POSI Test 2 Review
Jeopardizing incumbents chances
#1 reason is scandal
Which of the following statements about mid term elections are generally true?
1. 21 out of last 25, the presidents party has lost house seats. 2. Lower turnout than presidential elections 3. Voters who vote in mid terms vote along party lines 4. Treated as a referendum to presidents performance. 5. Less media coverage.
Steps for a bill to become a law
1. A member of the House or Senate formally proposes the bill. 2. The bill is submitted to a committee for consideration. 3. A majority of members in the House and Senate approve the bill. 4. The president signs the bill.
What are threats to incumbency?
1. Disruptive Issues 2. Personal Misconduct 3. Turnout Swings 4. Strong Challengers
Which of the following statements are true of bills that are killed in committee?
1. Most bills die in committee because they are poorly conceived or of little interest 2. Some aren't even supported by those who introduce them to appease a powerful constituent group 3. 90% of bills are killed by committee
When does a bill become a law?
1. When the President signs it. 2. When Congress overrides a presidential veto with a 2/3 vote.
When is congressional oversight exercised vigorously?
1. when members are intending to modify an agency program 2. when members are annoyed with an agency
republican or democrat?
2/3 identify as one or the other
President appoint how many ambassadors?
200
End Fillibuster
60 senators must agree to invoke cloture and end the debate
Joint Committee
A committee composed of members of both chambers of congress
Theodore Roosevelt
Adopted, what he called the stewardship theory of the presidency
Article 1 vs Article 2
Article 2 is worded more broadly
Who is empowered by the constitution to establish the lower federal courts?
Congress
The line between proper and improper judicial decision making is very clear
FALSE
Greatest expansion of presidential Authority
Franklin Roosevelt
Democratic Presidents
Have appointed more women and minorities to the federal bench
What makes a challenger to a senate incumbent more likely to be successful?
High Ranking Politician 1. Voter base 2. Campaign Organization 3. Fundraising ability 4. Public recognition 5. Credentials to mount a strong campaign
Budget
House members get identical amounts Senators receive varying amounts depending on population
senatorial courtesy
If the president fails to consult with the senator from the state where a judicial appointment is made, the senator can request that confirmation be denied.
Justices meet in complete privacy and secrecy to discuss and vote on the case
Judicial conference
Major Bills
Majority Leader will shape broad content and direct floor debate after the bill leaves committee
Majority Opinion
Majority Opinion
Would not call hearings on 2016, Obama Nominee,
Merrick Garland
White House Office
Office of the Counsel to the President (Legislative Affairs) Communications Office Office of the Press Secretary
Open Rule/Closed Rule
Open Rule- allows members to propose amendments that relevant to any section of the bill A closed rule- no amendments will be permitted
Presidential Description
Operates in a system of divided powers Degree of leadership can depend on circumstance The formal powers of the presidency are modest
Cast ballots for popular vote winner
Part convention, primary, and open caucus
Republicans vs. Democrats
Parties differ philosophically and politically
Misleading papers about vietnam
Pentagon Papers (L. Johnson and R. Nixon)
Presidents remembered for rising to challenges (benefiting from circumstances)
Reagan Franklin Roosevelt Lyndon Johnson
Functions of Congress
Representation Law Making (Main Responsibility) Oversight
Presidential Cabinet
Selected by president and subject to approval by senate, made up of heads of executive departments, members are important figures in an administration
Momentum
Strong showing in early caucuses and primaries
Why do justices write concurring opinions?
The agree with the court's decision but disagree with the legal arguments made by the justices in the majority
Supreme Court will review a case if
US governemtn is a party in the case legal issue raised is being handled inconsistently by the lower courts
Turf War
a fight or an argument to decide who controls an area or an activity and party leaders will decide the committee assignment
seniority system
a system that gives the member of the majority party with the longest uninterrupted service on a particular committee the leadership of that committee
Justices tend to vote
according to their political attitudes
Congressmen
are more likely to anger leadership and vote the way their donors and voters would want
The US Congress is a __________ legislature with two chambers, the House and the Senate.
bicameral
Congress's structure makes it easier to
block legislation than enact it
Interest groups that rely on judicial strategy to advance their cause are careful in their choice of
cases that have a chance of success
Rally Around the Flag
causes presidents approval rating to increase with a foreign crisis
US district courts
chief trial courts of the federal system Lowest district court only federal court decided by jury
President influence on courts
choosing to enforce decisions influencing the cases that come before the court
Presidents campaign in
competitive states and the largest states
Congress has difficulty taking on broad issues because
conflicting views on national policy made up of two chambers so they will not often agree on issues
Original System, who or what chose nominees
congressional caucuses
Supreme Court issues a
decision and one or more opinions after hearing a case
A key to understanding the power of the presidency is a recognition that presidential power...
depends on the occupant of the office
Public View of Congress
dissatisfied
Most of the bills congress passes are __________ in nature, which means they provide benefits to a particular group in society while spreading the costs across the taxpaying public as a whole.
distributive
Since the truman admin, the number of bureaucratic agencies has
doubled (a little more)
Presidents are most powerful
during their first months in office
Oversight
ensuring laws are being administered by the executive branch in the way intended by congress is an important function of congress
Checks on judicial power held by congress
exercising the authority to confirm supreme court justices rewriting legislation
Federal courts do not intervene into state court matters unless a
federal issue or law is invloved
Donald Trump appointments
fewer than 10% minority
When members wish to delay or halt the passage of a bill a
fillibuster may take place
Shift from party organizations to state primaries and caucuses has
given voters a larger voice in the selection of the president Reduced the power of party elites in selecting candidates
precedents are important because..
gives predictability to the law so poeple know what is legal
President is better suited for nation issues because...
he has sole executive authority
Framers of the constitution anticipated that presidents would
hold limited legislative power
Vice President
holds separate elective office from that of the president typically forms part of the presidential team assigned different roles by the president
Appellate courts review which aspect of lower court decisions?
how the lower court applied the law
Criteria for average american to evaluate the presidential leadership
if he is a strong leader unafraid to exercise power and communicate a vision for the nation if he prioritizes many of the same issues that concern the public
Party Conventions
in the past there were heated debates Today, candidates and running mates are usually chosen before the convention begins
Since the 1970's, the power of the presidency has evolved owing to the
increased involvement of the presidency in a range of policy areas
Judicial Review
increased power of federal government Increased Power of the Courts by creating new powers
ACLU
interest group protecting individual rights
Nationalization
lawmakers vote in the same way as their fellow partisans, regardless of constituency differences
Public opinion on Supreme Court decisions
less responsive than elected gov. officials aware of public opinion so as to not create outright defiance of its decisions
The practice in which members of Congress agree to vote for a bill in exchange for their colleague's vote on another bill is called ___________.
logrolling
Each of the 50 states
maintains its own court system
Circumstances that create a powerful president
major national problem decisive election victory
The party that controls the rules and has the most powerful leadership position in the house is the ____________ party.
majority
Congressional Committees
make it possible for high volume of bills they specialize in certain areas
The framers of the Constitution granted Congress the power to _________, the greatest of all powers of the government.
make laws
Presidential Control Problems concerning low level appointees
many of them are politically inexperienced president rarely sees them, if ever
In 'Insecure Majorities', Frances Lee noted that, in the currently closely matched parties, members of Congress are engaged in "_________" rather than "governing".
messaging
Ranking members
minority party committee and sub committee leaders
Presidents power to act on their own
most in foreign policy
Appeals to the Supreme Court
must involve federal constitutional question or federal law
Two features of the presidency that enable the claim to leadership on national policy
national election singular authority
Open seat elections are elections in which
no incumbent is running
Distributive Policy
one that confers a benefit on a particular group while spreading the cost across taxpaying public
Supreme Court Jurisdiction
original and appellate
Indicator of Judges vote
political background
Richard Neustadt
political scientist who says that a sign of presidential weakness is the veto and presidential power is to persuade
Legislative Power the president possesses...
power to veto to propose legislation to congress
America's recent wars have been waged on the basis of a
presidential directive
It is easier for a president to pursue initiatives when...
public approval is high
Internet has greatly increased the ability of presidential candidates to
raise money "get out the vote"
Redistricting
redrawing congressional district boundaries within a state
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 _______________.
roll call vote
In the 2018 midterm elections, how many House and Senate races received money from super PACs?
several dozen
A permanent committee in Congress is known as a
standing committee
Incumbents have __________ over challengers.
substantial advantages
Donald Trumps use of bully pulpit
taken it to unprecedented levels
The most powerful party leadership position in the Senate is ___________.
the Majority Leader
Recent supreme court appointees have overwhelmingly come from
the appellate courts
Limits on Judicial Power
the law itself the facts of the case
Best opportunity presidents have to get congress to pass policy initiatives is when
their party controls both houses of congress
Presidential role as chief diplomat is
to negotiate treaties with other nations and appoint ambassadors
Doctrine of Judicial Activism
use the law in ways that expand the protection of basic rights, such as liberty and equality
As of 2018, most presidents have been
white male former public servants protestant
President typically nominate people to lower court judgeships
who share the same political party as they do