Congress final study guide

Earmarks

"hidden" congressional provision that directs the federal government to fund specific projects or exempts specific people or groups from paying specific federal taxes or fees.

Politico model

- plays the role of delegate when the people feel strongly about an issue, and plays the role of trustee when public opinion is muted. - Middle path between these delegate and trustee

Select committee

A congressional committee created for a specific purpose, sometimes to conduct an investigation; usually temporary

Baker vs Carr

A landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that redistricting qualifies as a justiciable question, thus enabling federal courts to hear redistricting cases

Which of the following statements accurately summarizes the reasoning for the decision in Baker v. Carr (1962)? - Because rural districts had fewer people, representation was unevenly distributed; thus, Baker was denied equal protection under the law. - Congressional redistricting must involve traditionally excluded groups in the process or it violates the equal protection clause. - To ensure equal protection under the law, there should be an equal number of rural and urban districts in a state. - There should be redistricting every ten years at the federal level, but the state can choose not to redistrict at the state and local levels.

Because rural districts had fewer people, representation was unevenly distributed; thus, Baker was denied equal protection under the law

reapportionment

Congressional districts are redrawn and representatives are redistributed among states in the House, occurs every ten years when census data reports shifts in the population of districts.

The bicameralism of Congress partially resulted from the __________. - French and Indian War - Three-fifths Compromise - Anti-Federalists - Connecticut Compromise

Connecticut Compromise

Which of the following best reflects the holding in the case Baker v. Carr (1962) ? - Created a one-person, one-vote standard for reviewing congressional districts. - Declared that racial gerrymandering was a violation of the due process clause. - Stated that the Tenth Amendment exclusively reserves the power to review congressional districts to the states. - Stated that the Seventeenth Amendment requires regular review of the constitutionality of congressional districts.

Created a one-person, one-vote standard for reviewing

Which of the following statements about congressional reapportionment and redistricting is true? - States that have no major increase or decrease in population do not draw new district lines every ten years. - The Senate, unlike the House, is reapportioned every 20 years. - Districts must be drawn so that, within a state, every person's vote is roughly equal to every other person's vote. - The federal government redraws district maps every 10 years after each census.

Districts must be drawn so that, within a state, every person's vote is roughly equal to every other person's vote.

delegate model

I'm a delegate of the people who elected me. I'm their mouthpiece in gov't. I will vote the way they want me to, despite my personal convictions

Which statement about incumbency is most accurate? - Incumbents have no advantage in reelection. - Incumbents only leave office when pressured by party leadership. - Incumbents only leave office when they choose. - Incumbents have a huge advantage in reelection

Incumbents have a huge advantage in reelection

Which of the following statements about the Senate is true? - Each state is represented in the Senate according to its population. - Individual senators can exercise substantial influence over the legislative process. - The Senate has a strict time limit on debates. - The Senate, unlike the House, has a Rules Committee.

Individual senators can exercise substantial influence over the legislative process.

Trustee model

People voted me to best represent their interests. I'll vote on my personal convictions and the info on hand which is more than they know.

The real leadership power in the Senate rests in the hands of the __________. - Speaker of the Senate - president pro tempore of the- enate - Senate majority leader - president of the Senate

Senate majority leader

__________ must consent to the ratification of a treaty. - The president - Both houses of Congress - The House of Representatives - The Senate

The Senate

Which of the following situations best illustrates the meaning of divided government in the United States political system? - The president and a majority of members of Congress are from one party, but the majority of governors are from another. - The majority of Supreme Court justices are from one party, but the president is from another. - The majority of senators and the majority of representatives are from one party, but the president is from another. - The majority of governors are from one party, but the president is from another.

The majority of senators and the majority of representatives are from one party, but the president is from another.

The boundaries of United States congressional districts are usually determined by - the director of the United States Census Bureau - the House Rules Committee - the Federal Election Commission (FEC) - the state legislatures

The state legislatures

Which of the following statements about revenue bills is correct? - They must originate in the Senate. - They must originate with the president. - They must originate in the House. - They must originate in the Senate Finance Committee

They must originate in the House

Which is NOT a reason the Constitution established a bicameral legislature? - To make passing laws easier - One house can check the other - Modeled after British Parliament - Part of the Great Compromise

To make passing laws easier

A committee chair in the House of Representatives is always - a member of the majority party in the chamber - the member with the longest service in the House - the member with the longest service on the committee - a representative of the Speaker

a member of the majority party in the chamber

Debate of a bill in the House of Representatives under a "closed rule" means that - the bill can only be amended by section - debate on the bill will consist of five-minute speeches, pro and con - only senior members are allowed to participate - amendments to the bill cannot be offered

amendments to the bill cannot be offered

riders

an additional provision added to a bill or other measure under the consideration by a legislature, having little connection with the subject matter of the bill.

The implied powers doctrine, upheld in McCulloch v. Maryland, gives Congress the power to do - anything it decides is in the public interest. - anything reasonably related to carrying out the expressed powers. - only what the Supreme Court authorizes it to do. - only what is absolutely necessary to carry out the expressed powers

anything reasonably related to carrying out the expressed powers.

Joint committee

composed of members of both houses; such committees oversee the Library of Congress and conduct investigations. They keep communication between the 2 houses up as well

A "cloture motion" passed in the Senate does which of the following? - Cuts off debate on a bill. - Criticizes a senator guilty of improprieties. - Returns a bill to committee. - Removes a President who has been impeached by the House.

cuts off debate on a bill

The House Rules Committee is an important part of the legislative process because it - negotiates compromises on bills with the Senate Rules Committee - determines whether a bill should be referred to a policy committee for consideration - determines the terms and conditions of debate when a bill goes to the House floor - has the authority to limit the Speaker and Minority leader in their use of patronage

determines the terms and conditions of debate when a bill goes to the House floor

A member of the House of Representatives has introduced a bill to raise the minimum wage, but it has been in committee for 36 days and is unlikely to make it to the floor. Which of the following is the best course of action for the representative to take to get a vote on the bill? - Introducing a concurrent resolution - Filing for a discharge petition - Presenting a cloture motion - Placing a hold on the bill

filing for a discharge petition

Every two years, the Senate __________. - redraws the House districts for the following election - permits a territory to rotate into the membership - prepares for a new census - has one-third of its members elected

has one-third of its members elected

pork

involves funding for government programs whose economic or service benefits are concentrated in a particular area but whose costs are spread among all taxpayers. Public works projects, certain national defense spending projects, and agricultural subsidies are the most commonly cited examples.

The principal and most obvious function of any legislature is __________. - advice and consent - carrying out the law - lawmaking - oversight

lawmaking

Congressional legislative powers include all of the following EXCEPT - passing federal laws - legislating federal appropriations - pardoning felons - approval of treaties

pardoning felons

Partisan/organizational role

people want me to vote with my party

Congressional whips serve what main function? - meet with members of the executive cabinet - persuade party members to toe the party line - help the Speaker schedule proposed legislation for debate - act as official spokespersons for their chambers

persuade party members to toe the party line

Partisan __________ occurs when members of both parties move away from the moderate middle and share increasingly less common ground. - divergence - polarization - ideology - popularization

polarization

Casework entails __________. - working with other members of Congress to logroll a bill - conducting oversight related to a law - providing advice and consent - providing services to constituents

providing services to constituents

After the 2020 census, Ohio will lose two seats in the House of Representatives due to __________. - gerrymandering - reapportionment - a caucus - redistricting

reapportionment

The allocation of seats in the House to each state after each census is __________. - constituent service - reapportionment - redistricting - gerrymandering

reapportionment

Enumerated powers of the federal government include all of the following EXCEPT the power to - declare war - regulate interstate commerce - coin money - regulate intrastate commerce

regulate intrastate commerce

standing committee

relatively permanent where bills are assigned and most work is done

Today, nominations to the Supreme Court must be approved by a - two-thirds vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate - simple majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate - two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives only - simple majority vote in the Senate only

simple majority vote in the Senate only

Most of the work of legislating in Congress takes place in - conference committees - standing committees - joint committees - select committees

standing committees

Supreme Court rulings have been key to broadening the scope of which expressed power? - the postal power - the power to tax - eminent domain - the commerce power

the commerce power

In midterm congressional elections, those held between presidential contests, ____________. - incumbents are more likely to lose - the president's political party will be unaffected unless the president campaigns for congressional candidates - voter turnout increases sharply - the president's political party will usually lose seats in Congress

the president's political party will usually lose seats in Congress

redistricting

the process of redrawing electoral district boundaries based on population shifts

conference committee

the speaker and Majority leader create a conference committee made of House and Senate members to try and make the same bill. Can amend/kill bills. Their changes must be approved by both chambers

logrolling

working together to pass a piece of legislation. Often involved reciprocity... I help you on this one and you help me roll the next big log