Pols 101: Final Exam

Sociological Representation

the sort of representation that takes place when representatives have the same racial, ethnic, religious, or educational backgrounds as their constituents

Agency Representation

the sort of representation that takes place when constituents have the power to hire and fire their representatives

Incumbency

the ability to hold a political office election after election

Redistricting

the process of redrawing election districts and redistributing legislative representatives. This happens every ten years to reflect shifts in population or in response to legal challenges to existing districts

Gerrymandering

the process of redrawing legislative district boundary lines to provide political advantage or disadvantage

Conference/Caucus

a gathering of House Republicans every two years to elect their House leaders. Democrats call their gathering the caucus

Speaker of the House

the elected leader of the majority party is later proposed to the whole House and is automatically elected to the position of Speaker of the House

Majority/Minority Leader

the elected leader of each party in the House of Representatives or in the Senate. In the House, the majority leader is subordinate in the party hierarchy to the Speaker of the House

Whips

assistants to the party leaders; responsible for coordinating the party's legislative strategy, building support for key issues, and counting votes

Standing Committees

permanent committees continue in existence from congress to congress; they have the power to propose and write legislation

Conference Committee

temporary joint committees whose members are appointed by the Speaker of the House and the presiding officer of the Senate; charged with reaching a compromise on legislation that has been passed by the House and the Senate, but in different versions

Filibuster

a tactic used by members of the Senate to prevent action on legislation they oppose by continuously holding the floor and speaking until the majority backs down. Once given the floor, senators have unlimited time to speak, and it require a vote of three-f

Cloture

a rule allowing three-fifths of the members in the US Senate to set a time limit on debate over a given bill

Veto

the president's constitutional power to prevent a bill from becoming a law

Pocket Veto

a veto that occurs when the president does not sign a passed bill within ten days of receiving it, and Congress adjourned

Roll-Call Vote

a vote in which each legislator's yes or no vote is recorded as the clerk calls the names of the members alphabetically

Appropriations

the amounts of money approved by Congress in statutes (bills) that each unit or agency of government can spend

Oversight

the effort by Congress, through hearings, investigations, and other techniques, to exercise control over the activities of executive agencies by overseeing or supervising how legislation is carried out by the executive branch

Constituency

the people in the district from which an official is elected

Bill

a proposed law that has been sponsored by a member of Congress and submitted to the clerk of the House or Senate

Bicameral

a two-chambered legislature: opposite of unicameral

Logrolling

a legislative practice wherein agreements are made between legislators in voting for or against a bill; vote trading

Patronage

the resources available to higher officials, including making partisan appointments to offices and conferring grants, licenses, or special favors to supporters

Pork Barrel

appropriations made by legislative bodies for local projects that are often not needed but that are created to help local representatives win re-election in their home districts

Expressed Powers

specifically defined powers granted to the president in the Constitution; cannot be revoked by the Congress or any other agency without an amendment to the Constitution

Delegated Powers

powers given to the president by Congress

Commander in Chief

the power of the president as commander of the national military and the state national guard units when called into service; makes the president the highest military authority in the executive branch

Inherent Powers

powers claimed by a president that are not expressed in the Constitution, but are inferred from it; are most often asserted by presidents in times of war or national emergency

War Powers Resolution

a resolution of congress that the president can send troops into action abroad only by authorization of Congress, or if American troops are already under attack or serious threat

Executive Order

a rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect and formal status of legislation

White House Staff

composed mainly of analysts and advisers who are closest to, and most responsive to, the president's needs and preferences

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

the permanent agencies that perform defined management tasks for the president

Cabinet

The secretaries, or chief administrators, of the major departments of the federal government. Cabinet secretaries are appointed by the president with the consent of the Senate

Executive Agreement

an agreement, made between the president and another country, that has the force of a treaty but does not require the Senate's "advice and consent

Legislative Initiative

the president's inherent power to bring a legislative agenda before Congress

Signing Statement

an announcement made by the president when signing bills into law, often presenting the president's interpretation of the law

Bureaucracy

the complex structure of offices, tasks, rules, and principles of organization that are employed by all large-scale institutions to coordinate effectively the work of their personnel

Implementation

the efforts of departments and agencies to translate laws into specific bureaucratic rules and actions

Departments

the largest subunit of the executive branch, each of which is headed by a department secretary

Independent Agency

set up by Congress outside the departmental structure altogether, even though the president appoints and directs the heads of these agencies

Government Corporation

a third type of government agency but are more like private businesses performing and charging for a market service, such as delivering the mail (USPS) or transporting railroad passengers (Amtrak)

Regulatory Agencies

bureaus within departments, such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) within the Department of Health and Human Services

Fiscal Policy

the use of taxing, monetary, and spending powers to manipulate the economy

Federal Reserve System (Fed)

a system of twelve Federal Reserve Banks that facilitates exchanges of cash, checks, and credit; regulates member banks; and uses monetary policies to fight inflation and deflation, and is headed by the Federal Reserve Board

Revenue Agencies

responsible for collecting taxes

Merit System

a product of civil service reform, in which appointees to positions in public bureaucracies must objectively be deemed qualified for those positions

Privatization

removing all or part of a program from the public sector to the private sector

Criminal Law

involves the branch of law that deals with disputes or actions involving criminal penalties (as opposed to civil law); regulates the conduct of individuals, defines crimes, and provides punishment for criminal acts

Plaintiff

the party that brings a complaint or charges

Defendant

the one against whom a complaint is brought in a criminal or civil case

Civil Law

Disputes among individuals or between individuals and the government, including private law and governmental actions, to settle disputes that do not involve criminal penalties

Precedents

(prior decisions whose principles are used by judges as the basis for their decisions in present cases

Stare Decisis

let the decision stand"; the doctrine that a previous decision by a court applies as a precedent in similar cases until that decision is overruled

Trial Court

the first court to hear a criminal or civil case

Court of Appeals

a court that hears the appeals of trial court decisions

Supreme Court

the highers court in a particular state or in the United States; it serves an appellate function

Plea Bargains

negotiated agreements in criminal cases in which a defendant agrees to plead guilty in return for the state's agreement to reduce the severity of the criminal charge the defendant is facing

Jurisdiction

the sphere of a court's power and authority

Due Process of Law

the right of every citizen against arbitrary action by national or state governments

Writ of Habeas Corpus

fundamental safeguard of individual rights designed to prevent unlawful imprisonment; a court order that the individual in custody be brought into court and shown the cause for detention

Senatorial Courtesy

before the president makes a formal nomination for the Supreme Court, the senators from the candidate's own state must indicate that they support the nominee

Chief Justice

presides over the Court's public sessions and conferences

Writ of Certiorari

granted whenever four of the nine justices agree to review a decision of a lower court; "To make more certain

Solicitor General

the third-ranking official in the Justice Department (below the attorney general and the deputy attorney general) but is the top government lawyer in virtually all cases before the Supreme Court in which the government is a party

Amicus Curiae

friend of the court"; not a direct party to a case but seeks to assist the Supreme Court in reaching a decision by presenting additional briefs

Briefs

written documents that may be several hundred pages long in which the attorneys explain why the Court should rule in favor of their client

Oral Argument

attorneys for both sides appear before the Court to present their positions and answer the justices' questions

Dissenting Opinion

written by a justice in the minority in a particular case in which the justice wishes to express his or her reasoning in the case

Judicial Restraint

refusing to go beyond the clear words of the Constitution in interpreting its meaning

Judicial Activism

judicial philosophy that posits that the Court should go beyond the clear words of the Constitution in interpreting its meaning

Judicial Review

the power of the courts to review and if necessary declare actions of the legislative and executive branches invalid or unconstitutional. The Supreme Court asserted this power in Marbury v. Madison

Opinion

the written explanation of the Supreme Court's decision in a particular case

Supremacy Clause

clause in Article VI of the Constitution that states that laws passed by the national government and all treaties "shall be the supreme law of the land" and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision