.

ownership society

The term used to describe the social policy vision of President George W. Bush, in which citizens take responsibility for their own social welfare and the free market plays a greater role in social policy.

baby boom generation

Americans born between 1946 and 1964, who are retiring in large numbers over the next 20 years

privatization

The process of transferring the management of a government program (like Social Security) from the public sector to the private sector.

medicare

The federal health care plan created in 1965 that provides coverage for retired Americans for hospital care (Part A), medical care (Part B), and prescription drugs (Part D).

medicaid

An entitlement program funded by the federal and state governments that provides health care coverage for low-income Americans who would otherwise be unable to afford health care.