Posc inquizitive Ch.11
How many chambers or houses does a bicameral legislature have?
2
Which of the following is true of marginal seats in the House of Representatives?
A member holds a marginal seat if he or she was elected with less than 55% of the vote.
behaviors by members of Congress as either an example of a distributive or informational theory of committees.
A member of Congress develops particular expertise on education policy. -Informational A member of Congress chooses committees that serve his or her district's interests. -Distributive A member of Congress serves on a committee that helps his or her reelection goals. -Distribution Two members of Congress support each other's legislation. -Distribution
Which of the following statements about congressional oversight are accurate?
Congress has never removed a president from office. Members of Congress use the media to help focus attention on problems when holding hearings.
What evidence in the Constitution suggests that the Founders intended Congress's role to differ from the president's role in government?
Congress was intended to have more explicit powers than the president. Congress was intended to be the primary policy-making body.
If the House and the Senate pass different forms of the same bill, which of the following steps can they take for the bill to become law?
Differences in the bill can be resolved in conference committee. The two chambers pass the bill back and forth, amending it and ultimately resolving differences.
Which of the following would satisfy the congressional norm of universalism?
Funding a transportation bill that improves highways across the country.
which group will a member of Congress be most willing to frustrate?
Geographic (the entire district)
Complete the following statements to accurately describe some of the aspects of floor debate in the House and the Senate.
In the Senate, debate over a bill is unlimited in most cases. Debate can be stopped by invoking cloture, which requires a vote by at least 60 senators. Without enough senators to vote to stop debate, a speaking senator may talk the bill to death in the process of filibuster.
A concurrent resolution consists of which of the following characteristics?
It does not carry the force of law. It involves actions by both chambers. It does not require signature by the president. It typically deals with a nonlegislative matter.
How does Congress benefit by using the norm of seniority?
It ensures orderly succession in committee leadership. It helps members of Congress in their reelection campaign.
How did the Seventeenth Amendment, which called for the direct election of U.S. senators, influence politics?
It made senators more responsive to the public
Senators Potter and Granger have little in common in terms of policy or politics, but Senator Potter agrees to vote for Senator Granger's bill if, in exchange, Senator Granger supports Senator Potter's legislation. This is an example of a practice known as what?
Logrolling
Choose all of the following that are true about norms in Congress.
Logrolling can sometimes encourage members of Congress to vote for a bill they are opposed to. The norm of universalism is significantly aided by the norm of logrolling.
How does division of labor in the committee system affect Congress and its members?
Membership in relevant committees can help reelection campaigns. Members tend to support the policies produced by the committees they serve on.
Which of the following are correct reasons for why party unity has increased over time?
Moderate northern Republicans have been replaced by Democrats. Moderate southern Democrats have been replaced by Republicans.
presidential approval or veto process for legislation.
Once a bill is sent to the president, he or she must sign the legislation within 10 days for it to become law. To veto the legislation, the president sends the bill to the back to Congress without a signature. The House and the Senate can override a veto with a two-thirds vote in both chambers. If Congress is not in session and the president does not sign the bill, a pocket veto has occurred.
Congress passes a new tax bill with only five days left in the session. The president has no intention of signing it and lets it quietly die on his desk, without Congress having a chance to override the president's decision. This is an example of which of the following?
Pocket veto
How have the roles of the presidency and Congress changed since the beginning of the twentieth century?
Recent national security issues have given the president a larger national policy role. More power has shifted from Congress to the presidency.
The overwhelming majority of congressional action occurs in which forms of committees?
Standing committees
Which of the following are true about a bill's future once it is sent to the president?
The bill can automatically become law after 10 days. Congress can override a veto. The president can sign it into law.
In the traditional process, when a bill is in conference committee, it indicates that
The bill is likely to pass congress
Imagine a bill is referred to the House Committee on Agriculture, the standing committee for agricultural issues. Choose all of the following that can happen while the bill is in committee.
The committee gathers information through hearings. The committee changes the language of the bill. The committee makes the decision to send to the bill to the floor.
Imagine a bill is referred to the House Committee on Agriculture, the standing committee for agricultural issues. Choose all of the following that can happen while the bill is in committee.
The committee makes the decision to send to the bill to the floor. The committee changes the language of the bill. The committee gathers information through hearings.
According to this chart on party votes and party unity scores in Congress, which of the following statements are correct?
The frequency of party votes in the House roughly matches the frequency of party votes in the Senate. About two-thirds of all roll call votes in Congress divide the parties today.
Choose all of the following statements that are correct.
The leader of the minority party in both the House and the Senate is known as the Minority Leader. The highest position of authority in the House is the Speaker of the House. The whip system helps promote party unity.
congressional reelection rates through 2018, and then answer the following question What primary difference can be seen between trends in House and Senate incumbent reelection rates?
The rate of Senate incumbency reelection has been more volatile (changes more often) than that of the House.
How do operations in the Senate differ from those in the House?
The whip system in the Senate is smaller and less comprehensive than that in the House. Senators can debate for unlimited amounts of time; House members cannot. House leaders have more power than Senate leaders.
How has the use of debate rules affected the workings of the Senate?
They often gives the minority power to delay, or even stop, some legislation. Unanimous consent agreements are often used to help move a bill along faster.
Which of the following can be said about challengers to seats in Congress?
Very few challengers have any experience with elections. Challengers typically have a less-refined home style. Many potential challengers never run because of the size of the incumbent's campaign funds.
Which of the following are examples of descriptive representation?
a conservative, white member of Congress representing a liberal, white district a liberal, Jewish member of Congress representing a predominantly Jewish district
Match the characteristic to the correct type of oversight.
approval of treaties: senatorial oversight "fire alarm" oversight: reacting to a problem after it appears "police patrol" oversight: constant and consistent oversight power of the purse: cuts funding impeachment: removal of executive officers from office
government organization to its responsibilities in an impeachment trial.
conducts trial of impeached official: Senate issues articles of impeachment: House of Rep. has no role: Department of justice
What are some factors that account for the incumbency advantage?
constituency service practiced and effective home style greater PAC contributions to incumbents
What does the elastic clause of the Constitution allow Congress to do?
create new laws to help congress carry out its powers.
Why does Congress seldom cut off an agency's funds?
cutting programs means cutting off the good parts of the agency along with the bad parts.
Compare and contrast the differences in the legislative process between the House and the Senate by labeling each characteristic as something that happens in the Senate, the House, or both.
debate managed by the Rules Committee: house only less structured floor process: senate only more open amendment process: senate only source of new legislation: both
Match each of the following characteristics to determine whether they apply to redistricting, apportionment, or both.
dividing the 435 House seats among states based on population change: apportionment redrawing district lines to maintain equal population across districts: redistricting performed by state legislatures: redistricting using data from the U.S. census:both
Congress uses its oversight authority to do which of the following?
ensure proper implementation of laws enhance member reelection chances approve executive branch appointments and treaties monitor the executive branch for abuses of power
Which factors do state lawmakers consider when they are trying to determine how to re-draw districts?
ensuring contiguity preserving existing districts grouping like-minded voters
What factors influence Congress's decision to use its oversight powers?
ensuring that laws are implemented properly validating concerns from constituents
What are some factors that account for the incumbency advantage?
greater PAC contributions to incumbents constituency service practiced and effective home style
If members of Congress are motivated by gaining reelection (the electoral connection), which of the following behaviors help them connect with voters?
helping a constituent qualify for federal benefits making a speech that supports gun carry rights, an issue supported by constituents appearing in a parade
When party leadership is attempting to get a party member to vote a certain way on a bill, which strategies are they likely to use?
helping guide a member's pet project through the legislature in exchange for his or her vote strategically timing when a bill comes up for a vote offering a member campaign finance support in exchange for a vote
Which of the following could be considered an example of casework?
member of congress helps a woman who has been cut off from medicaid benefits regain them
Match the various ways members of Congress are allowed to introduce amendments to the rules used to govern debate in the House of Representatives.
open rule:Introduce any germane closed rule: no amendment allowed modified rule: only specific amendments allowed
Which two of the terms below are related to the idea of projects that benefit a specific congressional district or location?
pork barrel earmark
Compare and contrast the Founders' original intentions for the House and the Senate by labeling each characteristic as belonging to the House, the Senate, or both.
resulted from compromise between different types of states: Both represents local interests:House elected directly:House acts as the more "responsible" lawmaking body:Senate elected indirectly:Senate
substantive representation to the description of the member of Congress's vote.
supports increasing pollution controls that she disagrees with because of the preferences of her constituents: Delegate votes to increase border control measures popular in her district while also voting on economic issues without seeking the opinions of her constituents: politco supports foreign trade deals that help manufacturing in general but devastate jobs in his or her district:trustee
Which of the following are points in the conventional legislative process at which a bill introduced in the House can die?
the Senate floor the president's desk a House committee the House floor a House subcommittee
In the conventional method of passing legislation, where does a bill go after it is introduced in the House?
the relevant committee in the House