Chapter 11,12,13

In order to member of the Senate must be ___ years of age and a citizen for at least ____ years.

-30 -9

Among the reasons why Congress has difficulty taking the lead on broad issues are the facts that

-Congress has two chambers, and they are not always in agreement on policy issues. -members of Congress come from different districts and often have conflicting views on national policy.

The Executive Office of the President includes which of the following components?

-National Security Council -Office of Management and Budget -Council of Economic Advisers -White House Office

Which of the following statements about congressional committees are true?

-They each specialice in a certain area of legislation. -they make it possible fr congress to consider a high colume of bills.

Which of the following are true of joint committees?

-They perform advisory functions. -They are composed of members of both houses.

Which of the following are true concerning women and minorities who run for congressional office?

-Woman and minoritities are less likley to run for Congress than white males. -Women and minorities have a winning percentage that is roughly the same as nonincumbent white males.

Which of the following about midterm elections are true?

-voter turnout is lower than for presidential elections. -the president's party usually loses seats. -there is less media coverage of candidates and issues than in a presidential election.

When does a bill become a law?

-when congress overrides a presidential veto -when the president signs it

When is congressional oversight exercised vigorously?

-when members are annoyed with an agency -when members are intending to modify an agency program.

When is congressional oversight exercised vigorously?

-when members are intending to modify an agency program. -when members are annoyed with an agency

Put in order the following steps that a bill must pass through in order to become a law.

1.A member of the house of representatives or the senate fromally proposes the bill. 2.the bill is submitted to a committee for consideration. 3.a mojority of memebers in the house and senate approve the bill. 4.the president signs the bill.

Reapportionment takes place every ______ years following a census.

10

At present there are more than ___ standing committees in the House of Representatives.

20

The cost of running for Senate rose by more than ___ between 1990 and 2010.

300%

Members of the US House of Representatives are re-elected in ___ of races.

92%

When public approval of a president administration is at high levels, it is usually

Easier for a president to pursue initiatives

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

False

As a result of the increased level of party polarization in the United States, which candidates face greater risk of losing the primary election?

Incumbent moderates

__ typically benefit from gerrymandering because the majority party ensues that there are enough of the party's voters in the incumbents district to ensure their reelection.

Incumbents

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

No executive agency or lower court can excist without congressiona; authorization.

Which chamber of Congress has the power to remove the president from office?

Senate

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

The bill goes back to bth chambers for a vote.

How much the president actually have in managing the national economy?

The president has limited control over the national economy but can set some economic priorities

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.

True or false: House and senate committees have the power to make suggestions for changing a bill in a process known as a mark up.

True

Why is the Rules Committee one of the most important committees in the House?

because it decides the length of debate that will occur on a bill and whether amendments will be allowed

The U.S Congress is a ____ legislature with two chambers, the House and the Senate.

bicameral

___ is a proposed legislative act that if passed by both chambers of Congress and signed by the president becomes law.

bill

When a president uses the presidential office as an opportunity to speak out on a matter of concern or to push legislation, the president is using the office as a

bully pulpit

The leaders of the top executive departments are collectively known as the president's

cabinet

Most members of Congress are

career politcians who want to stay in Congress and put themselves in positions 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

The president shapes and administers the nation's foreign policy while acting in the role of

chief diplomat

A constituency is comprised of

citizens from the incumbents's state or district.

Which of the following procedural move in the Senate that can end a filibuster?

cloture

Members of Congress usually serve on congressional committee that concentrate on policy areas that affects the members'

constituency

Select committees are

designed to address a specific issue or problem

How does the public generally feel about congress?

dissatified

When members of the senate wish to halt or delay the passage of a bill, a ___ may take place.

filibuster

The privilege of incumbents to send mail to their constitutions at the government's expense is known as the ____ privilege.

franking

The redrawing of congressional boundaries to benefit a political party is called

gerrymandering

When public approval of a presidential administration is at low levels, it is usually

harder for a president to pursue intitiatives

If the majority of the members of the House of Representatives are Republican, than every committee and subcommittee in the house will

have a majority of Republican memebers

When a committee or subcommittee holds a ___, they are trying to gather information about a proposed bill.

hearing

The power to formally accuse and place on trial the president as well as other high-ranking figures in the federal government for alleged crimes of treason, bribery, or high crimes and misdemeanors is known as

impeachment

Since the 1790's, the power of the presidency has evolved owing to the

increased involvement of the presidency in a range of policy areas

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

incumbent

Donors are more willing to make campaign contributions to

incumbents

Events leading up to the Iowa caucus create a very important time for potential presidential candidates. The period of time is known as the

invisible primary

An example of Congress's ___ is when Congress passes legislation that creates incentives for the development of alternative energy sources.

lawmaking function

The increases in party polarization has led to increased

legislative gridlock

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

The party that controls the rules and has the most powerful leadership position in the House in the _____ party.

majority

Which of the following is the most powerful leadership position in the senate?

majority leader

The framers of the Constitution granted Congress the power to _____, the greatest of all powers of government.

make laws

When major disruptive issues occur incumbents are

more likely to lose.

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

no

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

not all policies that are good for the nation as a whole coincide with the needs of their constitiuency

When there is no incumbent running in an election it is called an __ __ election and usually sparks heavier spending by the two political parties.

open seat

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

A vote where most members of one political party vote one way while most members of the other party vote the other way is categorized as a ____ unity vote.

party

The partisan divide in Congress has grown in recent years and each party engages in _____, which is when party members band together on legislation and oppose the other party.

party unity

When foreign countries look to the United States for leadership, they direct their attention to the

president

Historically, which Senate has been honorary in nature?

president pro tempore

Most of America's recent wars have been waged on the basis of a

presidential directive

When congressional district boundaries are redrawn within a state, a state, it is known as _____

redistricting

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

representative

Choosing committee chairs based on which memeber has the longest continuouse tenure on a stnading committee is an example of the

seniority system

___ ___ refers to a practice where members of Congress respond to constituents individual requests for information or a help with a federal benefit or service.

service strategy

Today, Congress and the president

share legislative power.

Incumbents have ____ over challengers.

substantial advantages

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

Presidents since the mid-twentieth century have relied heavily on this to convey their images and messages.

the mass media

The number of electoral voters a state has in the Electoral College is determined by what factor?

the number of members it has in the House and the Senate

If a vote in the Senate is tied, the ____ breaks the tie.

vice president

Both political parties in the House have a _____, who acts as a go-between with the leadership and the party members in the House.

whip

When do potential presidential candidates often begin positions themselves for presidential office?

years in advance of election day

Which of the following could be considered persona; misconduct that might lead to a Congressional incumbent losing a bid for reelection?

-being involed in a sex scandal -engaging in bribery

Which of the following description of the U.S presidency are true?

-The degree of leadership the president can exert largely depends on circumstances -The formal powers of the presidency are modest -It operates in a system of divided powers

Which of the following best explain why a member of Congress is chosen to a party leadership position?

-ablitiy to work with the other party -ablitiy to successfully promote the party's goals within congress -demonstrated leadership ablitiy

The Speaker of the House has the right to

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

Which of the following oversight tools help Congress to ensure that the executive branch is administering laws properly?

-congressional hearings -budgetary appropriations

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

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

Which of the following are common threats to incumbency?

-disruptive issues -personal misconduct -strong challengers

Among the reasons that presidents are less powerful than many Americans assume is that they

-face unconstrollable circumstances that can hurt their ablitity to lead -ultimately derive their power from the American public itself

Political scientist Stephan Skowronek believes strong presidents

-have a clear vision of where they want to lead the nation -have a clear plan to achieve their goals

Which of the following makes a Senate challenger more likely to be successful?

-having strong public recongnition -having access to large sums of money to fund the campaign -having an existing campaign organization

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

-jurisdiction over bills in their designated policy area

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

-sheduling legislation for floor consideration - recognizing members who will be allowed to speak on the floor

Who works together to achieve legislative goals?

-the Congress -the president

What legislative powers does the president possess?

-the power to propose legislation to Congress -the power of the veto

Under which of the following presidents did the greatest expansion of presidential authority take place?

Franklin Roosevelt

The office within the Executive Office of the President that works most closely with the president in developing policy and communicating the president's agenda is known as the

White House Office

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

act in the spirit of compromise

In Congress, disagreement over national policy usually occurs

along partisan divisions

To win the presidency, presidential candidates now need

an electoral majority of voted in the Electoral college

Most of the bills Congress passes are ____ in nature which means they provide benefits to a particular group in society while spending the costs across the taxpaying public as a whole.

distributive