AP Government Unit 2
House of Representatives - 435 members, 2 year term, the number of representatives depends on the population of the state.
House of Representatives leadership positions are the speaker of the house.
House of Representatives have the ability to revenue bills, administer proceedings to the floor, and leader of the majority party reference.
Senate - 100 members, 6 year term, each state gets 2 senators.
Senators leadership positions include constitutional officers and floor leaders.
Senators have the ability to approve treaties and approve nominations.
How a Bill Becomes a Law
Describe how a bill becomes a law - First introduced by a member of congress , then assigned to the committee, then the president has ten days to either sign it or veto it.
How the Houses of Congress Affect the Policy Making Process
Explain how the structure, power, and functions of both houses of congress affect the policy making process: The structure, power, and functions of both houses affect the policy making process by forcing debate, creating a balancing system, and slowing the legislation.
Four types of Congressional Committees
Standing Committee - Permanent and deals with specific policies.
Select/Special - Temporary and deals with specific laws.
Joint - Includes members from both committees
Conference - Has a significant influence
Roles of Speaker of the House, Party Leadership, and Committee Leadership
Speaker of the House - Serves as the presiding officer of the House, sets the agenda, assigns bills to committees, appoints committee members, and leads majority party
Party Leadership - Plans strategies, coordinate agendas, drive floor to debate, holds control over scheduling and floor agenda in the Senate.
Committee Leadership - Determines which bills are considered, direct hearing, and manage legislation on the chamber floor.
Roles of Rules Committee, Committee of the Whole, and Discharge Petitions in the House
Rules of Committee - Sets rules for floor debate, time limits, and amendment processes for bills before reaching the floor.
Committee of the Whole - Allows the entire House to operate with relaxed rules.
Discharge Petitions - Enables a majority of House members to force a bill out of a reluctant committee and bring it directly to the floor.
Treaty ratification and conformation role of the U.S Senate
Provides constitutional advice and consent through a 2/3 approval vote on a resolution of ratification, leaving it to the president.
Important Terms
Filibuster - A tactic used in the Senate to prevent a measure from being brought to a vote by using continuous speech.
Cloture - A procedure for ending a debate and taking a vote which requires 3/5 (60 Senators) to overcome a filibuster.
Discretionary Spending - Federal spending approved by Congress and the President through annual budget bills rather than permanent laws.
Mandatory Spending - Federal spending required by existing permanent laws that flow automatically to eligible recipients without annual Congress vote.
Pork Barrel Legislation - Funding for local project in bill.
Logrolling - Combining several pieces of legislation into one bill.
Gerrymandering - Drawing lines to benefit or disadvantage one particular group over another.
Redistricting - Process of redrawing the geographical boundaries of voting districts to ensure each district has the same number of people.
Reapportionment - Process of distributing the 435 seats among the 50 states based on population.
Civil Service - Body of non-elected federal employees who implement laws and run daily government operations based on proffesional qualifications.
Merit - Process for hiring and promoting federal civil service employees based on qualifications rather than political connections.
Pendleton Act - Federal law that ended the spoils system and established a merit based system for federal civil service jobs.
Partisian vote - When members of congress vote based on the political party.
Gridlock - A situation in which no congressional action on legislation can be taken due to lack of consensus.
Important Documents
Federalist No.70 - Alexander Hamilton’s argument for a single, energetic, executive, which is vital for a strong and effective government.
Models of Congressional Representation
Trustee Model - Theory of representation where elected officials vote using their own personal judgement.
Delegate Model - Elected officials vote to mirror the exact preferences rather than personal judgement.
Politico Model - Lawmakers switch between acting as a delegate model and a trustee model depending on the importance.
Presidency Formal and Informal Powers
Formal powers - Specific powers given by the constitution.
Informal powers - Powers not stated in the constitution, but claimed by the president.
Explain how the Bureaucracy Interacts with the President and Congress
Writing and enforcing legislation - Translates broad legislature goals into specific, enforceable rules while remaining accountable to branches.
Issuing fines - Delegated authority from Congress, operating under presidential oversight.
Roles of the Bureaucratic Institutions -
Independent Executive Agency - Federal bureaucracy organizations created by Congress that operate outside the 15 cabinet departments.
Independent Regulatory Commission - Agency created by Congress that operates outside the cabinet departments to regulate a specific sector of the economy and protect public interest.
Government Corporation - A federal organization that provides a public service like a private business and typically charges fees for it’s service.
Powers In the Constitution Allow Congress to Participate in Public Policy Process By -
Passing federal budget, raising revenue taxing, and coining money
Declaring war and providing funds to armed forces
Determine how people can become a U.S citizen
Regulate interstate commerce.
How Presidency Can Implement a Policy Agenda
President uses power with support from Vice President, Cabinet, and Executive Office.
Presidents have interpreted and Justified Their Use of Formal and Informal Powers By
Federalist 70 - SINGLE, STRONG executive
22nd Amendment - Established presidential term limits, demonstrates concern about president’s power.
Congressional behavior and governing effectiveness are influenced by ideological divisions between political parties, which can lead to gridlock or cooperation in passing legislation.
Explain how Life Tenure Can Lead to Debate about the Supreme Court Power
Life tenure for justices allows the court to function independent of current political climate. The court can deliver decisions, which can lead to debate.
Explain How the Federal Bureaucracy Used Delegated Discretionary Authority for Rulemaking and Implementation
Uses discretionary power as delegated by Congress to interpret and implement policies through rule-making authority.
AP Government College Board Comp Check
The more chambers of Congress the President’s party controls, the less likely the president is to veto a bill.
A failure by Congress to check the power of the president will likely lead to the presidnet excercising powers that might be considered beyond the scope laid by U.S President will be able to push limits of constitutional authority.
An attempt by Congress to place limitations on presidential power through legislation led to a signing statement by the president that declared the legislation would not limit presidential power.
President Bush interpreted it broadly to allow him to conduct the war on terrorism without much further consultation with Congress as a direct result of the congressional resolution authorizing action against Al-Qaeda.
Baker v. Carr (1962) - The Supreme Court established the right of federal rights to review redistricting.
Shaw v. Reno (1993) - Redistricting to create districts with a racial minority that compromises a majority of the districts total population challenged under the 14th amendment. Racial gerrymandering can violate the 14th amendment unless it achieves a compelling state interest.
Members of the White House staff are strategically used to help the president pass an agenda.
The process of conforming member’s of the president’s cabinet can lead to a conflict with members of the Senate.
Bully pulpit can be used to directly address American’s with the intent of gammering public support for his public initiative.