Bicameralism

 a two-chambered institution comprised of a popularly elected House and a Senate chosen by state legislatures, allowing slaves to count as three-fifths of a person for purposes of apportionment for the House, and setting longer terms for Senators (6 years compared to the House 2 years)

 legislative appropriations that benefit specific constituents, created with the aim of helping local representatives win reelection

Gridlock

 an inability to enact legislation because of partisan conflict within Congress or between Congress and the President

Electoral connection

 the idea that congressional behavior is centrally motivated by members' desire for reelection (David Mayhew)

Descriptive representation

 when a member of Congress shares the characteristics (like gender, race, religion, or ethnicity) of his or her constituents

Substantive representation

when a member of Congress represents constituents' interests and policy concerns

Trustee

A member of Congress who represents constituents' interests while also taking into account national, collective, and moral concerns that sometimes cause a member to vote against the preference of a majority of constituents (responsible)

Delegate (congressional role)

 A member of Congress of loyally represents constituents' direct interests (responsive)

Politico

 A member of Congress who acts as a delegate on issues that constituents care about (like civil rights) and as a trustee on more complex or less salient issues (like some foreign policy or regulatory matters)

Policy responsiveness

 requires that voters express basic policy preferences, representatives respond to those desires, and then voters monitor and assess the politician's behavior

Redistricting

 Redrawing the geographic boundaries of legislative districts. This happens every 10 years to ensure that districts remain roughly equal in population

Apportionment

 the process of assigning the 435 seats in the House to the states based on increases or decreases in the state populations

Gerrymandering

 attempting to use the process of redrawing district boundaries to benefit a political party, protect incumbents, or change the proportion of minority voters in a district

Incumbency safety

 the relative infrequency with which members of Congress are defeated in their attempts for reelection

A home style

 shapes the way members allocate resources, the way incumbents present themselves to others, and the way they explain their policy positions

Casework

assistance provided by members of Congress to their constituents in solving problems with the federal bureaucracy or addressing other specific concerns

Advertising

 actions taken by a member of Congress that are unrelated to government issues but have the primary goal of making a positive impression on the public, like sending holiday cards to constituents and appearing in parades

Credit claiming

 the acceptance of credit by a member of Congress for legislation that specifically benefits his constituents

Position taking

any public statement in which a member of Congress makes her views on an issue known to her constituents

Universalism

the informal congressional norm of distributing the benefits of legislation in a way that serves the interests of as many states and districts as possible

Reciprocity

 the informal congressional norm whereby a member votes for a bill that he might not otherwise support because a colleague strongly favors it -  in exchange for the colleague's vote for a bill that the member feels strongly about (also known as logrolling)

Earmarks

 federally funded local projects attached to bills passed through Congress

Specialization

 the expertise of a member of Congress on a specific issue or area of policy. Specialization is more common in the House than the Senate, where members tend to be policy generalists

Seniority

 the informal congressional norm of choosing the member who has served the longest on a particular committee to be the committee chair

Speaker of the House

 the elected leader of the House of Representatives

Majority leader

the elected head of the party holding the majority of seats in the House or Senate

Whip system

 an organization of House leaders who work to disseminate information and promote party unity in voting on legislation

Minority leader

the elected head of the party holding the minority of seats in the House or Senate

President pro tempore

 a largely symbolic position usually held by the most senior member of the majority party in the Senate

Roll call vote

 a recorded vote on legislation; members may vote yes, no, abstain, or present

Party votes

 a vote in which the majority of one party opposes the position of the majority of the other party

Party unity

 the extent to which members of Congress in the same party vote together on party votes

Standing committees

 Committees that re a permanent part of the House or Senate structure, holding more importance and authority than other committees

Select committees

 Committees in the House or Senate created to address a specific issue for one or two terms

Joint committees

committees that contain members of both the House and Senate but have limited authority

Conference committees

temporary committees created to negotiate differences between the House and Senate versions of a piece of legislation that has passed through both chambers

Distributive theory

 the idea that members of Congress will join committees that best serve the interests of their district and that committee members will support each other's legislation

Informational theory

 the idea that having committees in Congress made up of experts on specific policy areas helps to ensure will-informed policy decisions

Veto

 the president's rejection of a bill that has been passed by Congress. A veto can be overridden by a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate

Pocket veto

 the automatic death of a bill passed by the House and Senate when the president fails to sign the bill in the last ten days of a legislative session

Omnibus legislation

 large bills that often cover several topics and my contain extraneous, or pork-barrel, projects

Suspension of the rules

 one way of moving a piece of legislation to the top of the agenda in the House: debate on the bill is limited to forty minutes, amendments are not allowed, and the bill must pass by a two-thirds votes

Cloture

a procedure through which the Senate can limit the amount of time spent debating a bill (cutting off a filibuster), if a supermajority of sixty senators agree

Filibuster

 a tactic used by senators to block a bill by continuing to hold the floor and speak - under the Senate rule of unlimited debate - until the bill's supporters back down

Closed rules

 conditions placed on a legislative debate by the House Rules Committee prohibiting the addition of amendments to bill

Open rules

 conditions placed on a legislative debate by the House Rules Committee allowing the addition of relevant amendments to a bill

Modified rules

conditions placed on a legislative debate by the House Rules Committee allowing certain amendments to a bill while barring others

Legislative veto

 a form of oversight in which Congress overturns bureaucratic decisions 

Constitutional authority (presidential)

 Powers derived from the provisions of the Constitution that outline the president's role in government

Statutory authority (presidential)

Powers derived from laws enacted by Congress that add to the powers given to the president in the Constitution

Vesting clause

 Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution, which states that "executive Power shall be vested in a President of the USA," making the president both the head of government and the head of state

Head of government

 one role of the president, through which he or she has authority over the executive branch

Head of state

one role of the president, through which he or she represents the country symbolically and politically

Recess appointment

 when a person is chosen by the president to fill a position while the Senate is not in session, thereby bypassing Senate approval; unless approved by a subsequent Senate vote, recess appointees serve only to the end of the congressional term

Executive orders

 proclamations made by the president that change government policy without congressional approval

Fast track authority

an expedited system for passing treaties under which support from simple majority, rather than a two thirds majority, is needed in both the House and Senate, and no amendments are allowed

First-mover advantage

 the president's power to initiate treaty negotiations. Congress cannot initiate treaties and can only consider them once they have been negotiated

Executive agreement

an agreement between the executive branch and a foreign government which acts as a treaty but does not require Senate approval

State of the Union

an annual speech in which the president addresses Congress to report on the condition of the country and recommend policies

Executive privilege

 the right of the president to keep executive branch conversations and correspondence confidential from the legislative and judicial branches

Presidential approval

the percentage of Americans who feel that the president is doing a good job in office

Go public

 a president's use of speeches and other public communications to appeal directly to citizens about issues the president would like the House and Senate to act on

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

the group of policy related offices that serve as support staff to the president

Cabinet

the group of fifteen executive department heads who implement the president's agenda in their respective positions

Unilateral action (presidential)

any policy decision made and acted upon by the president and his staff without the explicit approval or consent of Congress

Unitary executive theory

the idea that the vesting clause of the Constitution gives the president the authority to issue orders and policy directives that cannot be undone by Congress

Signing statement

 a document issued by the president when signing a bill into law explaining his interpretation of the law, which often differs from the interpretation of Congress, in an attempt to influence how the law will be implemented

Impeachment

a negative or checking power of Congress over the other branches allowing them to remove the president, vice president, or other "officers of the United States" for abuses of power

Bureaucracy

the system of civil servants and political appointees who implement congressional or presidential decisions; also known as the administrative state

Civil servants

 employees of bureaucratic agencies within the government

Political appointees

 people selected by an elected leader, such as the president, to hold a government position

Regulation

 a rule that allows the government to exercise control over individuals and corporations by restricting certain behaviors

Notice and comment procedure

 a step in the rule-making process in which proposed rules are published in the Federal Register and made available for debate by the general public

Street-level bureaucrats

 agency employees who directly provide services to the public, such as those who provide job training services

State capacity

 the knowledge, personnel, and institutions that the government requires to effectively implement policies

Red tape

excessive or unnecessarily complex regulations imposed by the bureaucracy

Standard operating procedures

rules that lower-level bureaucrats must follow when implementing policies

Problem of control

a difficulty faced by elected officials in ensuring that when bureaucrats implement policies, they follow these officials' intentions but still have enough discretion to use their expertise

Principal-agent game

the interaction between a principal (like the president of Congress), who needs something done, and an agent (like a bureaucrat), who is responsible for carrying out the principal's orders

Regulatory capture

a situation in which bureaucrats favor the interests of the groups or corporations they are supposed to regulate at the expense of the general public

Neutral competence

the idea, credited to theorist Max Weber, which suggests that bureaucrats should provide expertise without the influence of elected officials, interest groups, or their own political agendas

Spoils system

people who had worked for campaign's such as Jackson's campaign were rewarded with new positions in the federal government

Federal civil service

 a system created by the 1883 Pendleton Civil Service Act in which bureaucrats are hired on the basis of merit rather than political connections

 a system created by the 1883 Pendleton Civil Service Act in which bureaucrats are hired on the basis of merit rather than political connections

Office of Management and Budget

an office of the president that is responsible for creating the president's annual budget proposal to Congress, reviewing proposed rules, and other budget-related tasks

Independent agencies

government offices or organizations that provide government services and are not part of an executive department

Budget maximizers

bureaucrats who seek to increase funding for their agency whether or not that additional spending is worthwhile

Turkey farms

 agencies where campaign workers and donors are often appointed to reward them for their service because it is unlikely that their lack of qualifications will lead to bad policy

Bureaucratic drift

bureaucrats' tendency to implement policies in a way that favors their own political objectives rather than following the original intentions of the legislation

Oversight

congressional efforts to make sure that laws are implemented correctly by the bureaucracy after they have been passed

Police patrol oversight

a method of oversight in which members of Congress constantly monitor the bureaucracy to make sure that laws are implemented correctly

Fire alarm oversight

a method of oversight in which members of Congress respond to complaints about the bureaucracy or problems of implementation only as they arise rather than exercising constant vigilance

Judiciary act of 1789

the law in which Congress laid out the organization of the federal judiciary. The law refined and clarified federal court jurisdiction and set the original number of justices at six. It also created the Office of the Attorney General and established the lower federal courts

District courts

 lower level trial courts of the federal judiciary system that handle most U.S. federal cases

Appellate jurisdiction

the authority of a court to hear appeals from lower courts and change or uphold the decision

Judicial review

 the Supreme Court's power to strike down a law or executive branch action that it finds unconstitutional

Writs of mandamus

orders issued by a higher court to a lower court, government official, or government agency to perform acts required by law

Constitutional interpretation

the process of determining whether a piece of legislation or governmental action is supported by the Constitution

Statutory interpretation

 the various methods and tests used by the courts for determining the meaning of a law and applying it to specific situations

Plaintiff

 the person or party who brings a case to court

Defendant

 the person or party against whom a case is brought

Verdict

 the final decision in a court case

Plea bargain

 an agreement between a plaintiff and defendant to settle a case before it goes to trial or the verdict is decided

Standard of proof

 the amount of evidence needed to determine the outcome of a case. The standard is higher in a criminal case than in a civil one

Burden of proof

 the responsibility of having to prove guilt; it tests with the plaintiff in criminal cases but could be with either party in a civil trial

Adversarial system

a two-sided court structure in which lawyers on both sides of a case attempt to prove their argument over their opponents' version of the case

Common law

law based on the precedent of previous court rulings rather than on legislation

Precedent

 a legal norm established in court cases that is then applied to future cases dealing with the same legal questions

Standing

 legitimate justification for bringing a civil case to court

Jurisdiction

 the sphere of a court's legal authority to hear and decide cases

Constitutional courts

those courts established under Article III of the Constitution: the Supreme Court, district courts, and appeals courts

Legislative courts

limited jurisdiction courts created by Congress under article I of the Constitution

Appeals courts

 the intermediate level of federal courts that hear appeals from district courts. More generally, an appeals court is any court with appellate jurisdiction

Senatorial courtesy

a norm in the nomination of district court judges in which the president consults with his party's senators from the relevant state in choosing the nominee

Docket

 a calendar listing of cases that have been submitted to a court

Original jurisdiction

 the authority of a court to handle a case first, as in the Supreme Court's authority to initially hear disputes between two states

Cases on appeal

cases brought before the Supreme Court because Congress has determined that they require the Court's attention

Writ of certification

 an uncommon way in which a case is brought before the Supreme Court, whereby an appeals court asks the Court to clarify federal law in regards to a particular case

Writ of certiorari

the most common way for a case to reach the Supreme Court, in which at least four of the nine justices agree to hear a case that has reached them via an appeal from the losing party in a lower court's ruling

Collusion

 agreement between the litigants on the desired outcome of a case, causing a federal court to decline to hear the case. More generally, collusion can refer to any kind of conspiracy or complicity

Mootness

 the irrelevance of a case by the time it is received by a federal court, causing the court to decline to hear the case

Ripeness

a system initiated in the Supreme Court in the 1970s in which law clerks screen cases that come to the Supreme Court and recommend to the justices which cases should be heard

Cert pool

 a system initiated in the Supreme Court in the 1970s in which law clerks screen cases that come to the Supreme Court and recommend to the justices which cases should be heard

Solicitor general

 a presidential appointee in the Department of Justice who represents the federal government when it is a party to a case

Briefs

written documents prepared by both parties in a case, and sometimes by outside groups, presenting their arguments in court

Amicus curiae

 Latin for "friend of the court," referring to an interested group or person who shares relevant information about a case to help the Court reach a decision

Oral arguments

 spoken presentations made in person by the lawyers of each party to a judge or appellate court outlining the legal reasons why their side should prevail 

Strict Constitution

a way of interpreting the Constitution based on its language alone

Original intent

the theory that justices should surmise the intentions of the Founders when the language of the Constitution is unclear

Living Constitution

a way of interpreting the Constitution that takes into account evolving national attitudes and circumstances rather than the text alone

Attitudinalist approach

 a way of understanding decisions of the Supreme Court based on the political ideologies of the justices

Judicial restraint

 the idea that the Supreme Court should defer to the democratically elected executive and legislative branches of government rather than contradicting existing laws

Judicial activism

 the idea that the Supreme Court should assert its interpretation of the law even if it overrules the elected executive and legislative branches of government