APG Unit II Review
2013
What is the name for federal
spending on local projects members
of Congress want in order to win
favor from their constituents?
pork barrel spending
How does the Constitution
handle the question of political
parties?
It doesn’t, parties have emerged
and reshaped their coalitions
(who supports them) over time
Who can exert more influence
over the legislative process, an
individual member of the House,
or an individual Senator? Why?
Senator, more informal
proceeding in Senate & rules
allowing for filibusters, cloture,
etc.
What is the name for the process by
which Congress holds the Executive
branch, and all bureaucratic
agencies, accountable?
Congressional (or legislative)
oversight
When do senators use a motion
for cloture? What kind of
majority do you need for a
cloture motion?
to end a filibuster; 3/5 or 60%
(60 senators makes you
“filibuster proof”)
In general, all bills pertaining to
revenue and other monies must
originate where?
House of Reps
required by law and cannot be
adjusted by Congress during the
regular budgetary process?
What type of spending can
Congress adjust?
Mandatory is required,
Discretionary can be adjusted
What is an entitlement program?
What are the two biggest
examples?
Government program that
provides benefits to a specific
group of people; Social
Security and Medicare
Which branch did the founders
believe would be the most
powerful? Why did they fear its
power?
Congress, bad experiences with
Parliament
In what list are most of the specific
powers of Congress found? What
two areas do most of these relate
to?
The enumerated powers,
finance and defense
What gives Congress the power
to make all laws “necessary and
proper”?
Elastic clause
What gov’t role was a part time job for
much of the first 100 years of our
history? When did Congress first start
meeting in continuous session?
Working in congress, mid 20th
century
How many bills are introduced in
Congress each year?
About 10,000
Which branch most often takes
exception to the growing power
of the President?
Legislative
Who has the power to create
new courts? Do they use this
power often?
Congress, no
The right of members of Congress to
send mail to their constituents at the
gov’ts expense is called____. Why is
this an advantage for incumbents?
Franking, constant PR at no
expense to themselves
Which Constitutional clause has
been used most often to expand
the power of the national gov’t?
How?
Commerce clause; so many
things fall under the purview
of regulating commerce
How many sessions is each term
of congress divided into? How
long does a modern session last?
2, January to November
What is the age requirement for
serving in the House? The
citizenship requirement?
25 years of age, 7 years a
citizen
How many representatives
currently serve in the House?
How are these reps divided
between the states?
435, by population
Who has the power to cast the
tie-breaking vote in the Senate?
Who runs the Senate in the
absence of the VP?
The Vice President, President
Pro Tempore
How long is the term of office in
the house?
2 years
What organization determines
the population of each state?
How often is this done? How
does this impact Congress?
The Census Bureau, every ten
years – seats in the House are
reapportioned based on the
census
Who is in charge of redistricting
a state after the census?
Usually the legislature of each
state, some states now use
bipartisan committees
Identify the two main ways that
state legislatures have
traditionally abused this power.
creating districts of unequal
population and
gerrymandering to favor a
certain party
What is gerrymandering?
it’s when districts are drawn to
benefit a specific political party
or constituency, or to limit
power of a minority group
What did the “one person-one
vote” decision require?
that all districts contain
approximately 600,000 people,
assuring equal power for each
vote
When a member of congress
works to resolve a specific issue
related to an individual or small
group from their district, they
are doing ________.
casework
What is the age requirement to
be a senator? The citizenship
requirement?
30 years of age, 9 years a
citizen
How long is the term of office for
a senator? What portion of the
senate is up for reelection every
two years?
6 years, 1/3 is up for reelection
What is censure?
a formal vote that disapproves
of a member’s behavior
Describe the average member of
congress in terms of age,
ethnicity, profession and gender.
over 50, white, lawyer and male
What percentage of incumbents
won reelection between 19451990?
90%
Identify two reasons why
incumbents are generally more
successful in winning reelection.
money from PACs,
gerrymandering, voter
recognition, franking privileges
When did the tide begin to turn
against incumbents?
the “Voter Revolution” of 1994
Identify the three House leaders
chosen by the majority party.
Speaker, majority leader,
majority whip
What are the basic definitions of
fiscal policy and monetary
policy? Which is controlled by
Congress and the President?
Fiscal policy is all the decisions
Congress and the President
make in regard to the federal
budget (taxing and spending),
monetary policy relates to how
the FED controls the money
What are two of the main
powers of the Speaker?
assigning bills to committees,
presiding over House debates,
playing a key role in the
calendaring of bills
What do the party leader and
whip do, respectively?
leader sets the agenda and
priorities, whip maintains party
discipline
What is the primary role of
congressional committees?
to closely evaluate proposed
bills, hold hearings on them,
and decide whether they go on
to the full house or senate
Which committee controls the
proceedings of the house and gives
final consent to the calendar?
the Rules Committee
Who has the power to declares
laws/acts unconstitutional?
Judicial Branch/Supreme Court
Who has the power to tax,
regulate trade and coin money?
Congress
Who has the power to declare
war, raise an army, and approve
treaties?
Congress
What are two ways the President
can try to influence Congress?
veto, call special session, make
State of the Union Address
What are two powers Congress
has over the President?
approve treaties, cabinet
officials, & judges (advise &
consent power held by
Senate), veto override, control
the budget
What percentage of bills actually
become laws?
roughly 5%
What is the basic procedure for
amending the Constitution?
Amendments originate in
Congress (2/3 support) and
then must be passed by ¾ of
the state legislatures
What type of representative
system often leads to domination
by two major political parties?
Single representative system –
in which each geographical
district has only one
representative
What is the legislative veto? How
has the Supreme Court ruled on
its use?
A congressional vote to reject
an executive branch action or
order
Unconstitutional, violates
separation of powers
What is the difference between
an amendment to a bill and a
rider?
Amendments are changes
related to the legislation in
question, riders are unrelated
and wouldn’t pass on their
own merits (sometimes used
What is legislative oversight?
When members of Congress
work (usually in their
committees) to oversee &
supervise the ways existing
laws are being carried out and
Who is responsible for drawing
the boundaries for Congressional
districts? When is this done?
State legislatures (or their
designees), every 10 years
after census
What type of congressional
committee helps reconcile
differences in bills passed by the
House and Senate?
Conference committee
The power of Congress most
frequently contested in the
courts relates to what activity?
The power to regulate interstate
commerce
What is a linkage institution?
Name two examples of linkage
institutions.
Connect people to the
government; media, parties,
interest groups, elections
What is a plurality election?
An election involving more than
two candidates in which the
person who receives the most
votes is the winner
What are four of the most
common political actions of
interest groups?
filing lawsuits, sponsoring
advocacy ads, lobbying,
testifying before Congress,
issue related fundraising
The House committee with the
greatest power over taxation is
______. Greatest power over
spending is __________.
Ways and Means
Appropriations
Who can bring charges of
impeachment? For what
reasons?
House of Reps, “Treason,
bribery, or other high crimes
and misdemeanors”
Who acts as the jury in an
impeachment trial? What is the
required vote for a “conviction”?
The Senate, two-thirds
Identify three roles of political
parties.
Pick candidates, run campaigns,
provide cues to voters,
articulate policies, coordinate
policy making
Over the history of American
politics, how far do successful
parties usually stray from the
political center?
Not far at all
Is the control and leadership of
American political parties highly
centralized?
No; more fragmented and
decentralized – history of party
machines running local politics
What is the difference between a
closed and an open primary?
Closed primaries require voters
to register ahead of time for
the party’s primary they wish
to vote in, open primaries
allow voters to make that
What is a blanket primary?
A primary in which all voters get
the chance to vote for a
candidate for each office,
regardless of party affiliation
What kind of political activism
happens on a person to person
basis?
grassroots
In what way do powerful
members of the media act as
gatekeepers?
By deciding what issues, events,
and candidates get the most
coverage
Which party represented the true
entrance of the common man
into American politics? Who was
its leader?
The Democrats, Andrew
Jackson
What issue brought about the
rise of the Republican Party?
What year did they first capture
the White House?
Slavery, 1860
What is it called when a party
loses a group of voters from its
coalition? Regroups and forms a
new coalition?
Party Dealignment (Dems in
1980), Party Realignment (FDR
in 1932, Reagan in 1980)
Which party controlled most of
American politics for the ~60
years following the Civil War?
What brought that control to an
end?
Republicans, FDRs New Deal
Coalition of Democrats in 1932
Provide two examples of
rd
instances where 3 parties had a
major influence on a Presidential
Election.
Bull Moose in 1912 (TR),
American Independent in 1968
(Wallace), Reform in 1992
(Perot), Green in 2000 (Nader)
What gathering, held every 4
years, is critical to the National
Party Organization? What are
the two main tasks of this
gathering?
National Party Convention;
officially select Presidential
candidate and write party
platform
What are two reasons third
parties are significant?
They allow for non-revolutionary
expression of discontent (a vent),
they impact elections by drawing
votes away from major party
candidates, they allow for discussion
outside the mainstream discourse
What is the name for a voter
who always votes right down the
party line?
Straight Ticket Voter
How are the two major political
parties organized? Who is the
most influential party official?
They have separate,
independent organizations at
the national, state, and local
levels; National Party
Chairperson – plays major role
in setting national agenda and
What role do PACs play in
campaigns?
They work outside the official
campaign structure to try and
influence the result by running
ads, staging events, etc.
What two SC decisions greatly
increased role of PACs?
Buckley v Valeo essentially gave PACs
free speech rights, Citizens United
removed limits on donations to PACS
and led to creation of “super PACs”
(virtually no funding restrictions
What is the nickname for an
Executive department, Congressional
committee, and interest group all
working on public policy?
“Iron Triangle”
All of the interest groups,
government officials, think tanks,
and individuals working on a
given issue are called a
_______.
Policy (or Issue) network
What are the two most common
ways for interest groups to work
through the courts?
Amicus curiae briefs and class
action lawsuits
Why is regulating commerce
such an important power for
Congress?
Because commerce has been defined
broadly, so through this power
Congress can do everything from
desegregate public accommodations
to pass environmental regulations