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64 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What are the six roles of the president?
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a. Chief executive – enforces laws, federal court decisions, and treaties
b. Commander in chief – power to deploy the armed forces c. Chief of state – engages in many symbolic or ceremonial activities d. Chief diplomat – directs the foreign policy of the United States e. Chief legislator – recommends legislative measures |
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What is the state of the union address?
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outlines the legislative agenda
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What is an imperial presidency?
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when the presidency appropriate powers reserved to other branches of the government.
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According lecture who were the best, moderate and the worst presidents?
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FDR, Lincoln, Washington were best presidents
Clinton and Bush Sr. are in the middle Harding was the worse |
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What is the difference between..
1) restrictive view of the president, 2) stewardship doctrine, 3) prerogative view of presidential power? |
1) a. Restrictive view of president power: the president is limited by the constitution (strict interpretation of the constitution)
2)the president should do anything required by the needs of the people unless it is specifically prohibited by the constitution. (allows for generous interpretation of the constitution) 3)take any action to preserve the constitutional and to take unconstitutional actions to ensure that he constitutions I protected (allows for actions that go beyond what the constitution prescribes) – this view leads to imperial presidency |
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Who can officially declare war and what was the last war to be officially declared?
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The president can decide to go to war, but cannot officially declare war.
The last “officially” declared war was World War II |
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What are the provisions of the War Powers Resolution?
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requires the President to consult with congress 48 hours after sending troops into action. If Congress does not authorize a longer period, the troops must be withdrawn after 60 to 90 days.
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What is the president’s powers concerning pardons?
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To grand reprieves and pardons, except in cases of impeachment
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Who is allowed to make treaties and how they passed?
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the president; To make treaties, with the advice and consent of senate (must be approved by 2/3 vote)
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What is Senatorial courtesy?
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senator from the president party from the state where a federal judicial vacancy is being fulfilled has veto power over the choice of nominees
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What is a line item veto and does the current president have this power?
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the power to veto individual lines or items within a piece of legislation without vetoing the entire bill. Ruled Unconstitutional.
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What are Inherent powers?
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powers that are necessary to carry out the specific responsibilities of the president as set forth in the constitution but not specified in the constitution.
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What is an executive order?
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a rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect of law.
(This is the presidents legislative authority) |
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What is executive privilege?
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the right of executive officials to refuse to appear before, or to withhold information from a legislative committee.
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What is an executive agreement?
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are pacts between the president and other heads of state that do not require senate approval, but they have the same legal status as treaties
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What are the qualifications to become president?
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natural born citizen, at least 35 years old, a resident o fhte US for at least 14 years.
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What are the five elements of the Weberian definition of a bureaucracy?
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1. Division of Labor
2. Hierarchy 3. Formal Rules 4. Maintenance of records 5. Professionalism |
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What is rulemaking?
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is governed by the Federal Administration Procedures Act
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What is a rule?
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a statement by a federal agency that interprets a law and prescribes and action to implement the law: Rules become law
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What is the Federal Administration Procedures Act?
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requires at a minimum that the agencies must give public notice of the rules, allow interested parties input, and have them published in the Federal Register.
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What is Adjudication?
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the process to establish if a rule has been broken
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What is the spoil system?
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the awarding of government jobs to political supporters and friends,
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What were Presidents Andrew Jackson and Garfield famous for?
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est the spoil system Andrew Jackson in 1828. In 1877, James Garfield was assassinated by a disappointed office-seeker
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What did the Civil Service Act (Pendleton Act) in 1883 do?
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created a merit system and the civil service commission – the selection, retention and promotion of government employees on the basis of competitive exams
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What is the merit system?
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system a government employee cannot be fired for political reasons
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What did the Civil Service Act of 1978 do?
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abolished the civil service commission and created two new agencies to handle its duties
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What does The Office of Personal Management (OPM) do?
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recruits, interviews, and tests potential government workers;
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What does the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) do?
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evaluates charges of wrongdoing, and can order action against agencies and employees
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What is the General Schedule (GS) ?
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pay scale: 15 GS grades GS1 to GS 15 based on experience, qualifications, and expertise
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What is the difference between the following agencies and what types of agencies are associated
with the following.. 1) Executive departments (Cabinet departments) 2) Independent executive agencies 3) Independent Regulatory agencies 4) Government corporations 5) Government Judicial Agencies |
1) directly accountable to the president (cabinet – State, Treasury, Justice, etc.)
2) A federal agency not part of a cabinet department but reports directly to the president; they have a single function (CIA, NSF, NASA) 3): create and implement rules that regulate private activity and protect the public interest in a particular sector of the economy (SEC, FCC, FEC) 4) like private corporations in that they provide a service that could be handled by the private sector; they charge for their services. (Post Office, Amtrak, FDIC) 5) |
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What is Adjudication?
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the process to establish if a rule has been broken
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What is the spoil system?
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the awarding of government jobs to political supporters and friends,
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What were Presidents Andrew Jackson and Garfield famous for?
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est the spoil system Andrew Jackson in 1828. In 1877, James Garfield was assassinated by a disappointed office-seeker
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What did the Civil Service Act (Pendleton Act) in 1883 do?
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created a merit system and the civil service commission – the selection, retention and promotion of government employees on the basis of competitive exams
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What is the merit system?
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system a government employee cannot be fired for political reasons
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What did the Civil Service Act of 1978 do?
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abolished the civil service commission and created two new agencies to handle its duties
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What does The Office of Personal Management (OPM) do?
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recruits, interviews, and tests potential government workers;
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What does the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) do?
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evaluates charges of wrongdoing, and can order action against agencies and employees
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What is the General Schedule (GS) ?
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pay scale: 15 GS grades GS1 to GS 15 based on experience, qualifications, and expertise
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What is the difference between the following agencies and what types of agencies are associated
with the following.. 1) Executive departments (Cabinet departments) 2) Independent executive agencies 3) Independent Regulatory agencies 4) Government corporations 5) Government Judicial Agencies |
1) directly accountable to the president (cabinet – State, Treasury, Justice, etc.)
2) A federal agency not part of a cabinet department but reports directly to the president; they have a single function (CIA, NSF, NASA) 3): create and implement rules that regulate private activity and protect the public interest in a particular sector of the economy (SEC, FCC, FEC) 4) like private corporations in that they provide a service that could be handled by the private sector; they charge for their services. (Post Office, Amtrak, FDIC) 5) |
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What did the Hatch Act of 1939 do?
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prohibit federal employees from actively participating in politics (can’t wear buttons, have bumper stickers, prohibited from running)
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What did the 1993 Federal Employees Political Activities Act do?
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weakened the Hatch act. Federal employees can run in nonpartisan elections, participate in voter registration drives, and make political contributions
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What is a whistle blower and what did the Whistle-Blower Protection Act establish
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someone who brings attention to a governmental inefficiency or illegal action
- 1989 passed the Whistle-Blower Protection Act: established an independent agency to investigate complaints brought by government workers |
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What does privatization do
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- Bureaucracies are too big- may be privatized
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What is common law?
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Where judges settle disputes similar to those that have been decided before (the body of precedents) as opposed to legislative statute or executive decision
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What is case law?
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The collection of decisions or the body of law that is rendered
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What does article 3 specify about the courts?
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3 specifies that the judicial power of the US shall be vested in one supreme court
- Congress has authority to create lower federal courts |
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What is jurisdiction?
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the authority of a court to hear a case
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What is the difference between
1) original and 2) appellate jurisdiction? |
1. Courts of original jurisdiction are trial courts that hear a case for the first time, try it, and set forth a judgment on the law and facts.
2. Courts of appellate jurisdiction review the decisions of lower courts that are appealed |
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What did the Judiciary Act of 1789 do?
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Supreme Court will consist of one chief justice and five associate justices. Set up federal court system. Also made Federal law superior to state law.
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What did Marbury v. Madison (1803) establish?
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gave the courts power of judicial review. The authority to review lower court decisions and to declare laws and actions of public officials unconstitutional
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What are the characteristics of the federal district court?
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– trial courts with original jurisdiction
o Cases are normally decided by a single judge o There is at least one federal district court in every state, and there is one in D.C. and in some of the territories. There are 94 judicial districts o Hear the cases that deal with federal law (discrimination cases, etc) and cases involving disputes from people from more than one state (and involving more than $75,000) |
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What type of cases does the district court deal with?
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trial courts with original jurisdiction
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What are the characteristics of the federal appeals court?
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hear appeals from the district courts and from federal administrative agencies.
Typically, cases are decided by a panel of three judges o Does not hear evidence or testimony, but rather reviews the transcript of the trial court’s proceedings and the attorneys’ respective arguments as to why the trial court’s decision should or should not stand o There are 11 U.S. courts of appeal (circuit courts) plus a DC circuit and a national circuit (13 total) o The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has national jurisdiction over certain types of cases (mainly administrative agencies) |
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In what type of case does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction?
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Cases involving foreign diplomats and those in which a state is a party.
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What are courts of limited jurisdiction?
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in that they only hear certain types of cases (e.g., court of international trade, court of federal claims, tax court)
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What is a writ of certiorari, or “cert”
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which is an order that the Supreme Court issues to a lower court requesting that latter to send it the record of the case in question
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What is the rule of four?
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Four justices must approve the writ of cert. A denial is not a decision on the merits of the case, nor does it indicate that the Court agrees with a lower court’s opinion
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What is a supreme court conference?
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When rendering a decision, Supreme Court justices go to “Conference”
6. After conference, the chief justice (if in the majority) assigns the writing of the Court’s opinion to one of the justices voting in the majority. |
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What do the following opinions mean?
1) Unanimous Opinion 2) Majority opinion 3) Concurring opinions 4) dissenting opinions |
1) single opinion
2) at least 5 or more justices agree (less than 9) 3) an opinion that agrees with the opinion but not with the state reason 4) disagree with the opinion |
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How long are federal judges appointed for?
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: Federal judges receive lifetime appointments; they are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate
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What are the qualifications for a federal judgeship?
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No formal qualifications to be a federal or Supreme Court judge. You can be a judge without being admitted to the bar
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What is the difference between
1) judicial activism and 2) judicial restraint? |
1) taking a more forceful role in determining public policy through broad constitutional interpretation
2) the courts should defer to the decisions of the other branches, because members of Congress and the president are elected by the people |
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Which court was the most activist?
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(1953-1969) Warren Courts were the most activist, dealing with civil rights, Baker v. Carr
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