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AP Government and Politics
Chapter 7
37
Economics
12th Grade
09/23/2011

Additional Economics Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Bicameral Legislature
Definition
a legislature divided into two houses; the U.S. Congress and the state legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska, which is unicameral
Term
Apportionment
Definition
the process of allotting congressional seats to each state following the decennial census according to their proportion of the population
Term
Redistricting
Definition
the redrawing of congressional districts to reflect increases or decreases in seats allotted to the states, as well as population shifts within a state
Term
Bill
Definition
a proposed law
Term
Impeachment
Definition
the power delegated to the House of Representatives in the Constitution to charge the president, vice president, or other "civil officers", including federal judges, with "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." This is the first step in the constitutional process of removing such officials from office
Term
Majority Party
Definition
the political party in each house of Congress with the most members
Term
Minority Party
Definition
the political party in each house of Congress with the second most members
Term
Speaker of the House
Definition
the only officer of the House of Representatives specifically mentioned in the Constitution; elected at the beginning of each new Congress by the entire House; traditionally a member of the majority party and the chamber's most powerful position
Term
Party Caucus or Conference
Definition
a formal gathering of all party members
Term
Majority Leader
Definition
the elected leader of the party controlling the most seats in the House or Senate; is second in authority to the Speaker and in the Senate is regarded as its most powerful member; helps the Speaker schedule proposed legislation for debate on the House floor
Term
Minority Leader
Definition
the elected leader of the party with the second highest number of elected representatives in the House or the Senate
Term
Whip
Definition
key member who keeps close contact with all members of his or her party and takes nose counts on key votes, prepares summaries of bills, and in general acts as a communications link within a party
Term
President Pro Tempore
Definition
the official chair of the Senate; usually the most senior member of the majority party; aka "pro tem"
Term
Standing Committee
Definition
committee to which proposed bills are referred for consideration; continues from one Congress to the next
Term
Joint Committee
Definition
committee that includes members from both houses of Congress to conduct investigations or special studies
Term
Conference Committee
Definition
special joint committee created to iron out differences between Senate and House versions of a specific piece of legislation
Term
Select (or Special) Committee
Definition
temporary committee appointed for specific purpose, such as conducting a special investigation or study
Term
Discharge Petition
Definition
petition that gives a majority of the House of Representatives the authority to bring an issue to the floor in the face of committee inaction
Term
Pork
Definition
legislation that allows representatives to bring home the bacon to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs designed to benefit their districts directly
Term
Earmark
Definition
funds in an appropriations bill that provide dollars for particular purposes within a state or congressional district
Term
Seniority
Definition
time of continuous service in an office or on a committee
Term
Incumbency
Definition
the fact that being in office helps a person stay in office because of a variety of benefits (i.e. name recognition, access to free media, an inside track on fundraising, a district drawn to favor the incumbent, etc.) that go with the position
Term
Trustee
Definition
role played by elected representatives who listen to the constituents' opinions and then use their best judgment to make final decisions
Term
Delegate
Definition
role played by elected representatives who vote the way their constituents would want them to, regardless of their own opinions
Term
Politico
Definition
role played by elected representatives who act as trustees or as delegates, depending on the issue
Term
Divided Government
Definition
the political condition in which different political parties control the White House and Congress; a poll in 2006 revealed that 52% of voters preferred divided government
Term
Logrolling
Definition
vote trading; voting to support a colleague's bill in return for a promise of future support; often takes place on specialized bills targeting money or projects to selected congressional districts
Term
Markup
Definition
a process in which committee members offer changes to a bill before it goes to the floor in either house for a vote
Term
Hold
Definition
a tactic by which a senator asks to be informed before a particular bill is brought to the floor. This allows the senator to stop the bill from coming to the floor until the hold is removed
Term
Filibuster
Definition
a formal way of halting action on a bill by means of long speeches or unlimited debate in the Senate; often more of a threat than an actual event; the only way to end a filibuster is a cloture motion
Term
Cloture
Definition
mechanism requiring 60 senators to vote to cut off debate; after a cloture motion has passed, members may spend no more than 30 additional hours debating the legislation at issue
Term
Veto
Definition
formal constitutional authority of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of the legislative body, thus preventing the bill from becoming law without further congressional activity
Term
Pocket Veto
Definition
if Congress adjourns during the ten days the president has to consider a bill passed by both houses of Congress, the bill is considered vetoed without the president's signature
Term
Oversight
Definition
Congressional review of the activities of an agency, department, or office
Term
Congressional Review
Definition
a process whereby Congress can nullify agency regulations by a joint resolution of legislative disapproval; gives Congress 60 days to disapprove new agency regulations
Term
War Powers Act
Definition
passed by Congress in 1973; the president is limited in the deployment of troops overseas to a 60 day period in peacetime (which can be extended for an extra 30 days to permit withdrawal) unless Congress explicitly gives its approval for a longer period
Term
Senatorial Courtesy
Definition
a process by which presidents, when selecting district court judges, defer to the senator in whose state the vacancy occurs
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