POL 101: Chapter 11: Congress: Balancing National Goals and Local Interests: SmartBook

Which of the following correctly describes protocol for committee membership?

* Most vacancies occur after elections, either from retirements or incumbent defeats. * Most newly elected members of Congress request committee assignments.

Which of the following are duties of the Speaker of the House?

* Recognizing members who will be allowed to speak on the floor * Choosing leadership of the House Rules Committee

Which of the following are activities that typically take place in a party caucus?

* adopting a single policy message * developing issues

Members of Congress are most indebted to which of the following?

* hardcore partisan voters in their state or district * the wealthy donors who fund their campaigns

Which of the following are the functions of Congress?

* oversight * representation * lawmaking

On major bills, it is increasingly typical for the majority party's leaders to

* shape the bill's broad content. * direct the floor debate after the bill leaves the committee.

The Speaker of the House has the right to

* speak first during House debate on legislation. * select the chairperson of the House Rules Committee. * choose who may speak on the House floor.

At present there are ______ standing committees in the House of Representatives. 20

20

In order to become a member of the Senate, a person must be at least __________ years of age and have been a citizen for at least __________ years.

30; 9

If the president chooses to veto a bill,

Congress can override the veto by a two-thirds vote in each chamber.

True or false: Most congressional bills survive committee scrutiny and are voted upon by the House and Senate.

False

What shift brought the president to a more central role in the legislative process?

National and international forces combined to place greater policy demands on the federal government.

Which of the following describes the power of Congress relative to the other branches of government?

No executive agency or lower court can exist without congressional authorization.

The most powerful leader in the House of Representatives is the

Speaker of the House.

The emergence of ___________ ___________, groups that can pour money into a political campaign with few limits, has given challengers a better opportunity to unseat congressional incumbents.

Super PACs

What occurs after a conference committee reconciles differences in the House and Senate versions of a bill?

The bill goes back to both chambers for a vote.

How do committees and subcommittees serve to decentralize power in Congress?

They allow more members to hold leadership positions.

Which of the following is true of bills that emerge from committee with the full support of the committee members?

They are typically passed by an overwhelming majority.

What is it that holds party lawmakers together?

They have far more in common with each other than they do with lawmakers of the other party.

Polls indicate that voters' opinions of Donald Trump's performance had what effect in the 2018 midterms?

Those who were discontented with Trump helped Democrats retake control of the House.

True or false: Congress is an institution in which many interests are represented, which is a strength in a diverse nation; yet Congress is also a place in which narrow interests can block Congress from acting even when there's an important national need, which is a weakness.

True

Members of Congress may experience conflict between their lawmaking responsibility and their responsibility to represent their constituency when

a policy that is good for the nation as a whole does not coincide with the needs of their constituency.

The framers of the Constitution intended that lawmakers ______, something that has become increasingly difficult in today's partisan Congress.

act in the spirit of compromise

Most members of Congress are

career politicians who want to stay in Congress and put themselves in position for reelection.

To plan strategy and resolve policy issues, party members in Congress typically meet behind closed doors in a session called a party __________.

caucus

Which of the following is not a direct power of the committee chair?

changes party affiliation at will

Partisan voting is most apparent when members are voting on major ______ issues.

domestic policy

Hearings are an effective way for committees to

gather information.

In the large majority of cases, the winner of a congressional campaign is the

incumbent.

Congressional elections usually favor

incumbents.

One reason why standing committees are powerful is that they have by law

jurisdiction over bills in their designated policy area.

Which function is the main responsibility of Congress, to which all other functions of Congress are related?

lawmaking

In Insecure Majorities, Frances Lee noted that, in the currently closely matched parties, members of Congress are engaged in "______" rather than "governing."

messaging

Elections held in the years between presidential elections are called ______ elections.

midterm

If the Rules Committee places a "closed rule" on a piece of legislation, ______ amendments are permitted.

no

A(n) __________ rule allows members to propose amendments that are relevant to any section of the bill.

open

Which function describes the process by which the legislature checks on the executive branch to make sure it is carrying out the laws in the way Congress intended?

oversight

Ensuring that laws are being administered by the executive branch in the way intended by Congress is an important function of Congress and is known as __________.

oversight function

If a "turf war" erupts as different committees vie for jurisdiction over a bill, who or what decides the committee assignment?

party leaders

The increase in party polarization in Congress has led to increased

policy deadlock.

The term that describes the minority party's committee and subcommittee leaders is _________ members.

ranking

Members of Congress give various interests a voice in the legislative process as part of Congress's ______ function.

representative

The trend toward party unity in Congress can clearly be seen in voting records of members of Congress when their votes are officially recorded during a __________-___________ vote.

roll-call

Which of the following terms describes a permanent committee in Congress that has a defined legislative jurisdiction?

standing committee

Incumbents have ______ over challengers.

substantial advantages

Which of the following methods is most often used to select committee chairs?

the seniority system

Whether or not Congress takes the lead in the making of laws usually depends on

the type of policy at issue.

Members of the House of Representatives typically serve on ______ committees, while members of the Senate serve on ______.

two, four

The 2014 North Carolina Senate race (Hagan vs. Tillis) was one of the most extensive campaigns in Senate history, with more than $75 million spent. What portion of that money came from super PACs?

two-thirds

Compared with their percentage of the overall population of the United States, women and minorities are ______ in Congress.

underrepresented

Positive aspects of party polarization include the fact that

voters can more clearly see and understand party differences.

Which of the following is a major reason why incumbents are reelected?

Many congressional districts and some states are lopsidedly Democratic or Republican.