Terms : Hide Images
| 10413085586 | Budget Resolution | Resolution by congress that sets the bottom line of the budget during the budget process |  | 0 |
| 10413085587 | Bully Pulpit | Position that provides an opportunity to speak out and be listened to. |  | 1 |
| 10413085588 | Cabinet | Advisory council for the president consisting of the heads of the executive departments, the vice president, and a few other officials selected by the president. |  | 2 |
| 10413085589 | Casework | Helping constituents individually to cut through red tape. Writing a recommendation letter to West Point |  | 3 |
| 10413085590 | Caucus (Congressional) | Congressional groups that share interests |  | 4 |
| 10413085591 | Chief of Staff | The head of the White House staff. |  | 5 |
| 10413085592 | Closed Rule | A procedural rule in the House of Representatives that prohibits any amendments to bills or provides that only members of the committee reporting the bill may offer amendments. |  | 6 |
| 10413085593 | Cloture | A procedure for terminating debate, especially filibusters, in the Senate. (Need 60 Votes) |  | 7 |
| 10413085594 | Conference Committee | Reconcile differences on a particular bill passed by the House and Senate in different forms. |  | 8 |
| 10413085595 | Constituents | The residents of a congressional district or state. |  | 9 |
| 10413085596 | Delegate | An official who is expected to represent the views of his or her constituents even when personally holding different views; one interpretation of the role of legislator. |  | 10 |
| 10413085597 | Discharge Petition | Petition that, if signed by majority of the House of Representatives' members, will pry a bill from committee and bring it to the floor for consideration. |  | 11 |
| 10413085598 | Executive Agreement | A formal agreement between the U.S. president and the leaders of other nations that does not require Senate approval. |  | 12 |
| 10413085599 | Executive Orders | Formal orders issued by the president to direct action by the Federal bureaucracy |  | 13 |
| 10413085600 | Executive Privilege | The right to keep executive communications confidential, especially if they relate to National Security. |  | 14 |
| 10413085601 | Filibuster | A senator refuses to relinquish the floor to delay proceedings and prevent a vote on a controversial issue. Senate only. |  | 15 |
| 10413085602 | Franking | Congress mailing newsletters to their constituents at the government's expense during an election. |  | 16 |
| 10413085603 | Gerrymandering | The drawing of legislative district boundaries to benefit a party, group, or incumbent. |  | 17 |
| 10413085604 | Gridlock | Inability to accomplish anything because of divided government. Can also result on deficit by everybody getting everything. |  | 18 |
| 10413085605 | Incumbent | The current holder of the elected office. |  | 19 |
| 10413085606 | Joint Committee | A committee composed of members of both the House of Representatives and the Senate; such committees oversee the Library of Congress and conduct investigations. |  | 20 |
| 10413085607 | Line Item Veto | Presidential power to strike, or remove, specific items from a spending bill without vetoing the entire package; declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. |  | 21 |
| 10413085608 | Logrolling | Mutual aid and vote trading among legislators. |  | 22 |
| 10413085609 | Majority Leader | The legislative leader selected by the majority party who helps plan party strategy, confers with other party leaders, and tries to keep members of the party in line. |  | 23 |
| 10413085610 | Mandate | A president's claim of broad public support. |  | 24 |
| 10413085611 | Minority Leader | The legislative leader selected by the minority party as spokesperson for the opposition(legislators opposed to the party in power.) |  | 25 |
| 10413085612 | Open Rule | A procedural rule in the House of Representatives that permits floor amendments within the overall time allocated to the bill. |  | 26 |
| 10413085613 | Override | An action taken by Congress to reverse the presidential veto, requiring a two-thirds majority in each chamber. |  | 27 |
| 10413085614 | Parliament | A system of government in which the elected legislature votes on laws and selects the prime minister or president. |  | 28 |
| 10413085615 | Pocket Veto | A formal decision to reject a bill passed by Congress after it adjourns - if Congress adjourns during the ten days that the president is allowed in order to sign or veto law, the president can reject the law by taking no action at all. |  | 29 |
| 10413085616 | Polarization | The extent to which liberals and conservatives occupy the more extreme positions on the liberal-conservative ideological spectrum. |  | 30 |
| 10413085617 | Pork/Pork Barrel | Money/jobs that are brought into a district |  | 31 |
| 10413085618 | Power of the Purse | Congresses ability to set the budget for every federal project and agency |  | 32 |
| 10413085619 | President Pro Tempore | Officer of the Senate selected by the majority party to act as chair in the absence of the vice president. |  | 33 |
| 10413085620 | Presidential Ticket | The joint listing of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on the same ballot as required by the Twelfth Amendment. |  | 34 |
| 10413085621 | Reapportionment | Redistributing congressional seats after each census. State legislatures then redraw the districts in their state. |  | 35 |
| 10413085622 | Recess Appointment | Presidential appointment made without Senate confirmation during Senate recess. |  | 36 |
| 10413085623 | 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 |
| 10413085624 | Rider | A provision attached to a bill - to which it may or may not be related - in order to secure its passage or defeat. |  | 38 |
| 10413085625 | Seniority Rule | A legislative practice that assigns the chair of the committee or subcommittee to the member of the majority party with the longest continuous service on the committee. Not automatic now. |  | 39 |
| 10413085626 | Speaker | The presiding officer in the House of Representatives, formally elected by the House but actually selected by the majority party. |  | 40 |
| 10413085627 | Special or Select Committee | A congressional committee created for a specific purpose, sometimes to conduct an investigation. (e.g. Watergate) |  | 41 |
| 10413085628 | Standing Committee | A permanent committee established in a legislature, usually focusing on a policy area |  | 42 |
| 10413085629 | State of the Union Address | The president's annual statement to Congress and the nation. |  | 43 |
| 10413085630 | Treaty | A formal, public agreement between the United States and one or more nations that must be approved by two thirds of the Senate. |  | 44 |
| 10413085631 | Trustee | An official who is expected to vote independently based on his or her judgment of the circumstances; one interpretation of the role of the legislator. |  | 45 |
| 10413085632 | Veto | A formal presidential decision to reject the bill passed by Congress. |  | 46 |
| 10413085633 | War Powers Resolution | A resolution passed in 1973 requiring the president to give advance warning of a military attack or ask Congress for a declaration of war or specific legislation. |  | 47 |
| 10413085634 | Whip | Party leader who is the liaison between the leadership and the rank-and-file in the legislature. |  | 48 |
