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ap gov ch.6
vocab
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Apportionment- process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial census. | process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population, following the decennial census. |
| bicameral Legislature | a two house legislature. |
| Bill- | proposed law. |
| Cloture- | mechanism requiring the vote of sixty senators to cut off debate. |
| Committee of the whole- | a procedure that allows the House of Representatives to deliberate with a lower quorum and to expedite consideration and amendment of a bill. |
| conference committee- | special joint committee created to reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate. |
| Congressional budget act of 1974- | act that established the congressional budgetary process by laying out a plan for congressional action on the annual budget resolution, appropriations, reconciliation, and any other revenue bills. |
| Congressional budget office- | created in 1974, the CBO provides congress with evaluations of the potential economic effects if proposed spending policies and also analyzes the president's budget and economic projectives. |
| Congressional research service- | created in 1914, the non-partisan CRS provides information, studies, and research in support of the work of congress, and prepares summaries and tracks the progress of a bill. |
| Congressional review- | a process whereby congress can nullify agency regulations within a 60-day window by passing a joint resolution of legislative disapproval. The president's approval of the resolution or a two-thirds majority vote in both houses to overrule a presidential v |
| Delegate- | role played by representative who voted the way his or her constituents would want, regardless of personal opinions; may refer to an elected representative to congress or a representative to the party convention. |
| Discharge petition- | petition that gives a majority of the House of Representatives the authority to bring an issue to the floor in the face of committee inaction. |
| Divided government- | the political condition in which different political parties control the presidency and at least one house of congress. |
| Edmund Burke- | conservative British political philosopher of the eighteenth century who articulated the view that elected representatives should act as “trustees” and use their own best judgment when voting. |
| Filibuster- | a formal way of halting Senate action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate. |
| Gerrymandering- | the drawing of congressional districts to produce a particular electoral outcome without regard to the shape of the district. |
| Government Accountability Office- | established in 1921, the GAO is an independent regulatory agency for the purpose of auditing the financial expenditures of the executive branch and federal agencies; until 2004, the GAO was known as the General Accounting Office. |
| Hillary Clinton- | first female major party candidate for POTUS, a Democrat, who ran against president Donald Trump in 2016. Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013; new york senator from 2001 to 2009; former first lady. |
| Hold- | a procedure by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill or nomination is brought to the floor. This request signals leadership that a member may have objections on the bill (or nomination) and should be consulted before further action |
| House Committee on Rules- | determines the scheduling and conditions, such as lengths of debate and type of allowable amendments, for all bills in the House of Representatives (but not in the Senate, where debate is less regulated). |
| Impeachment- | the power delegated to the House of Representatives in the constitution to charge the president, or VP, or other “civil officers” including federal judges, with “Treason, B ribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” this is the first step in the cons |
| Incumbency- | already holding an office. |
| Joint Committee- | standing committee that includes members from both houses of Congress set up to conduct investigations or special studies. |
| Logrolling | vote trading; voting to support a colleague’s bill in return for a promise of future support. |
| Majority Leader- | the head of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate; is second in authority to Speaker of the House and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member. |
| Majority Party- | the political party in each house of Congress with the most members. |
| Party caucus- | a formal gathering of all party members. |
| Pocket Veto- | if congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill passed by both houses of congress, the bill is considered vetoed without the president's signature. |
| Politico- | an elected representative who acts as a trustee or as a delegate, depending on the issue. |
| Pork- | legislation that allows representatives to bring money and jobs to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs. |
| President Pro Tempore- | the official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party. |
| Programmatic Requests- | federal funds designated for special projects within a state or congressional district. Also referred to as earmarks. |
| Reconciliation- | a procedure that allows consideration of controversial issues affecting the budget by limiting debate to twenty hours, thereby ending the threat of a filibuster. |
| Redistricting- | the process of redrawing congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state. |
| Richard M. Nixon- | the thirty-seventh president, a republican, who served from 1969 to 1974. Nixon advocated detente during the Cold War and resigned rather than face impeachment and likely removal from office due to the Watergate scandal. |
| Select (or Special) committee- | temporary committee appointed for a specific purpose. |
| Senatorial Courtesy- | a process by which presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering their objection. |
| Seniority | time of continuous service on a committee. |
| Speaker of the House- | the only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the constitution; the chamber’s most powerful position; traditionally a member of the majority party. |
| Standing Committee- | committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one congress to the next. |
| Trustee- | role played by an elective representative who listens to constituents opinions and then uses his or her best judgment to make a final decision. |
| Unified Government- | the political condition in which the same political party controls the presidency and Congress. |
| Veto | the formal, constitutional authority of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress, thus preventing them from becoming law without further congressional action. |
| War Powers Resolution- | passed by congress in 1973; requires the authorization of Congress to deploy troops overseas and limits the time of their deployment. |
| whip- | party leader who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party, takes vote counts on key legislation, prepares summaries of bills, and acts as a communication link within a party. |