Unit 1 Vocab
State of nature is...
a hypothetical situation of a society of people without rule
Gerrymandering
Rigging an election
Executive order
policy directives issued by presidents that don't require Congressional approval
Federal Bureaucracy
the departments and agencies within the executive branch that carry out the laws of the nation
Judicial Review
review by the US Supreme Court of the constitutional validity of a legislative act
What is the term for 2 houses
bicameral
Censure
Formally reprimand, written in the record
impeachment
to press charges against the president
Iron Triangle
coordinated and mutually beneficial activities of the bureaucracy, Congress, and interest groups to achieve shared policy goals
a question asked of a potential candidate for high office, the answer to which would determine whether the nominating official would proceed with the appointment or nomination.
Litmus Test
What is unicameral?
one house
Franking Privilege
free postage on all mail constituents
proportional method
calls for the allocation of the proceeds to each class of security based on its proportion of the total
Bureaucrat
an official employed within a government bureaucracy
writ of certiorari
orders a lower court to deliver its record in a case so that the higher court may review it
What is a faction?
A number of citizens who are united about the rights of other citizens
to edit a bill
Pocket Veto
an informal veto caused when the president decides to not sign a bill within 10 days, during the time when Congress has adjourned at the end of a session
Merit System
a system of hiring and promotion based on competitive testing results, education, and other qualifications rather than politics and personal connections
dissenting opinion
an opinion in a legal case written by one or more judges expressing disagreement with the majority opinion of the court which gives rise to its judgment
A period of time where philosophers created a movement that impacted the entire Western World is what?
Enlightenment
pigeonhole
kill a bill in a committee
Winner Take All Method
system of elections in which the candidate who wins the plurality of votes within a state receives all of that state's votes in the Electoral College
Implementation
the bureaucracy's role in putting into action the laws that Congress has passed
judicial activist
judicial rulings that are suspected of being based on personal opinion, rather than on existing law