Lecture Notes on Branches of Government

Flashcards reviewing key concepts related to the interactions among branches of government, congressional powers, the presidency, the judiciary, and the bureaucracy.

Constituents

Voters in a legislative district

Coalition

Alliance of political groups pursuing a common goal

How do terms in office affect the responsiveness of the House of Representatives compared to the Senate?

The House is more sensitive to constituents' concerns due to serving shorter terms.

What is unique about revenue bills (HOR)?

Unique to the House of Representatives, due to their responsiveness to constituents.

What is unique about impeachment trials (Senate)?

Unique to the Senate, giving states equal ultimate power over the presidency.

Cloture

Senate procedure where 60 senators can vote to limit debate and cut off a filibuster.

Discharge petition

A petition signed by members of the House of Representatives to bring a bill out of committee and onto the floor for a vote.

Filibuster

Tactic used by the Senate to block a bill by continuing to speak until the bill's supporters back down.

House Rules Committee

Schedules and manages the flow of legislation on the floor to make groups more efficient in the House of Representatives.

Logrolling

Two legislators agree to trade votes for each other's benefit.

Pork barrel legislation

Use of federal funding to finance localized projects to bring money to a representative's district.

Speaker of the House

De facto leader of the majority party.

Baker v. Carr

Rejected the way the state was apportioned because districts did not have equal populations which violates the equal protection clause.

What principle did Baker v. Carr help establish?

Established "One person, one vote".

Shaw v. Reno (1991)

Race cannot be the predominant factor in creating districts.

Formal powers

Powers outlined in Article I.

Informal Powers

Claimed Powers

Cabinet

Presidential advisors.

Executive agreement

International agreement between the president and another country.

Executive order

Presidential order to the executive branch that carries the force of law.

Pocket veto

Indirect veto where the president leaves a bill unsigned for less than 10 days before Congress adjourns.

Signing statement

A presidential statement upon signing a bill into law that explains how the president's administration intends to interpret that law.

State of the Union address

The president's annual message to a joint session of Congress to evaluate the nation's top priorities.

War Powers Act

Limits the president's power to deploy the US military.

Bully pulpit

Theodore Roosevelt's notion of the presidency as a platform from which the president could promote his agenda directly to the public.

Inferior courts

All lower courts

Judicial independence

Factors include lifetime appointments and a ban on salary decreases for sitting justices.

Judicial review

Supreme Court's power to review whether acts of the executive and legislative branches are consistent with the Constitution.

Federalist No. 78

Judges should serve for life to ensure judicial independence.

Article III of the Constitution

Establishes the judicial branch and gives Congress power to create inferior courts.

Life tenure

Supreme Court justices and federal judges have lifetime appointments.

Precedent

Legal decision that establishes a rule for similar cases in the future.

Stare decisis

Making legal decisions based on past precedents.

Court-curbing measures

Strategies for reducing the power of the Supreme Court or its rulings.

Jurisdiction

Field of authority a court has to make legal judgments and decisions.

Legitimacy of the Supreme Court

Public trust in, and willingness to accept, a Supreme Court ruling.

Judicial activist

Belief that the role of a justice is to defend individual rights and liberties, even those not stated in the Constitution.

Judicial restraint

Belief that the role of a justice is to defer decisions to elected branches of government and stay focused on a narrower interpretation of the Bill of Rights.

Bureaucracy

Carries out responsibilities of the federal government.

Merit system

Bureaucrats hired based on skills rather than political connections.

Civil service

Permanent, professional branches of government administration where employees are hired based on merit.

Iron triangle

Longstanding, mutually beneficial relationship among an interest group, congressional committee, and bureaucratic agency devoted to similar issues.

Issue network

Group of individuals, public officials, and interest groups that form around a particular issue.

Patronage

Practice of hiring individuals based on political support rather than merit.

Discretionary authority of bureaucracy

Agencies deciding whether or not to take action when implementing certain laws.

Rulemaking authority

Agency's ability to make rules that affect how programs operate.