election commissiona commission delegated to supervise an election
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Politico
Majority-minority districtsdrawing district boundaries to give a minority group a majority
Midterm electionscongressional elections held between presidential elections
money used by national, state, or local party organizations that is not regulated by the Federal Election Commission
Strict constitutionalist
Superdelegates
the process of redrawing congressional and state legislative districts to reflect population changes in the census; responsibility for redistricting usually falls to the state legislatures; follows reapportionment
Filibuster
Whipa majority/minority party leader in Congress who makes sure the party members are present for important votes and vote by party
Rider
Trial balloontests the public reaction to policy or appointments by releasing information to the media and gauging public reaction
Iron triangle
Congressional reviewCongress's authority to review a new federal regulation enacted by a regulatory agency and overrule it through a joint resolution
Lobbyingattempting to influence policymakers through a variety of methods
an agreement by every senator to the terms of debate on a given piece of legislation
Political efficacy
Symbolic speechusing actions and symbols rather than words to convey an idea
the president's power to reject a bill passed by Congress
Enumerated powerspowers that the Constitution specifically grants to the federal government
a rule of evidence that says that if the authorities act "in good faith," evidence that otherwise might have been excluded may be admissible. Modifies Mapp v. Ohio
Legislative Branchunder Article I of the Constitution, the legislative branch consists of the House and Senate, which together form the US Congress; the prime responsibility is to make laws
Federal questiona question of law based on interpretation of the US Constitution, federal laws, or treaties
a written document submitted to a court that presents the facts and legal reasoning of a party to the lawsuit
the difference in any year between government spending and government revenue
Constituencyservice casework; assistance to constituents by congressional members
Direct democracydemocracy citizens meet and make decisions about public policy issues; there are no elected officials; also called participatory democracy
Electoratepeople qualified to vote
Precedentstandards or guides based on prior decisions that serve as a rule for settling similar disputes
Mandates
District courts
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to social norms and values, tough on criminals
double jeopardy
Civil rightspositive acts of government designed to prevent discrimination and provide equality before the law. What the government should do.
Anti-Federaliststhose opposed to the ratification of the Constitution because it gave too much power to the central government at the expense of the states and the lack of a bill of rights
Substantive due process
Public policy
application of portions of the Bill of Rights to the states under the 14th Amendment
a group of private citizens whose goal is to influence and shape public policy
corporation a corporation that may receive part of its funding from Congress and is managed by a board appointed by the president; the function it performs could be carried out by private enterprise; an example is the US Postal service
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)Before police interrogate, suspect must learn of rights like the Fifth Amendment
Vetothe president's power to reject a bill passed by Congress
an unauthorized release of information to the press from someone in the government
Necessary and Proper Clause (Elastic Clause)gives Congress the powers to pass all laws necessary and proper to carry out their constitutional duties, found in Article I, Section 8, Clause 18; also called the elastic clause
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Cabinetgovernment departments headed by presidential appointees to help establish public policy and operate a specific policy area of governmental activity
De facto segregationsegregation that results from living patterns rather than law
SuperPACpolitical organizations that use contributions from individuals, corporations, and labor unions to spend unlimited sums independent from the campaigns, yet influencing the outcome of elections
a law that makes a person guilty of a crime without a trial; neither Congress nor the states can enact such a law Constitutionally
the exchange of political favors for support of a bill; an agreement between two or more members of Congress to vote for each other's bills
Floor leadersdirect majority or minority party strategy and decisions in the House and Senate
Diplomacy
Initiative
Deregulationthe process of reducing or completely eliminating federal government oversight of an industry so as to allow it to operate more freely; used to encourage competition and reduce costs to consumers
independentspeople who have no party affiliation
the first written constitution of the United States, which went into effect in 1781; it created a unicameral legislature, in which each state had one vote but no executive or judicial authority; the power of the central government was extremely limited
Political action committees (PAC$)extension of an interest group that contributes money to political campaigns
Dealignmentwhen a significant number of voters choose to no longer support a particular political party
distribution of congressional representatives among the states, based on the population of each state
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Administrative Discretionthe flexibility a federal agency can exercise in implementing legislation through its rules and regulations. the authority delegated to bureaucrats to use their expertise and judgment when determining how to implement public policy.