Ap Gov Vocab 5

Front 1

Appropriations

Back 1

Acts that give federal agencies the authority to spend the money allocated to them; part of the budget resolution that must pass both houses.

Front 2

Authorizations

Back 2

Acts regarding the budget that enable agencies and departments to operate by either creating them or authorizing their continuance; they also establish the guidelines under which agencies operate (DON'T actually provide the funding)

Front 3

Casework / constituent services

Back 3

The work of answering questions and doing personal favors for constituents who write or call (a main advantage of incumbency that allows for the provision of services for constituents)

Front 4

Cloture

Back 4

A rule adopted in the Senate in 1917 and changed in 1975 that allows debate to be cut off by three-fifths (60 senators) of those present and voting, thus giving a means to halt a filibuster.

Front 5

Conference Committee

Back 5

In order to pass a bill the House and Senate must agree on the identical version of it, thus requiring reconciliation between both houses. If the bill cannot be passed with minor modifications, THIS body must be set up to resolve the conflict (its members are chosen by the presiding officers and chairs of standing committees that considered the bill).

Front 6

Constituency

Back 6

The district a member of Congress represents, referring both to the area and its residents.

Front 7

Divided Government

Back 7

A government in which one party controls the White House and another controls one or both houses.

Front 8

Earmark

Back 8

A specific amount of money designated or set aside at the request of a member, almost always for a project in his or her district or state (bringing "pork" home to the district).

Front 9

Filibuster

Back 9

The major mechanism for unrestricted debate in order to defeat or delay consideration of a bill through the use of continuous speech in the Senate to prevent the legislation from being brought to the floor for a vote.

Front 10

Gerrymander

Back 10

A district whose boundaries are devised to maximize the political advantage of a party or a racial or ethnic group (boundary manipulation). Often such a district has a bizarre shape.

Front 11

going public

Back 11

The process in which congress or its members carry an issue debate to the public via the media, such as through televised floor debates or media appearances by individual members.

Front 12

informal norms

Back 12

Unwritten rules designed to help keep Congress running smoothly by attempting to diminish fraction and competition among the members.

Front 13

Majority leader

Back 13

The title of both the leader of the senate, who is chosen by the majority party, and the head of the majority party in the House of Representatives, who is second in command to the Speaker of the House.

Front 14

markup

Back 14

The process in which a congressional subcommittee rewrites a bill after holding hearings on it.

Front 15

minority leader

Back 15

The leader of the minority party in either the House of Representatives or the Senate

Front 16

oversight

Back 16

Congress's responsibility to make sure the bureaucracy is administering federal programs in accordance with congressional intent.

Front 17

party caucus

Back 17

Meetings of members of political parties, often designed to select party nominees for office, or of all members of a party in the House or Senate to set policy and select their leaders.

Front 18

party government

Back 18

A system in which the central party leaders recruit candidates for office, and when elected, the candidates vote with party leaders.

Front 19

pay-as-you-go (paygo)

Back 19

Budgetary rules adopted by Congress that set caps on spending and bar legislation to increase spending without offsetting cuts in spending or increases in revenue.

Front 20

pork barrel projects

Back 20

Special projects, buildings, and other public works in the district or state of a member of Congress that he or she supports because they provide jobs for constituents and enhance the member's reelection chances, rather than because the projects are necessarily wise.

Front 21

Reapportionment

Back 21

The redistributing of U.S. Congressional seats within the states based on the results of the most current U.S. census.

Front 22

Redistricting

Back 22

The process of redrawing district boundaries within a state. Redistricting usually occurs after the decennial census.

Front 23

Rules Committee

Back 23

A committee made up of members of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Rules Committee decides the way legislation will be considered and the order of business within the House.

Front 24

Seniority Rule

Back 24

A custom in Congress providing the assignment of a committee chairpersonship to that member of the majority party who has served on the committee the longest.

Front 25

Speaker of the House

Back 25

Leader in the House of Representatives - almost always of the majority party

Front 26

Special Interest Caucus

Back 26

An organization created by Congressional members to further the interest of a group of individuals through creation of legislation or through support or opposition of legislation.

Front 27

Standing Committees

Back 27

Permanent legislative panels that have been established by the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

Front 28

Super Majority

Back 28

two-thirds, three-quarters, three-fifths majorities necessary for different procedures

Front 29

Unified Government

Back 29

When the majority in Congress and the President of the United States are members of the same political party.

Front 30

Whips

Back 30

A member of a political party who acts as an enforcer with their primary purposes being to ensure discipline in legislature.