Chapter 10 - Honors Civcs & Gov.

the overall purpose of the bicameral legislature is..

to balance political power; there are two houses made up of this legislature

the main idea of a term in Congress is..

to keep everything even and consecutive; a congress allows the government to be divided in a way that helps the overall progress of the economy (yeah sure)

the main idea of a session of Congress is..

to give a time period in which government officials discuss different topics

what does it mean to adjourn?

to suspend; usually referred to in sentences with session (ex: the session was adjourned due to complications)

what does it mean to take recess?

to take recess means to essentially take a lawful break

what does prorogue mean?

to completely discontinue a session

the main idea of special sessions is..

to discuss something in the case of an emergency (and only in the case of an emergency)

who can call special sessions?

the president, and the president only

what is an example of a reason to call a special session?

a war, economic crisis, etc.

what 2 ways are the house apportioned

by state and based off of population

how long is the term of a representative?

2 years long

are there limits to the terms of a representative?

no, not currently

the main idea of reapportionment in the house is..

to prove that each political district is created equally

the date of the congressional election is...

the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each even numbered year

the main idea of off-year elections is..

that they are elections that are based in between a time in which there are no big elections like the presidential election; they are placed that way so they are treated with as much importance

the party that holds the presidency may lose seats in the off-year election, why is that?

this could be because of how the current voters aren't in favor of how the chosen party is acting, so they could lean to the other side

the main idea of a single-member district is..

to elect one of the State's reps from the field of candidates

why do certain states conduct "at-large" elections?

because every voter could vote for a candidate for each state seats in the house

what is gerrymandering?

when districts or areas are drawn to the advantage of the political party that controls the legislature

what is an example of gerrymandering?

restricting access due to race/minority

the main idea of the wesberry v. sanders Supreme Court case is..

that gerrymandering due to something like race is cruel & unusual

gerrymandering is considered unconstitutional in the case of..

seperation of race, income, political party, etc.

the formal qualifications for a member of the House are..

to be a U.S citizen for 7 years, be 25+, and live in the state you are representing

how many senators are from each state?

2 senators

the main idea of the election process of Senators is..

the term length of Senators is..

6 years long

the main idea of what Senators represent is..

a little portion of their state, and they overview presidential business; they look at the big picture, not miniscule details and issues

the main qualifications for Senators are..

to be 30+ years old, be a citizen for 9+ years, and to live in the state they are elected

examples of the demographics of the Current congress include the fact that..

most members are religious, almost 30% are women, the average of the Congress is white men in their 50's, etc.

the 5 major roles members of Congress play are..

legislators, representatives, committee members, servants of constituents, and politicians

what do legislators do?

make laws

what do representatives do?

make public policies

what do committee members do?

serve on committees

what do servants of constituents do?

assist constituents with ceremonial tasks

what do politicians do?

create campaigns to be elected officials

the 4 voting options for lawmakers are..

trustees, delegates, partisans, and politicos

what's a description of a trustee/what they do?

they are self driven voters, and follow whatever their mind tells them

what's a description of a delegate/what they do?

they believe they should vote the way they think, and are open minded votes; they vote on behalf of their constituents (their voters)

what's a description of a partisan/what they do?

they vote in line with their party, and don't align with their personal beliefs no matter how much they want to

what's a description of a politico/what they do?

they have a combination of trustee, delegate, and partisan; they try to please in the same way as all three parties and try to remain unbiased

a committee is..

a group of people coming together from different backgrounds to discuss different topics and issues

types of committees include..

financial, fundraising, etc.

2 examples of the House and Senate acting as public servants to their constituents include..

try to help with federal bureaucracy, passport accessibility, property disputes, etc.

examples of membership benefits include..

a large travel balance, can use their signature instead of a postal stamp, et.c

some facts about the House are..

they are public servants, they rule committee, and they initiate all revenue bills; they are more influential on budget

some facts about the Senate are..

it is a continuous body, they are influential on foreign affairs, and have unlimited debates (time wise)

how the House makes policies

these meetings are lead by the Speaker of the house, which is elected by House members; they are assisted by majority leader and whips

how the Senate makes policies

assisted by whips only, they must work with minority leader, and formally lead by the Vice President

government oversight is to..

keep an eye on the executive branch

the representative constituents are to..

look out for the interests of the people in their state or district

the politicians are to..

support and advance the interests/agenda of the political party they belong to

the 4 types of committees are..

standing, joint, conference, and select

standing committees..

handle different policy areas

joint committees..

have few policy areas; its made up of House and Senate members

conference committees..

resolve differences in House and Senate bills

select committees..

are created for specific purposes

legislation and oversight include..

committees that work of 11,000 bills every season, involve hearings and other methods of checking the actions of the executive branch, and hold hearings and markup meetings

getting on a committee includes..

members wanting committee assignments that will help them get reelected, the support of the party being important in getting on the right committee, and new members expressing their committee preferences to party leaders

chairs and the seniority system include..

the chair being the most important position for controlling legislation, seniority being a general rule, and chairs being once chosen by strictly by the seniority system

personal staff..

work for the member; mainly providing consitutient service but also with legislation

the committee staff..

organizes hearings, and research & write legislation

state agencies include..

CRS, GAO, & CBO; they provide specific information to Congress

occupations of congress include.. (the most popular sectors)

law, education, politics, business, etc.

facts about legislation include..

party leaders play vital roles in steering bills through both houses, but less in Senate, have countless influences on the legislative process, and only members of Congress can introduce bills