Terms : Hide Images
| 63112212 | bicameral | A two-house legislature; for example, the Senate and House of Representatives in the Congress (Legislative Branch) of the United States Federal government. | |
| 63112213 | caucus | an association of congress members created to advance a political ideology or a regional, ethnic, or economic interest | |
| 63112214 | closed rule | an order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on floor debate, forbids a bill from being emended on the floor. | |
| 63112215 | cloture | a procedure for terminating debate, especially filibusters in the Senate; the question of curtailing debate must be put to a vote two days after 16 senators sign a petition for this. | |
| 63112216 | cloture rule | Prevents filibustering (16 signatures) and ends debate in the Senate, by a 3/5s vote of the Senate, rule of senate, providing for the end of debate on a bill if 3/5 of members agree. typically used to terminate a filibuster and force a vote on a bill | |
| 63112217 | committee system | The division of the legislative workload among several congressional bodies assigned specific issues | |
| 63112218 | conference committee | A joint committee of congress which works out differences between the house and senate versions of a proposed law | |
| 63112219 | 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. | |
| 63112220 | Congressional Research Service | responds to congressional requests for information and now employs nearly 900 people to respond to more than a quarter of a million questions each year | |
| 63112221 | discharge petition | A procedure by which a bill in the House of Representatives may be forced (discharged) out of a committee that has refused to report it for consideration by the House. The petition must be signed by an absolute majority (218) of representatives and is used only on rare occasions. | |
| 63112222 | division vote | A congressional voting procedure in which members stand and are counted. | |
| 63112223 | double tracking | A procedure to keep the Senate going during a filibuster in which the disputed bill is shelved temporarily so that the Senate can get on with other business. | |
| 63112224 | fillibuster | A procedural practice in the Senate whereby a senator refuses to relinquish the floor and thereby delays proceedings and prevents a vote on a controversial issue. | |
| 63112225 | franking privileges | Right of all incumbent congressmen to mail news to their constituents for free. This privilege cannot be used for explicit campaigning, but it still gives the incumbent an extra advantage. | |
| 63112226 | General Accounting Office | performs financial audits of the money spent by executive-branch departments as well as investigates agencies and policies and makes recommendations on almost every aspect of government (defense contracting, drug enforcement policies, the domestic security investigations of the FBI, Medicare and Medicaid programs, water pollution programs, and so forth) | |
| 63112227 | House Rules Committee | Determines the rules for debate of each bill, including whether the bill may be amended. This is the most powerful committee in the House. | |
| 63112228 | incumbency | The fact that being in office helps a person stay in office b/c of a variety of benefits that goes with the position. | |
| 63112229 | joint committees | committees composed of members of the house and senate that consider matters of interest to both houses. | |
| 63112230 | majority leader | The principal partisan ally of the Speaker of the House or the party's manager in the Senate. The majority leader is responsible for scheduling bills, influencing committee assignments, and rounding up votes in behalf of the party's legislative positions. | |
| 63112231 | minority leaders | The legislative leader elected by party members holding a minority of seats in the House of Representatives or the Senate. | |
| 63112232 | multiple referrals | occur when pary leaders give more than one committee responisibility for considering a bill | |
| 63112233 | open rule | A procedural rule in the House of Representatives that permits floor amendments within the overall time allocated to the bill, a provision by the House Rules Committee that permits floor debate and the addition of new amendments to a bill. | |
| 63112234 | pork | 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. | |
| 63112235 | presidential veto | a president's authority to reject a bill passed by Congress; may only be overridden by a two-thirds majority in each house | |
| 63112236 | president pro tempore | Presides over the Senate in the absence of the Vice President. Position awarded to the longest serving Senator from the majority party. 3rd in line of succession for the Presidency. | |
| 63112237 | quorum | The minimum number of members who must be present to permit a legislative body to take official action | |
| 63112238 | 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. | |
| 63112239 | roll call vote | a vote on the record, noting the name of each Senator and his/her voting position | |
| 63112240 | Rule 22 | Provides that debate in the Senate could be cut off if two-thirds of the Senators present and voting agreed to a cloture motion | |
| 63112241 | safe district | Districts in which incumbents win by margins of 55 percent or more | |
| 63112242 | select committees | Congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation. | |
| 63112243 | seniority system | A custom followed in both chambers of Congress specifying that the member of the majority party with the longest term of continuous service will be given preference when a committee chairperson (or a holder of some other significant post) is selected. | |
| 63112244 | 17th Amendment | Passed in 1913, this amendment to the Constitution calls for the direct election of senators by the voters instead of their election by state legislatures. | |
| 63112245 | Speaker of the House | An office mandated by the Constitution. The Speaker is chosen in practice by the majority party, has both formal and informal powers, and is second in line to succeed to the presidency should that office become vacant. | |
| 63112246 | standing committees | The most important committees, always assembled and delegated with the responsibility of handling all bills under their concern. Includes the Ways and Means, Appropriations, Budget, Rules and Agriculture Committees. | |
| 63112247 | subcommittees | divisions of existing committees formed to address specific issues | |
| 63112248 | teller vote | A congressional voting procedure in which members pass between two tellers, the "yes" first and the "nays" second | |
| 63112249 | term limits | Legal or constitutional limit on the number of terms an elected official may serve. There are not term limits in congress and will not be because congress makes laws, even though the majority of the population feels term limits are a good idea., a legal limit on the amount of time a person can spend in an elected office | |
| 63112250 | voice vote | A congressional voting procedure in which members shout "yea" in approval or "nay" in disapproval; allows members to vote quickly or anonymously on bills. | |
| 63112251 | whip | A legislative leader of each party who is responsible for rounding up party members for important votes. |
