Unit 6

The Constitution states that all revenue bills must originate in

the United States House of Representatives

Those who believe that the Supreme Court in its rulings should defer to the elective institutions of government are advocating

"judicial restraint"

senate info

100 members, must be 30, 2 per state, formal, 9 years us citizen

House of rep info

435 members, must be 25, population driven, 7 years a citizen.

A first term member of the House of Representatives from North Dakota who wished to maximize opportunities for constituent service would be most likely to seek placement on which of the following committees?

Agriculture

speaker of the house

An office mandated by the Constitution. The Speaker is chosen in practice by the majority party, has both formal and informal powers, and is second in line to succeed to the presidency should that office become vacant.

Which of the following is an example of Congress using its implied powers?

Congress passing occupational safety regulations for the private sector

A member of Congress votes in favor of a bill as a result of receiving many letters of support for the bill from constituents. Which form of democratic representation best describes this voting decision?

Delegate

"Senators have increasingly used holds, their ability to block consideration of a nominee indefinitely, as a broader partisan weapon to keep presidents from filling key positions, including many qualified and usually noncontroversial nominees . . . . The confirmation rate of presidential circuit court appointments has plummeted from above 90 percent in the late 1970s and early 1980s to around 50 percent in recent years."

Divided government has led to an increase in congressional refusal to confirm appointments of presidents of the opposite party

If Congress wanted to effect a change in the Social Security payroll tax, to what congressional committee would the task initially be assigned?

House Ways and Means Committee

Advocates of shifting the task of drawing United States House districts from state legislatures to independent commissions are likely to claim which of the following as an advantage of independent commissions?

Independent commissions significantly reduce the influence of partisan gerrymandering in the redistricting process.

Federal benefits that must be funded by Congress and must be paid to all citizens who meet eligibility criteria are called

individual entitlements

The doctrine of stare decisis is significant for which of the following reasons?

It is the principle that affirms that courts are bound by prior decisions.

In The Federalist 78, Alexander Hamilton argued that the federal judiciary "is beyond comparison the weakest of the three departments of power." Which of the following statements represents a reason he gave for this argument?

It must depend on the executive for enforcement of its decisions.

Which prior Supreme Court case could be cited as a precedent for the majority decision in Gonzalez v. Raich (2005)?

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Congress passes a law requiring that all public accommodations provide access for people with disabilities. The United States Supreme Court rules that the law does not apply to the airline industry. Which of the following is the best way for Congress to provide people with disabilities access to the airline industry in light of the Court's ruling?

Pass a new law that specifies that the airlines must provide access for people with disabilities

What role do coalitions play in the policymaking process?

Politicians create coalitions to enact policy that has broad support from the public

A major reason why the majority of Supreme Court justices have had political experience prior to appointment to the Court is that

Presidents seek to place individuals on the Court whose policy views are similar to their own

A person claiming that the House can pass legislation with a simple majority, but the Senate is unlikely to pass legislation unless a bill has the support of a 60-vote supermajority is most likely to cite which of the following institutional differences as the cause of this trend?

The House has strict limits on debate, while the Senate allows unlimited debate.

When a lower court decision is appealed to the Supreme Court, which of the following is most likely to occur?

The Supreme Court will not hear the appeal.

Which of the following best defines the term "judicial activism"?

The tendency of judges to interpret the Constitution according to their own views

All of the following serve as checks on the power of the federal courts EXCEPT:

The voters can oust federal judges in national elections.

Which of the following statements about motions for cloture is true?

They are used by senators to end a filibuster and bring a bill to a vote.

majority leader

They schedule legislation to be considered on the House floor; organize daily, weekly, and yearly legislative plans; consults with Members to understand how party members feel about issues, and works to advance the goals of the party. r who can decide if a bill goes to the floor

Which of the following actions can Congress take if the Supreme Court finds a federal law unconstitutional?

Try to amend the Constitution.

federalist 62

What is the main idea of Federalist 62? The equality of representationAs Madison says, "the government ought to be founded on a mixture of the principles of proportional and equal representation". Due to this, each state has equal power in the Senate, which in turn protects smaller States from being overpowered by larger States.

If legislation passes in both the House of Representatives and the Senate but each version is slightly different, the conflicting bills are sent to

a conference committee for review and compromise

A committee chair in the House of Representatives is always

a member of the majority party in the chamber

Elections for the House of Representative provide

approximately equal representation for every voter

Describe the cloture motion

cuts debate off for a bill

In Marburv v. Madison (1803), the Supreme Court assumed the power to

decide on the constitutionality of a law or an executive action

The House Rules Committee is an important part of the legislative process because it

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

Congress has the constitutional power to control the judicial branch by

determining the size of the Supreme Court

To influence policy making by the federal courts, the president may do all of the following EXCEPT

fire and replace federal judges

"Pork barrel" legislation helps the reelection chances of a member of Congress because such legislation

helps earn the member of Congress a reputation for service to his or her district

Initiates all revenue bills

house

federalists 65

jay thinks the power of treaties should go to the president. with consent of two thirds of the senate. the senate has englightened and respectable citizens. senate deserves the power becasue of the age requirement and the longer terms. allows the president to make treaties in seceret then go to the senate. treaties are different than a congress act and should be a different type of legistlature.

The idea that judges ought to freely strike down laws that are inconsistent with their understanding of the Constitution is known as

judicial activism

Supreme Court justices were given tenure subject to good behavior by the framers of the Constitution in order to ensure that

justices are free from direct political pressures

A difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate is that in the House

legislative activity on the floor is more constrained by rules

chairman

one that holds first place, the officer who presides the meeting, can determine if a bill gets on the floorplans committee meetings, preparing for meeting and distribute content.

vice president

part of the senate, can be a tie breaker

Congressional standing committees are best described as

permanent subject-matter committees

The power of the Rules Committee in the House of Representatives rests on its authority to

place a bill on the legislative calendar, limit time for debate and determine the type of amendments allowed

Most of the bills introduced in the House and the Senate are then

referred to committee but never sent to the full Congress

The difference between an appellate court and a district court is that an appellate court

reviews previous court decisions

Confirms presidential appointments

senate

the minority leader

serves as floor leader of the "loyal opposition," and is the minority counterpart to the Speaker.

Nominations to the Supreme Court must be approved by a

simple majority vote in the Senate only

An example of a discretionary item in the federal budget is

spending on national parks

Most of the work of legislating in Congress takes place in

standing committees

Congressional district boundaries are usually redrawn every ten years by the

state legislatures

The doctrine of original intent holds that

the meaning of the Constitution depends on the intention of the framers

A major difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate is that

there is unlimited debate in the Senate but not in the House