Gov 13
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Created by:
Poniatoski13 on May 2, 2012
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Congress
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39 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 bicameral legislature | a lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts |
| filibuster | an attempt to defeat a bill in the senate by talking indefinitely thus preventing the Senate from taking action on the bill |
| marginal districts | political districts in which candidates elected to the House of Representatives win in close election, typically by less than 55 percent of the vote |
| safe districts | distics in which incumbents win by margins of 55 percent or more |
| conservative coalition | an alliance between republican and conservative democrats |
| majority leader | the legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House or the Senate |
| minority leader | the legislative leader elected by party members holding a minority of seats in the House or the Senate |
| whip | a senator or representative who helps the party leader stay informed about what party members are thinking |
| party polarization | a vote in which a majority of democratic legislators oppose a majority of republican legislators |
| caucus | an association of congress members created to advance a political ideology or a regional, ethnic, or economic interest |
| standing committees | permanently established legislative committees that consider and are repsonsible for legislation within a certain subject area |
| select committees | congressional committees appointed for a limited time and purpose |
| joint committees | committees on which both senators and representatives serve |
| conference committees | a joint committe apointed to resolve differences in the senate and house versions of the same bill |
| public bill | a legislative bill that deals with matters of general concern |
| private bill | a legislative bill that deals only with specific, private, personal, or local matters |
| simple resolution | an expression of opinion either in the House or the Senate to settle procedural matters in either body (used to establish rules under which both houses operate) |
| concurrent resolution | an expression of opinion without the force of law that requires the approval of both the House and the Senate, but not the president (housekeeping and procedural matters that apply to both House and Senate) |
| joint resolution | a formal expression of congressional opinion that must be approved by both houses of congress and by the president; constitutional amendments need not be signed by the president |
| divided government | one party controls the White House and another controls one or both houses of Congress |
| unified government | the same party controls the white house and both houses of congress |
| earmarks | "hidden" congressional provisions that direct the federal government to fund specific projects or that exempt specific person or groups from paying specific federal taxes or fees |
| multiple referral | a congressional process whereby a bill may be reffered to several important committees |
| sequential referral | a congressinal process by which a Speaker may send a bill to a second committee after the first is finished acting |
| discharge petition | a device by which any member of the House, after a committe has had the bill for 30 days, may petition to have ti brought to the floor (must by signed by 218 members) |
| closed rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on debate; forbids a bill from being amended on the floor |
| open rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that permits a bill to be amended on the floor |
| restrictive rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that permits certain kinds of amendments but not others to be made into a bill on the floor |
| quorum | the minimum number of members who must be present for business to be conducted in Congress |
| quorum call | a roll call in either house of congress to see whether the minimum number of representatives required to conduct business is present |
| cloture rule | a rule used by the Senate to end or limit debate |
| double-tracking | a procedure to keep the Senate going during a filibuster in which the disputed bill is shelved temporarily to that the Senate can get on with other business |
| voice vote | a congressional voting procedure i which members shout "yea" in approval or "nay" in disapproval, permitting members to vote quickly or anonymously on the bills |
| division vote | a congressional voting procedure in which members stand an are counted |
| teller vote | a congressional voting procedure in which members pass between two tellers, the "yeas" first and the "nays" second |
| roll-call vote | a congressional voting procedure that consists of members ansering "yea" or "nay" to their names |
| pork-barrel legislation | legislation that gives tangible benefits to constiuents in several districts or states in the hope of winning their votes in return |
| franking privilege | that ability of members to mail letters to their constituents free of charge by substituting their facsimile signature for postage |
| rider | A provision added to a piece of legislation not germane to the bill's purpose. |
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