Ps Exam 2

Front 1

rationality principle

Back 1

all political behavior has a purpose

Front 2

institution principle

Back 2

institutions structure politics

Front 3

collective action principle

Back 3

all politics is collective action

Front 4

policy principle

Back 4

political outcomes are the products of individual preferences and institutional procedures

Front 5

history principle

Back 5

how we got here matters

Front 6

bicameral legislature

Back 6

a legislative assembly composed of two chambers, or houses

Front 7

seperated powers

Back 7

the division of government power among several institutions that must cooperate in decision making

Front 8

constituency

Back 8

the district making up the area from which an official is elected

Front 9

trustee

Back 9

a representative who votes based on what he or she thinks is best for their constituency

Front 10

delegate

Back 10

a representative who votes according to the preferences of their constituency

Front 11

casework

Back 11

an effort by members of Congress to gain the trust and support of constituents by providing personal services. one important type of casework consists of helping constituents obtain favorable treatment from the federal bureaucracy

Front 12

incumbency

Back 12

holding the political office for which one is running

Front 13

pork barrel spending

Back 13

the appropriations made by legislative bodies for local projects that often are not needed but are created so that local representatives can carry their home district in the next election

Front 14

redistricting

Back 14

reapportionment; drawing new district lines

Front 15

gerrymandering

Back 15

the apportionment of voters in districts in such a way as to give unfair advantage to one political party

Front 16

agenda power

Back 16

the control over what a group will consider for discussion

Front 17

veto power

Back 17

the ability to defeat something even if it has made it on to the agenda of an institution

Front 18

speaker of the house

Back 18

the chief presiding officer of the house of representatives. the speaker is elected at the beginning of every congress on a straight party vote. they are the most important party and house leader

Front 19

majority leader

Back 19

the elected leader of the party holding a majority of the seats in the house or the senate. in the house, the majority leader is subordinate in the party hierarchy to the speaker

Front 20

minority leader

Back 20

the elected leader of the party holding less than a majority of the seats in the house or senate

Front 21

rules committee

Back 21

house rules committee decides the order in which bills come up for vote, the rules that govern the debate, and opportunity for amendments; senate focuses more on administrative matters and management

Front 22

open rule

Back 22

the provision by the house that permits floor debate and the addition of amendments to a bill

Front 23

closed rule

Back 23

the provision by the house that prohibits the introduction of amendments during debate

Front 24

standing committee

Back 24

a permanent legislative committee that considers legislation within its designated subject area; the basic unit of deliberation in the house and senate

Front 25

gatekeeping power

Back 25

the right and power to decide if a change in policy will be considered

Front 26

filibuster

Back 26

a tactic used by members of the senate to prevent action on legislation they oppose by continously holding the floor and speaking until the majority backs down. once given the floor, senators have unlimited time

Front 27

cloture

Back 27

a rule allowing a supermajority of the members of a legislative body to set a time limit on debate over given bill; three fifths of senate to end filibuster

Front 28

distributive tendency

Back 28

the tendency of congress to spread the benefits of a policy over a wide range of members' districts

Front 29

expressed powers

Back 29

the powers enumerated in the constitution that are granted to the federal government

Front 30

pardon

Back 30

forgiveness of a crime and cancellation of relevant penalty

Front 31

executive privledge

Back 31

the claim that confidential communications between the president and the president's close advisers should not be revealed without the consent of the president

Front 32

executive order

Back 32

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

Front 33

executive agreements

Back 33

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

Front 34

war powers resolution

Back 34

a resolution of congress declaring that the president can send troops into action abroad only by authorization of congress or if US troops are already under attack or seriously threatened

Front 35

executive office of the president (EOP)

Back 35

the permanent agencies that perform defined management tasks for the president

Front 36

cabinet

Back 36

the secretaries or chief administrators of the major departments of the federal government. secretaries are appointed by the president with the consent of the senate

Front 37

patronage

Back 37

the resources available to higher officials, usually opportunites to make partisan appointments to offices and confer grants, licenses and special favors to supporters

Front 38

civil service

Back 38

*patronage system becomes a bureaucracy*

Front 39

principal-agent problem

Back 39

the relationship between a principle and their agent. this relationship may be affected by the fact that each is motivated by self interest, yet their interests may not be well aligned

Front 40

coalition drift

Back 40

the prospect that enacted policy will change because the composition of the enacting coalition is temporary and provisional

Front 41

bureaucratic drift

Back 41

the oft-observed phenomenon of bureaucratic implementation that produces policy more to the liking of the bureaucracy than faithful to the original intention of the legislation that created it, but without triggering a political reaction from elected officials

Front 42

oversight

Back 42

the effort by congress, through hearings, investigations, and other techniques, to exercise control over the activities of executive agencies

Front 43

privatization

Back 43

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

Front 44

devolution

Back 44

the policy of removing a program from one level of government by deregulating it or passing it down to a lower level, such as from the national government to the state and local governments

Front 45

civil law

Back 45

a system of jurisprudence, including private law and governmental actions, for settling disputes that do not involve crininal penalties

Front 46

criminal law

Back 46

the branch of law that deals with disputes or actions involving criminal penalties

Front 47

public law

Back 47

cases involving the action of public agencies or officials

Front 48

trial court

Back 48

the first court to hear a criminal or civil case

Front 49

appellate court

Back 49

a court that hears the appeals of trial court decisions

Front 50

original jurisdiction

Back 50

the class of cases provided in the constitution (Article III) that may be taken directly to a federal court

Front 51

appellate jurisdiction

Back 51

the class of cases provided in the constitution and by legislation that may be appealed to a higher court from a lower court

Front 52

precedent

Back 52

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

Front 53

stare decisis

Back 53

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

Front 54

supreme court

Back 54

the highest court in a particular state or in US. this court primarily serves an appellate function

Front 55

Marbury v Madison

Back 55

Marbury didn't recieve appointment, Madison got it. resulted in judiciary act becoming unconstitutional and judical review

Front 56

judicial review

Back 56

the power of the courts to declare actions of the legislative and executive branches invalid or unconstitutional

Front 57

rule of four

Back 57

the rule that certiorari will be granted only if four justices vote in favor of the petition

Front 58

writ of certiorari

Back 58

a formal request by an appellant to have the supreme court review a decision of a lower court. "to make more certain"

Front 59

amicus curiae

Back 59

"friend of the court" an individual or group that is not party to a lawsuit but seeks to assist the court in reaching a decision by presenting an additional brief

Front 60

majority opinion

Back 60

must recieve majority of all the votes cast in the relevant district

Front 61

dissenting opinion

Back 61

a decision written by a justice who voted with the minority opinion in a particular case in which the justice fully explains the reasoning behind their opinion

Front 62

concurring opinion

Back 62

an opinion agreeing with the decision of the majority but not with the rationale provided in the majority opinion

Front 63

public policy

Back 63

a law, rule, statute, or edict that expresses the government's goals for rewards and punishments to promote their attainment

Front 64

market economy

Back 64

*free market, regulates itself, supply and demand*

Front 65

public good

Back 65

a good that may be enjoyed by anyone if it is provided and may not be denied to anyone once it has been provided

Front 66

externalities

Back 66

the differences between the private cost and social cost of economic behavior

Front 67

monopolies

Back 67

the existence in a market of a single firm that provides all the goods and services of that market; the absense of competition

Front 68

market failures

Back 68

an instance when the market fails to produce an efficient outcome

Front 69

progressive taxation

Back 69

taxation that hits the upper income brackets more heavily

Front 70

regressive taxation

Back 70

taxation that hits the lower income brackets more heavily

Front 71

discretionary spending

Back 71

federal spending on programs that are controlled through the regular budget process

Front 72

mandatory spending

Back 72

federal spending that is made up of uncontrollables, budget items that cannot be controlled through the regular budget process sometimes set in contracts and unchangeable

Front 73

subsides

Back 73

a government grant of cash or other commodities to an individual or organization to promote activites desired by the government, reward political support or buy off opposition

Front 74

federal reserve system

Back 74

a system of federal reserve banks that facilitates exchanges of cash, checks and credit, regulates member banks, and uses monetary policies to fight inflation and deflation

Front 75

inflation

Back 75

a consistent increase in the general level of prices

Front 76

reserve requirement

Back 76

the amount of liquid assests and ready cash that the federal reserve requires banks to hold to meet depositors' demands for their money

Front 77

federal funds rate

Back 77

the interest on loans among banks that the federal reserve board influences by affecting the supply of money available

Front 78

gross domestic product

Back 78

the total value of goods and services produced within a country

Front 79

nation-state

Back 79

a political entity consisting of a people with some common cultural experience (nation) who also share a common political authority (state) recognized by other sovreignties

Front 80

non-state actors

Back 80

a group other than a nation state that attempts to play a role in the international system such as terrorist groups

Front 81

isolationism

Back 81

the desire to avoid involvement in the affairs of other nations

Front 82

cold war

Back 82

the period of struggle between the US and Soviet Union between 40s and 90s

Front 83

containment

Back 83

a policy designed to curtail the political and military expansion of a hostile power

Front 84

deterrence

Back 84

the development and maintenance of military strength as a means of discouraging attack

Front 85

diplomacy

Back 85

the represenation of the government to other governments

Front 86

north atlantic treaty organization

Back 86

a treaty organization comprising of the US Canada and most of Western Europe, formed in 1949 to counter the percieved threat from the Soviet Union

Front 87

united nations

Back 87

an organization od nations founded in 1945 to be a channel for negotiation and a means of settling international disputes peaceably.