Flashcards
Congress
Cards in this deck (26)
- 1bicameralhaving two branches, chambers, or houses, as a legislative body.
- 2HORThe House and the Senate work together on bills to give to the President to put into law.
- 3constituentsa member of a constituency.
- 4gerrymanderthe boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class.
- 5Senatethe smaller upper assembly in the US Congress, most US states
- 6Speaker of the HouseThe presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The Speaker, a member of the House, is elected by a majority party caucus.
- 7President pro temporea high-ranking senator of the majority party who presides over the US Senate in the absence of the vice president.
- 8Party whipsis a member of parliament who is selected by their parliamentary party to take on the role of team manager.
- 9standing committeea permanent committee that meets regularly.
- 10select committeea small legislative committee appointed for a special purpose.
- 11Joint Committeeis a term that is used to refer to a committee made up of members of both chambers of a bicameral legislature.
- 12seniority systemSenators are given preferential treatment in choosing committee assignments based on seniority.
- 13expressed powersThose powers of Congress specifically listed in the Constitution.
- 14implied powersn the United States, are those powers authorized by a document (from the Constitution) that, while not stated,
- 15elastic clausea statement in the U.S. Constitution
- 16impeachcall into question the integrity or validity of (a practice).
- 17bills of attainderan act of legislature finding a person guilty of treason or felony without trial.
- 18ex post facto lawsis a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences (or status) of actions that were committed
- 19US Representative Qualificationsrequires that Members of the House be at least 25 years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and live in the state they represent (though not necessarily the same district)
- 20franking privilegeright of members to post mail to constituents without having to pay postage
- 21pork barrell projectsis a metaphor for the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district.
- 22US Senator Qualificationsincluding a U.S. senator, are set forth by the U.S. constitution. They refer to a Senate candidate's age, citizenship status and the state in which the aspiring senator lives.
- 23filibusteran action such as a prolonged speech that obstructs progress in a legislative assembly while not technically contravening the required procedures
- 24cloture(in a legislative assembly) a procedure for ending a debate and taking a vote.
- 25vetoa constitutional right to reject a decision or proposal made by a law-making body.
- 26pocket vetoan indirect veto of a legislative bill by the president or a governor by retaining the bill unsigned until it is too late for it to be dealt with during the legislative session.
