Back to FlashcardsLaw / AP Government Amendments and Concepts Part 5
US Term Limits v Thornton
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Key Terms
Term
Definition
US Term Limits v Thornton
Prohibited state legislatures from imposing term limits of their Representatives and Senators (Court held that the Constitution's Qualifications Claus...
Speaker of the House
The leader of the majority party and presiding officer of the House of Representatives. Key role in assigning bills to committee and members to commit...
Economic Conservatism
Belief in limited government intervention in the free market. Supports tax and spending cuts, deregulation & privatization. Reaganomics or 'trickle do...
Policy Election
An election in which voters vote on a particular policy question (ban gay marriage, legalize marijuana). Often used to resolve a controversial issue. ...
Congressional Caucuses
Association of members created to support a political ideology or regional economic interest (black caucus, women's caucus, blue dog democrats...)
House and Senate Whips
Deputy leadership position. Connects leaders with 'rank and file' members, and tries to encourage party unity & discipline
Related Flashcard Decks
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
US Term Limits v Thornton | Prohibited state legislatures from imposing term limits of their Representatives and Senators (Court held that the Constitution's Qualifications Clause is the only limit on congressional service) |
Speaker of the House | The leader of the majority party and presiding officer of the House of Representatives. Key role in assigning bills to committee and members to committees & setting party's legislative agenda |
Economic Conservatism | Belief in limited government intervention in the free market. Supports tax and spending cuts, deregulation & privatization. Reaganomics or 'trickle down economics.' |
Policy Election | An election in which voters vote on a particular policy question (ban gay marriage, legalize marijuana). Often used to resolve a controversial issue. Only used (so far) at the state level. Three types of policy election are: recall, initiative, referendum. |
Congressional Caucuses | Association of members created to support a political ideology or regional economic interest (black caucus, women's caucus, blue dog democrats...) |
House and Senate Whips | Deputy leadership position. Connects leaders with 'rank and file' members, and tries to encourage party unity & discipline |
Senate Leaders | The heads of the minority and majority parties in the Senate. Less powerful than the Speaker, they set legislative agenda for their party and help set the daily Senate agenda. |
Standing Committees | Permanent committees in House and Senate that handle bills dealing with a particular subject area. Examples: Defense, Budget, Education. |
House Rules Committee | Powerful House standing committee that reviews all bills coming from other House committees before they go to the full House (gatekeeper function); sets time limit for debate decides whether amendments can be added (open or closed rule). |
House Ways and Means Committee | Important House standing committee responsible for initiating all taxation bills. |
Appropriations Committees | Decide how to spend money allocated to each spending category by Budget Resolution; 12 subcommittees for major areas of budget (ex. defense, energy, agriculture); major source of earmarking |
Budget Committee | House & Senate standing committees that begins budget process in Congress by setting overall budget size and amounts that will be spent on different topics (ex. defense, education) |
Subcommittees | A group within a standing committee that specializes in a subcategory of the standing committee's responsibility. (Ex. House Committee on Foreign Affairs has subcommittees on Asia, Europe, Africa, etc.) |
Conference Committees | A joint committee appointed to resolve differences in the senate and house versions of the same bill |
Joint Committees | Congressional committees to discuss & supervise certain topics, with membership drawn from both houses. (ex., Committee on Library, Taxation) |
Select Committees | Temporary congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as impeachment investigations or the 'Super Committee' on the Budget |
Committee Chairperson | Leader of a congressional committee. Usually the longest serving member of the majority party on that committee (seniority rule). A very powerful position - Controls the committee calendar, agenda, and hearings. Can pigeonhole (table) a bill by refusing to schedule debate on it. |
Seniority Rule | A congressional custom that gives the chair of a committee or subcommittee to the member of the majority party with the longest continuous service on the committee. |
Filibuster | Use of unlimited time for debate in the Senate to kill bills by making (or threatening to make) long speeches. No filibuster in House (House Rules Committee places time limits on all debates). Broken by cloture motion (60 votes) |
Cloture | A procedure used in the senate to limit debate on a bill (end a filibuster); requires 60 votes. |
Pigeonholing | Occurs when a committee ignores a bill and doesn't report it out. Also known as 'tabling' or 'death by committee.' Major cause of bill death. |
Marking Up | The process by which a congressional committee debates, amends, and/or rewrites bills. |
Reporting Out | When a committee finishes the mark-up of a bill and sends it to the senate or house for debate, consideration, and final passage. |
Open Rule | An order from the House Rules Committee that permits a bill to be amended on the floor (allows 'death by amendment') |
Closed Rule | Rule in the House of Representatives that prohibits any amendments to bills or says that only members of the committee reporting the bill may offer amendments |
Treaty Power | The ability of a president to negotiate treaties with foreign nations (requires ratification by 2/3 senate vote). Overshadowed by Executive Agreements. |
Appointment Power | The power of the President & Senate to appoint important government officers (federal judges, agency directors, etc.). President nominates candidate, which then must by confirmed by simple majority in the Senate (check on President's power). Subject to senatorial courtesy rule for local appointments (district judges) |
Pardon Power | Power of the president to forgive a federal offense without penalty or grant release from a penalty already imposed. Based on kingly power to intervene in judicial process in exceptional cases. |
Commander-in-Chief | Constitutional power of the president - 'supreme commander' of the nation's armed forces. Important to keep military under civilian control, leads to conflict with Congress over war power (War Powers Act) |
State of the Union Address | A yearly report by the president to Congress required by Constitution describing the nation's condition and recommending programs and policies (bully pulpit to set legislative agenda ) |