Government 2302

Front 1

The process of allotting congressional seats to each state following the decennial census according to their proportion of the population.

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Apportionment

Front 2

A legislature divided into two houses; the U.S. Congress and the state legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska, which is unicameral.

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Bicameral Legislature

Front 3

A proposed law

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Bill

Front 4

Mechanism requiring sixty senators to vote to cut off debate.

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Cloture

Front 5

Special joint committee created to iron out differences between Senate and House versions of a specific piece of legislation.

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Conference Committee

Front 6

A process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations by a joint resolution of legislative disapproval.

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Congressional Review

Front 7

Role played by elected representatives who vote the way their constituents would want them to, regardless of their own opinions.

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Delegate

Front 8

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.

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Discharge Petition

Front 9

The political condition in which different political parties control the White House and Congress.

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Divided Government

Front 10

Funds in appropriations bill that provide dollars for particular purposes within a state or congressional district.

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Earmark

Front 11

A formal way of halting action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate in the Senate.

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Filibuster

Front 12

A tactic by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill is brought to the floor. This allows the senator to stop the bill from coming to the floor until the hold is removed.

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Hold

Front 13

The power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice president, or other "civil officers," including federal judges, with "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." This is the first step in the constitutional process of of removing government officials from office.

Back 13

Impeachment

Front 14

The fact that being in office helps a person stay in office because of a variety of benefits that go with the position.

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Incumbency

Front 15

Committee that includes members from both houses of Congress to conduct investigations or special studies.

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Joint Committee

Front 16

Vote trading; voting to support a colleague's bill in return for a promise of future support.

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Logrolling

Front 17

The elected leader of the party controlling the most seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate; is second in authority to the Speaker of the House and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member.

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Majority Leader

Front 18

The political party in each house of Congress with the most members.

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Majority Party

Front 19

A process in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor in either house for a vote.

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Markup

Front 20

The elected leader of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House of Representatives or the Senate.

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Minority Leader

Front 21

Congressional review of the activities of an agency, department, or office.

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Oversight

Front 22

A formal gathering of all party members.

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Party Caucus or Conference

Front 23

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.

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Pocket Veto

Front 24

Role played by elected representatives who act as trustees or as delegates, depending on the issue.

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Politico

Front 25

Legislation that allows representatives to bring home the bacon to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs, designed to benefit their districts directly.

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Pork

Front 26

The official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party.

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President Pro Tempore

Front 27

The redrawing of congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state.

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Redistricting

Front 28

Temporary committee appointed for specific purpose, such as conducting a special investigation or study.

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Select or Special Committee

Front 29

A process by which presidents, when selecting district court judges, defer to the senator in whose state the vacancy occurs.

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Senatorial Courtesy

Front 30

Time of continuous service on a committee.

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Seniority

Front 31

The only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the Constitution; elected at the beginning of each new Congress by the entire House, traditionally a member of the majority party.

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Speaker of the House

Front 32

Committee to which proposed bills are referred; continues from one Congress to the next.

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Standing Committee

Front 33

Role played by elected representatives who listen to constituents' opinions and then use their best judgment to make final decisions.

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Trustee

Front 34

Formal constitutional authority of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of the legislative body, thus preventing the bill from becoming law without further congressional activity.

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Veto

Front 35

Passed by Congress in 1973; the president is limited in the deployment of troops overseas to a sixty-day period in peacetime (which can be extended for an extra thirty days to permit withdrawal) unless Congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period.

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War Powers Act

Front 36

Key member who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party and takes nose counts on key votes, prepares summaries of bills, and in general acts as communications link within a party.

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Whip