Chapters 11,12,13,14

a legislature divided into two houses

us congress and ALL state legislatures are bicameral except NEBRASKA's.

created by Connecticut Compromise and Constitutional Convention

the committee in the House of Reps that reviews most bills coming from a House committee before they go to the full house.

a strategy unique to the senate

opponents of some legislation use their right to unlimited debate to prevent the senate from voting on a bill.

60 members present and voting can halt a filibuster in "cloture debate"

ONLY position mandated by constitution

speaker is chosen by the majority party; has both formal and informal powers

second in line to succeed to the presidency should that office be vacant

jobs:

- presides over house when in session

- makes committee assignments

- appoints party's legislative leaders

- exercises control over which committees bills are assigned to.

the principal ally of the speaker of the house

responsible for scheduling bills, influencing committee assignments, and rounding up votes in behalf of the party's positions

party leaders who work w/ majority leader or minority leader to count votes to count votes beforehand and lean on waverers whose votes are crucial to a bill favored by a party

the principal leader of the minority party in the house of representations or in the senate

separate subject-matter committees in each house of congress that handle bills in different policy area.

congressional committees on a few subject-matter areas with membership drawn from both houses

Congressional committees formed when the senate and the house pass a particular bill in different forms

party leadership appoints members from each house to iron out the differences and bring back a single bill

congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such s the watergate investigation

congress's monitoring of the bureucracy and its administration of policy, performed mainly through hearings.

the most important influencers of the congressional agenda.

they play dominant roles in scheduling hearings, hiring staff, appointing subcommittees and managing committee bills when brought before the full house.

a simple rule for picking committee chairs, in effect until the 1970s.

the member who has served on the committee the longest and whose party controlled the chamber became chair

a group of members of congress sharing some interest or characteristic

many composed of members from both parties and from both houses

a proposed law, drafted in legal language.

anyone can draft a bill, but only a member of the house or senate can formally submit a ball for consideration

ratified in 1967, permits the vice president to become acting president if vp and the p's cabinet determine that the president is disabled

outlines how a recuperated president can reclaim the job

an indictment in criminal law, prescribed by the constitution

the house may impeach the president by a majority vote for "treason, bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors".

the events and scandal surrounding a break-in at the Democratic national Committee head-quaters in 1972

and the subsequent cover up of White House Involvement, leading to the eventual resignation of PResident Nixon under the threat of impeachment.

committee that links the presidents foreign and military policy advisers

its formal members are the president, vice president, secretary of state, and secretary of defense, and its managed by the presidents national security assistant

a three-member body appointed by the president to advise the president on economic policy

an office that prepares the president's budget and also advises presidents on proposals from departments and agencies

helps review proposed legislations

the constitutional power of the president to send a bill back to congress w/ reasons for rejecting it.

a 2/3 vote in each house can over ride a veto

a type of veto occuring when Congress adjourns w/in 10 days of submitting a bill to the president and the president simply lets the bill die by neither singing it nor vetoing it.

occur when voters cast their ballots for congressional candidates of the presidents party because they support the president

few races are run this way

law passed in 1973 in reaction to American fighting in Vietnam and Cambodia

requires presidents to consult w/ congress whenever possible prior to using military force and to withdraw forces after 60 days unless congress declares war or grants an extension

a vote in congress to override a presidential decision

a sudden, unpredictable or potentially danger event requiring the president to play the role of crisis manager.

according to max weber, a hierarchical authority structure that uses task specialization, operates on the merit principle, and behaves w/ impersonality.

system in which jobs and promotions are awarded for political reasons rather than for merit/ competence

Passed in 1883

an act that created a federal civil service so that hiring and promotion would be based on merit rather than patronage

system of hiring and promotion based on the merit principle

the idea that hiring should be based on entrance exams and promotion rating to th produce administration by people with talent and skill

a federal law prohibiting government employees from active participation in partisan politics while on duty or for employees in sensitive position at the time

the office in charge of hiring for most agencies of the federal government, using elaborate rules in the process

schedule for federal employees, ranging from GS1 to GS 18, by which salaries can be keyed to rating and experience

An elite cadre of about 9,000 federal government managers at the top of the civil service system

a government agency responsible w/ responsibility for making and enforcing rules to protect the public interest in some sector of the economy and for judging disputes over these rules.

a govt organization that provides a service that could be delivered by the private sector and typically charges for its services.

ex. US postal service

the govt agencies not accounted for by cabinet departments, independent regulatory commission, and government corporations.

administrators are typically appointed by the president and serve at the presidents pleasure.

stage of policymaking between the establishment of a policy and the consequences of the policy for the people affected.

implementation involves translating the goals and objectives of a policy into an operating ongoing program

procedures for everyday decision making used by bureucrats to bring efficiency during complex times

the authority of administrative actors to select among various responses to a given problem

discretion is greatest when routines or SOP's do not fit a case.

a phrase coined by Michael Lipsky

referring to those bureaucrats who are in constant contact w/ the public and have considerable administrative discretion

the use of governmental authority to control or change some practice in the private sector

lifting of government restrictions on business, industry, and professional activities

regulations originating w/ the executive branch

executive orders are one method presidents can use to control the bureucracy

also known as sub-governments

a mutually dependent, mutually advantageous relationship between bureaucratic agencies, interest groups, and congressional committees or subcommittees

iron triangles dominate some areas of domestic policymaking

the requirement that plaintiffs have a serious interest in a case, which depends on whether they have sustained or likely to sustain a direct and substantial injury from another party or an action governments.

lawsuits in which a small number of people sue on behalf of all people in similar circumstances

issues capable of being settled as a matter of law

the jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial.

usually the courts that determine the facts about a case

the jurisdiction of courts that hear cases brought to them on appeal from lower courts.

these courts do not review the factual record, only the legal issues involved

the 91 federal courts of original jurisdiction

they are the only federal courts in which trials are held and in which juries may be impaneled

the pinnacle of the american judicial system

ensures uniformity in interpreting national laws, resolves conflicts among state,s and maintains national supremacy in law

controls its own agenda

an unwritten tradition whereby nominations for state-level federal judicial posts are usually not confirmed if they are opposed by senator of the presidents party from the state in which the nominee will serve

applies to courts of appeal where there is opposition from a senator of the presidents party

a presidential appointee and the third ranking office in the department of justice

the solicitor general is in charge o the appellate court litigation of the federal government

the statement of legal reasoning behind a judicial decision

the content of an opinion may be as important as the decision itself

a latin phrase meaning "let the decision stand"

most cases reaching appellate courts are settled on this principle.

how similar cases have been decided in the past

how and whether court decisions are translated into actually policy thereby affecting the behavior of others

view that the constitution should be interpreted according to the original intent of hte framers

many conservatives support this view

in 1803 case in which chief justice john marshall and his associates first asserted the right of the supreme court to determined the remaining of the us constitution

the decision established the court's power of judicial review over acts of congress

the power of the courts to determine whether acts of Congress and by implication the executive are in accord w/ the us constitution

established by john marshall and his associates in Marbury v. Madison.

a judicial philosophy in which judges play minimal policymaking roles leaving that duty strictly to the legislatures

a judicial philosophy in which judges make bold policy decisions, even charting new constitutional ground

advocates of this approach emphasize that the courts can correct pressing needs, especially those unmet by the majoritarian political process

a doctrine developed by the federal courts and used as a means to avoid deciding some cases, principally those involving conflicts between the president and congress