1.
17th Amendment: Direct election of senators
2.
Baker v. Carr: case that est. one man one vote. this decision created guidelines for drawing up congresional districts and guaranteed a more equitable system of representation to the citizens of each state
3.
bill of attainder: a legislative act finding a person guilty of treason or felony without a trial
4.
c-span: Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network
5.
closed/open rule: House of rep. if a bill is closed it can not be amended, if open it can be.
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cloture: a rule for limiting or ending debate in a deliberative body
7.
committee jurisdiction: the policy area and bills that a legislative committee has the responsibility to consider in its deliberations
8.
committee staff: the people who work for House and Senate committees
9.
conference committees: a joint committee appointed to resolve differences in the senate and house versions of the same bill
10.
Congressional Budget Office: staff agency that advises Congress on the likely economic effects of different spending programs and provides information on the costs of the proposed policies.
11.
Congressional Reelection Committee: 1
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Congressional Research Staff: offers Congress research and analysis on all current and emerging issues of national policy
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constituency: The inhabitants or voters in a district represented in a legislative body.
14.
discharge petition: a device by which any member of the House, after a committee has had the bill for thirty days, may petition to have it brought to the floor
15.
earmark: give or assign a share of money or time to a particular person or cause
16.
ex post facto: affecting things past
17.
filibuster: a tactic for delaying or obstructing legislation by making long speeches
18.
franking privileged: It is used by members to get signatures for postage by sending mail to their constituents to keep them informed and to get info on campaigning.
19.
gerrymandering: the drawing of electoral district lines to the advantage of a party or group
20.
House Rules Committee: An institution unique to the House of Representatives that reviews all bills (except revenue, budget, and appropriations bills) coming from a House committee before they go to the full House.
21.
House/Senate Appropriations: 1
22.
House/Senate Budget Committee: 1
23.
incumbency advantage: The electoral advantage a candidate enjoys by virtue of being an incumbent, over and above his or her other personal and political characteristics
24.
joint committees: committees on which both senators and representatives serve
25.
legislative oversight: the power of Congress to oversee how laws are carried out
26.
Library of Congress: research center for congress
27.
logrolling: act of exchanging favors for mutual gain
28.
majority minority district: A congressional district created to include a majority of minority voters; ruled constitutional so long as race is not the main factor in redistricting.
29.
Majority/Minority Leader: Responsible for assigning bills to committee in the Senate.
30.
Majority/Minority Whip: see how people plan to vote, convince members to vote with the party, makes sure voters are present when its time to vote
31.
malapportionment: drawing the boundaries of legislative districts so that they are unequal in population
32.
party caucus: a meeting of the members of a party in a legislative chamber to select party leaders and to develop party policy. Called a conference by the republicans
33.
pork barrel project: government project grant that primarily benefits the home district or state
34.
President Pro-Tempore: Officer of the Senate selected by the majority party to act as chair in the absence of the vice president
35.
reapportionment: the process of reassigning representation based on population, after every census
36.
redistricting: The redrawing of congressional and other legislative district lines following the census, to accommodate population shifts and keep districts as equal as possible in population
37.
Reynolds v. Sims: 14th amendment requires state legislative districts reflect fair "one person, one vote" rule
38.
rider: a clause that is appended to a legislative bill
39.
select committees: congressional committees appointed for a limited time and purpose
40.
Senate Foreign Affairs: 1
41.
Senate Judiciary: 1
42.
seniority principle: continuous service on a committee or body leads to greater opportunities within
43.
service strategy: a policy providing poor people with education and job training to help lift them out of poverty.
44.
Shaw v. Reno: NO racial gerrymandering; race cannot be the sole or predominant factor in redrawing legislative boundaries; majority-minority districts.
45.
Speaker of the House: the leader of the majority party who serves as the presiding officer of the House of Representatives
46.
standing committees: permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area
47.
subcommittees: divisions of existing committees formed to address specific issues
48.
term limits: laws that limit the number of terms elected officials can serve
49.
Voting Rights Acts 1965: Federal law that increased government supervision of local election practices, suspended the use of literacy tests to prevent people (usually African Americans) from voting, and expanded government efforts to register voters. The Voting Rights Act of 1970 permanently banned literacy tests.
50.
Wayes and Means Committee: 1
51.
Wesberry v. Saunders: Georgia law had a district that was grossly oversized, this diluted a mans vote there and it violated the 14 amendment because it took away the persons vote. It was seen as unconstitutional
52.
writ of habeas corpus: a writ ordering a prisoner to be brought before a judge
