Study Guide for Exam #2
1. What are the two principal functions of Congress? Explain the inherent conflict that exists
between these two functions. How might this conflict explain Fenno’s dilemma?
2. Identify four meanings of representation.
3. What types of committees exist in Congress? What are their respective purposes? Analyze
and assess the validity of the following statements: “The committee system is what makes
Congress work.” “The committee system is at the heart of the organizational decentralization
and policy fragmentation in Congress.”
4. Discuss the legislative process. What is a “veto point?” Identify the primary veto points in the
legislative process. How many veto points can be associated with a typical bill in Congress?
5. Explain the “power of the purse” and why this power is important to Congress.
6. Outline and discuss the arguments for and against term limits for members of Congress.
7. Explain what the author of your text means by “home style.” Describe at least three ways that
members of Congress practice home style for their districts.
8. List and explain at least three factors that effect how representatives and senators in Congress
decide how they will vote on legislation.
9. Explain some of the differences between the United States House of Representatives and the
United States Senate.
10. Describe the leadership system in Congress and explain the primary responsibilities of each
position.
11. Discuss how the Texas Legislature may be affected by the increased partisanship, resulting
from the growing number of Republican members in both chambers.
12. How do you account for the strong leadership roles played by the presiding officers of the
Texas Legislature? What resources do these officers have to support their leadership roles?
13. Discuss the committee system in the Texas Legislature. List the types of committees and
their functions.
14. What is the “honeymoon effect?” What factors contribute to this phenomenon?
15. What is meant by the “media presidency?” What is meant by the “textbook presidency?” How
do these perpetuate a “mythological presidency?” Explain why the true nature of presidential
power is personal, episodic, and negative.
16. Detail the constitutional basis of presidential power. Are the president’s powers broad and
flexible or narrow and restricted? Explain your answer by contrasting the literalist and
stewardship theories.
17. Discuss the three “games” (agenda game, coalition game, and image game) that a president
must master to be successful , providing examples to illustrate your points.
18. List and explain at least three expectations that the American people have of the president.
Are these expectations realistic? Why or why not?
19. List and explain at least three political resources of the president.
20. List and explain the primary responsibilities of the president as the nation’s chief executive.
21. What is a bureaucracy? Discuss the premises of the classical model of bureaucracy?
22. Why have the bureaucracies of the national government grown over the last 120 years?
23. What types of bureaucracies are found in the executive branch?
24. Discuss how bureaucracies make public policy. How can bureaucratic policy-making be
reconciled with the constitutional principle of separation of powers?
25. What problems exist for bureaucracies with respect to policy implementation?
26. What reforms have been proposed to make bureaucracies more effective?
27. List and discuss at least three budgetary strategies of federal bureaucracies.
28. How does the plural-executive arrangement in Texas constrain the governor’s power, and
what implications does this have for a governor in today’s increasingly partisan atmosphere in
Texas?
29. List and briefly discuss the roles of at least five of the offices of the Texas executive branch.
30. What is the difference between the original and appellate jurisdictions of the United States
Supreme Court [USSC]? Which is the primary source of cases on the USSC’s docket?
31. Mechanically, how does the USSC decide to hear a case on appeal? What is the “rule of
four?”
32. What is merits consciousness? What is “cue theory?”
33. What do we mean when we say that a court decision has policy impact? How does this differ
from legal impact? Give examples of U.S. Supreme Court [USSC] decisions that have policy
impact. Explain each example.
34. What is judicial review? Discuss the ‘historical’ birth’ of judicial review in MARBURY V MADISON
[1803]. What were the facts of the case? What was the constitutional issue? What did the
USSC decide? What was the long-term significance of the case?
35. What is meant by judicial activism? What is meant by judicial restraint?
36. Why is compliance important as a criterion of judicial policy-making? Give examples of USSC
decisions that meet this criterion. Explain each example.
37. What role does politics play in the selection of federal judges? What are the major factors
considered for judicial appointment?
38. Discuss several congressional checks on the federal judiciary.
39. Describe the structure of the court system in Texas.
40. How do interest groups attempt to influence the composition of the state’s courts in Texas?
What have been some of the consequences of these efforts?
41. Identify the following:
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bicameralism
power of the purse
oversight
republican government
gerrymandering
affirmative racial gerrymandering
apportionment
redistricting
pigeon-holed
logrolling
filibuster
cloture
proportional representation
career politicians
incumbency
safe seat
open seat
political action committees
General Accounting Office
casework
home style
pork barreling
franking privilege
Speaker of the House
majority leader
minority leader
whip
Senate majority leader
vice-president of the United States
seniority system
markup
rider
trustee
delegate
politico
reciprocity
executive order
22nd Amendment
25th Amendment
27th Amendment
impeachment
pardon
executive privilege
cabinet
Office of Management and Budget
White House staff
Joint Chiefs of Staff
gridlock
veto
pocket veto
line-item veto
treaties
executive agreements
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Iran-Contra Affair
War Powers Act
formal rule-making
adjudication
Administrative Procedures Act
Federal Register
merit system
spoils system
whistleblower
agency culture
authorization bill
appropriations bill
budgetary outlays
incremental budgeting
zero-based budgeting
sunset laws
regulation
capture theory
deregulation
“reinventing government”
judicial review
original intent
stare decisis
original jurisdiction
appellate jurisdiction
amicus curiae
grand jury
petit jury
rule of four
writ of certiorari
writ of mandamus
litmus test
senatorial courtesy
majority opinion
concurring opinion
dissenting opinion
Memorial Day Massacre
biennial session
regular session
special session
Lieutenant Governor
Speaker of the Texas House
iron triangle
revolving door
civil case
criminal case
bifurcated court system