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Civics Chap6 terms ~
Chapter 6
Question | Answer |
---|---|
bicameral | a legislature consisting of two parts, or houses. |
Census | a population count taken by the Census |
Constituent | a person from a legislator's district |
Gerrymander | an oddly shaped election district designed to increase the voting strength of a particular group. |
Majority Party | in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, the political party to which more than half the members belong |
Minority Party | in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, the political party to which fewer than half the members belong. |
Standing Committee | permanent committee that continues work from session to session in its Congress |
Seniority | years of service, which is used as a consideration for assigning committee members. |
Expressed powers | powers that Congress has that are specifically listed in the Constitution |
Implied powers | powers that Congress has that are not stated explicitly in the Constitution. |
Elastic clause | clause in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution that gives Congress the right to makes all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out its expressed powers. |
Impeach | to accuse government officials of misconduct in office. |
Writ of habeas corpus | a court order that requires police to bring a prisoner to court to explain why they are holding the person. |
bill of attainder | a law that punishes a person accused of a crime without a trial or a fair hearing in court. |
ex post facto law | a law that would allow a person to be punished for an action that was not against the law when it was committed. |
Franking privilege | the right of senators and representatives to send job-related mail without paying postage. |
lobbyist | representative of an interest group who contacts lawmakers or other government officials directly to influence their policy making. |
casework | the work that a lawmaker does to help consistent without a problem. |
pork-barrel project | government project grant that primarily benefits the home district or state |
joint resolution | a resolution that is passed by both houses of Congress. |
special-interest group | an organization of people without common interest who try to influence government decisions |
filibuster | a tactic for defeating a bill in the Senate by talking until the bill's sponsor withdraws it. |
cloture | a procedure used in the Senate to limit debate on a bill. |
voice vote | a voting method in which those in favor say "yea" and those against say "No" |
standing vote | In Congress, when members stand to be counted for a vote on a bill. |
roll-call vote | a voting method in the Senate in which members voice their votes in turn. |
veto | refusal to sign a bill or resolution |
pocket veto | president's power to kill a bill, if Congress is not in session, by not signing it for 10 days. |