Y103 Exam 4

Front 1

Credit Claiming

Back 1

the acceptance of credit by a member of congress for legislation that specifically benefits his constituents

Front 2

Closed Rules

Back 2

conditions placed on a legislative debate by the House Rules Committee prohibiting the addition of an amendment bill

Front 3

Gerrymandering

Back 3

attempting to use the process of redrawing district boundaries to benefit a political party, protect incumbents, or change the proportion of minority voters in a district.

Front 4

Monetary Theory

Back 4

the idea that the amount of money in circulation (the money supply) is the primary influence on economic activity and inflation.

Front 5

Apportionment

Back 5

the process of assigning the 345 seats in the House to the states based on the increases or decreases in state populations.

Front 6

Distributive Theory

Back 6

the idea that members of Congress will join committees that best serve the interests of their district and that committee members will support each other's legislation

Front 7

Cloture

Back 7

A procedure through which the Senate can limit the amount of time spent debating a bill (cut off a filibuster) if a supermajority of 60 senates agree.

Front 8

Advertising

Back 8

Actions taken by a member of Congress that are unrelated to government issues but have the primary goal of making the positive impression on the public, like sending holiday cards to constituents and appeals in parades

Front 9

Trade Deficit

Back 9

a measure of how much more a nation imports than exports

Front 10

Electoral Connection

Back 10

the idea that congressional behavior is centrally motivated by members' desire for reelection

Front 11

Position Taking

Back 11

any public statement in which a member of congress makes her views on an issue known to her constituents

Front 12

Filibuster

Back 12

a tactic used by senators to block a bill from continuing to hold the floor and speak- under senate rule of unlimited debate-until the bill's supports break down

Front 13

Business Cycle

Back 13

the normal pattern of expansion and contraction of the economy

Front 14

Incumbent Safety

Back 14

the relative infrequency with which members of congress are defeated in their attempts for reelection

Front 15

Role Call Vote

Back 15

a recorded vote on legislation, members may vote yes, no, abstain, or present

Front 16

Redistricting

Back 16

redrawing the geographic boundaries of legislative districts. This happens every 10 years to ensure that districts remain roughly equal in population.

Front 17

Modified Rules

Back 17

conditions placed on a legislative debate by the house rules committee allowing the addition of relevant amendments to a bill.

Front 18

Entitlement

Back 18

any federal government program that provides benefits to Americans who meet requirements specified by law.

Front 19

Casework

Back 19

assistance provided by members of congress to their constituents in solving problems with the federal bureaucracy or addressing other specific concerns

Front 20

Specialization

Back 20

the expertise of a member of congress on a specific issue or area of policy. Specialization is more common in the House than the Senate, where members tend to be policy generalists.

Front 21

Information Theory

Back 21

the idea of having committees in congress made up of experts on specific policy areas helps to ensure well-informed policy decision

Front 22

Speaker of the House

Back 22

The elected leader of the House of Representatives

Front 23

Monetary Policy

Back 23

government decisions about how to influence the economy using control of the money supply and interest rates

Front 24

Mandatory Spending

Back 24

Expenditures that are required by law

Front 25

Keynesian Economics

Back 25

the theory that government should use economic policy, like taxing and spending, to maintain stability in an economy

Front 26

Pork Barrel

Back 26

Legislative appropriations that benefit specific constituents created with the aim of helping local representatives win reelection

Front 27

Seniority

Back 27

the informal congressional norm of choosing the member who has served the longest on a particular committee to be the committee chair

Front 28

Full Employment

Back 28

the theoretical point at which citizens who want to be employed have a job

Front 29

Party Unity

Back 29

the extent to which members of congress in the same party vote together on party votes

Front 30

Fiscal Policy

Back 30

government decisions about how to influence the economy by taxing and spending.

Front 31

Federal Reserve Board

Back 31

the group of seven presidential appointees who govern the Federal Reserves System

Front 32

Economic Depression

Back 32

A deep, widespread down turn in the economy

Front 33

Progressive

Back 33

a term describing the taxes that require upper-income people to pay higher tax rates than lower-income people

Front 34

Regressive

Back 34

a term describing taxes that take a larger share of poor people's income than wealthy people's income

Front 35

Supply-Side Economics

Back 35

the theory that lower tax rates will stimulate the economy by encouraging people to save, invest, or produce goods and services

Front 36

Discretionary Spending

Back 36

expenditures that can be cut from the budget without changing the underlying law

Front 37

Suspension of the Rule

Back 37

one-way of moving a piece of legislation to the top of the agenda in the House- debate is limited to 40 minutes, amendments are not allowed, and a 2/3 Senate vote is required

Front 38

Universalism

Back 38

religious, theological, and philosophical concepts that can apply to all

Front 39

Discretionary Spending

Back 39

expenditures that can be cut from the budget without changing the underlying law

Front 40

Suspension of the Rule

Back 40

one-way of moving a piece of legislation to the top of the agenda in the House- debate is limited to 40 minutes, amendments are not allowed, and a 2/3 Senate vote is required

Front 41

Great Society

Back 41

Johnson's social reform programs promoted in the 1960s which aimed to improve Americans' quality of life.

Front 42

New Deal

Back 42

the set of policies promoted by FDR in 1933-35 during the Great Depression that promoted economic recovery and social reform programs

Front 43

Income Support

Back 43

Government programs that provide support to low-income Americans

Front 44

Market-Based Solution

Back 44

Reform options for social policies, based on tax credit, flexible spending accounts, and other approaches that rely on competition in the free market

Front 45

Medicaid

Back 45

an entitlement program funded by the federal and state governments that provide health care and coverage for low-income Americans.

Front 46

Medicare

Back 46

Federal health care plan created in 1965 that provides coverage for retired Americans for hospital care, drug prescriptions, and medical care

Front 47

Ownership Society

Back 47

The term used to describe the social policy vision of Bush, in which citizens take responsibility for their own social welfare and the free market plays a greater role in social policy.

Front 48

Privatization

Back 48

the process of transferring the management of a government program (like social security) from the public sector to the private sector

Front 49

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

Back 49

the welfare program that replaced aid to families with dependent children in 1996, eliminating the entitlement status of welfare, shifting implementation of the policy to the states, and introducing several new restrictions on receiving aid-this lead to a decrease in the number of welfare recipients

Front 50

Budget Deficit

Back 50

the amount by which a government's spending in a given fiscal year exceeds its revenue.

Front 51

entitlement

Back 51

any federal government program that provides benefits to Americans who meet the requirements specific to the law.