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Definition
| various modes of communication intended to reach a mass audience - including television, radio, newspapers, newsmagazines, and the Internet. |
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| the media's role in keeping a close eye on politicians and presenting stories and information that politicians might not willingly reveal to the media on their own. |
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| government intervention to prevent the publication of material it finds objectionable |
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| a focus in election coverage on who and what are up or down in the latest poll numbers |
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| favorable treatment to certain politicians, policy positions, groups, and political outcomes |
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| the belief that change in voting intent as a result of mass media exposure was relatively rare |
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| the media role in determining which issues the public consideres important, by covering some issues and ignoring others |
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| the tendency of the public to assess the performance of the president, or presidential candidates, in terms of the issues that the media have emphasized as most important |
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| the act of seeing, hearing, or reading a particular media message |
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| unerstanding a message to which one has been exposed |
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| an individual's openness to accepting a message communicated through the media |
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| an individual's general attention to and knowledge of politics |
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| the interests, values, and experiences that help organize one's thinking about politics |
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| organized groups with public followings that seek to elect officeholders who identify themselves by the group's common label, for the purpose of exercising political power. |
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| a situation where the presidency and both houses of Congress are controlled by the same party |
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| a situation where the presidency is held by one party and at least one house of Congress is controlled by a different party |
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| a system of electoral competition in which two parties are consistently the most likely to win office and gain power. |
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| electoral districts in which only one person is elected to represent the district in a representative body |
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| elections in which the candidate with the most votes, not necessarily a majority, wins. |
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Term
| proportional representation (PR) |
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Definition
| an electino sstem in which candidates are elected from multi-member districts, with a party's share of seats from a district being roughly proportional to their share of the popular vote |
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| a strategy in which third parties endorse a major-party candidate but list that candidate separately on the ballot so that voters can vote for the candidate under the third-party label. |
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| an official government-produced ballot for elections that lists all offices and all the candidates and parties who have quialified to be on the ballot. |
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| the idea that political parties should run as unified teams, present a clear policy platform, implement that platform when in office, and run on their record in the subsequent election. |
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| a change in the partisan base of support for an issue over time, such that the position of Democrats and Republicans switch. |
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| a shift in the composition of party coalitions that produces a new, relatively durable pattern of party competition. |
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| a substantial reduction in the proportion of the voting population consistently voting for and identifying with one party. |
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| disciplined local party organizations that selected candidates; got out the vote; provided benefits to supporters including government workers, local constituents, and businesses; and served as social service agencies for their followers. |
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| awarding jobs in government on the basis of party support and loyalty rather than expertise or experience. |
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| a set of political and electoral reforms in the early twentieth century that had the combined effect of weakening political parties. |
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| national party convention |
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Definition
| a meeting held over several days at which delegates select the party's presidential nominee, approve the party platform, and consider changes in party rules and policies. |
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| a document expressing the principles, beliefs, and policy positions of the party, as endorsed by delegates at the national party convention. |
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| organizations that seek to influence government decisions. |
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| a society in which all groups are well represented and no single interest controls government decisions. |
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| unorganized groups that may organize if their needs are not addressed. |
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| decisions not to consider particular issues or incorporate them into the policy agenda |
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| the set of issues under consideration by policymakers. |
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| theory that holds that when social, politicals, and economic relationships change, individuals form groups in response. |
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| a barrier to collective action because people can reap the benefits of group efforts without participating. |
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| communications with government officials intended to persuade them towards a particular policy decision. |
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| benefits that can only be accessed by those who participate in or contribute to group activity. |
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| goods and services offered to encourage participation in group activity. |
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| benefits that encourage individuals to join groups in order to enjoy the company of those who share similar opinions and interests. |
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Definition
| benefits that encourage group participation by connecting individuals to an organizations political purpose. |
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| interest group entrepreneurs |
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Definition
| inidividuals who overcome the costs of collective action by launching and managing interest groups. |
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| individuals who support interest groups by providing the resources groups need to organize and flourish. |
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Term
| political action committee (PAC) |
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Definition
| a group that collects money from individuals and makes donations to political parties and candidates. |
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| funds donated to elect or defeat candidates but not coordinated with any political campaign. |
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| the practice of collecting individual checks and presenting them to a candidate at one time. |
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| independent, non-party groups that raise and spend money on political activities. |
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| when groups meet directly with public officials to influence political decisions. |
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| efforts to influence political decisions through constituent contacts (also called outside lobbying) |
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Definition
| an insitution consisting of two chambers |
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Definition
| performed by the House of Representatives, the act of charging government officials with "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." The Senate, then, has the responsibilty of deciding whether to actually convict and remove the president. |
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| the people who reside within an elected official's political jurisdiction |
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| the individual in an election who currently holds the contested office; as distinct from the challenger, who seeks to remove the incumbent from power. |
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Definition
| the direct assistance that members of Congress give to individuals and groups within a district or state. |
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Term
| delegate model of representation |
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Definition
| the type of representation by which representatives are elected to do the bidding of the people who elected them; representatives are "delegates" in that they share the same policy positions as the voters and promise to act upon them. |
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Term
| trustee model of representation |
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Definition
| the type of representation by which representatives are elected to do what they think is best for their constituents. |
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Term
| collective action problem |
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Definition
| a problem that arises when individuals' incentives lead them to aviod taking actions that are best for the group as a whole, and that they themselves would like to see accomplished. |
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| committees made up of members of both chambers of Congress to conduct special investigations or studies. |
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| smaller organizational units within committee that specialize in particular segments of the committee's responsibilities. |
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| the length of time a legislator has served in office |
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| the gathering of all Democratic members of the House or Senate |
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| the gathering of all Republican members of the House or Senate |
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| the person who presides over the House and serves as the chamber's official spokesperson |
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Definition
| the individual in each chamber who manages the floor; in the Senate, he or she is the msot powerful member in the chamber; in the house, he or she is the chief lieutenant of the Speaker. |
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Definition
| the individual who speaks on behalf of the party that controls the smaller number of seats in each chamber |
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| designated members of Congress who deliver messages from the party leaders, keep track of members' votes, and encourage members to stand together on key issues. |
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| the member(s) of Congress who introduces a bill. |
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Definition
| the process by which the members of a committee or a subcommittee rewrte, delete, and add portions of a bill. |
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Definition
| the terms and conditions applied to a particular bill that allow members of Congress to make a wide range of amendments to it. |
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Definition
| the terms and conditions applied to a particular bill that restrict the types of amendments that can be made to it. |
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| a procedure by which senators delay or prevent action on a bill by making long speeches and engaging in unlimited debate. |
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| a mechanism by which 60 or more senators can end a filibuster and cut off debate. |
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Definition
| a committee made up of members of both chambers that is responsible for ironing out the differences between House and Senate versions of a bill. |
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| the president's rejection of a bill passed by both chambers of Congress, which prevents the bill from becoming law. |
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Definition
| the power to decide whether a particular proposal or policy change will be considered. |
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| a condition of a law that requires it to be re-authorized after a certain number of years. |
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Definition
| the granting of lefal authority to operate federal programs and agencies. |
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| the granting of funds to operate authorized federal programs and agencies. |
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| federal funds that support specific local projects. |
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Definition
| funds used to keep programs up and running when regular appropriations have not been approved by the end of the fiscal year. |
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| supplemental appropriations |
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Definition
| the process by which Congress and the president can provide temporary funding for government activities and programs when funds fall short due to unforeseen circumstances. |
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Term
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Definition
| the meeting, in each states and the District of Columbia, of electors who cast votes to elect the president. In most states, electors are required by law to vote for the winner of the popular vote in that state. |
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Term
| necessary and expedient clause |
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Definition
| a clause in Article II, Section 3, of the Constitution that authorizes the president to recomment legislation to Congress |
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Definition
| the constitutional clause that grants the president the authority and leeway to determine if laws are being "faithfully executed" and to take action if in his judgment they are not. |
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Definition
| the idea that executive branch officials need to be able to advise the president in confidence, and that the president has a right to prevent that advice from becoming public. |
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Definition
| the granting of authority by Congress to the president to be the first or main actor in a policy area, usually with implicit or explicit limits on actions that Congress would find acceptable. |
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Definition
| the ability to influence and guide others to achieve some desired policy or action. |
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Definition
| specific grants of authority defined in the Constitution or in law. |
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Definition
| the president's power to reject legislation passed by Congress. Congress can override this with a 2/3 vote in both the House and Senate |
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Definition
| the president's veto of a bill without the opportunity for Congress to override the veto. It occurs if the president does not act on a bill within ten days after passage by Congress and Congress adjourns during that time. |
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Definition
| a form of veto power that allows the chief executive to veto portions of bills rather than entire bills. Over 40 US governors enjoy some form of this power, but presidents do not have this power. |
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Definition
| an agreement with a foreign country that does not require changes in US law of congressional approval |
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Definition
| a presidential directive or proclamation that has the force of law. |
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Definition
| the percentage of the public that approves of the job the president is doing overall. |
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Definition
| short-term international event or military action that boosts presidential approval ratings temporarily. |
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Definition
| activities of presidents such as highly visible trips, press conferences, interviews, speeches, and public appearances in an attempt to raise public support for a policy agenda. |
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Definition
| the idea that the public provided clear policy guidance in the results of the prior election. |
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Definition
| a group of the top-ranking officials of every major federal department, plus other officials included by the president, who meet periodically with the president to discuss major administration priorities and policies. |
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Term
| Executive Office of the President |
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Definition
| a group of agencies in the executive branch that primarily generate policy alternatives for the president's consideration. |
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Definition
| a group of officials in the executive branch that provides the president with political advice, promotes the president's program with legislators and interes groups, and handles the president's public relations. |
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Definition
| the first tier of the federal judiciary where most cases are decided. |
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Definition
| judges who support federal district judges by hearing and deciding minor cases at the district court level. |
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Definition
| the second tier of the federal judiciary, which is primarily responsible for reviewing the decisions redered by the first tier of district courts. |
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| the highest court in the land, where all decisions are final. |
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Definition
| a formal acceptance by the Supreme Court to review a decision of a lower court. |
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Definition
| the right of a court to be the first to hear a case rather than simply reivew the dceision of a lower court. |
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| documents that contain the legal arguments of a dispute. |
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| a lawyer's spoken presentation of the legal reason she thinks her side should prevail. |
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Definition
| the confidential gathering of justices in which they dicuss their thoughts about the case and cast preliminary votes. |
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Definition
| the presiding member of the Supreme Court who serves as chair of the conference and selects the justiec who will write the majority opinion of the court. |
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Definition
| the written document that reflects the collective judgment of the justices who are on the majority side of a ruling. |
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Definition
| a document written by a justice on the majority side of a ruling which outlines additional considerations she thinks are important. |
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Definition
| a document wrriten by a justice on the minority side of a ruling which outlines her own reasoning on the case and identifies the floaws that she percerives in the majority opinion. |
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Definition
| the party who initiates a lawsuit by filing a complaint. |
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Definition
| the party being sued or accused of a crime. |
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Definition
| a group of private citizens selected to listen to a trial and issue a final verdict. |
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Definition
| a case that involves a violation of the statutes that are intended to protect the public's health, order, and safety, and morality. |
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Definition
| a case that concerns a violation of the legal rights or obligations of one individual toward another. |
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Definition
| a lawsuit in which the plaintiff is a group of individuals who have suffered a common injury. |
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Definition
| the requirement establishing that for a plaintiff to bring a case to court, he or she must have suffered a well-defined injury that is a result of violation of the civil code. |
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| principle by which the courts will only accept cases where the actual harm has already taken place. |
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Definition
| an agreement between the prosecutor and the defendant in a criminal case through which the parties agree to a specified crime and punishment. |
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Definition
| law made by judges when no legislation currently exists. |
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Definition
| those laws enacted by presidents and Congress that define the relationship between individuals (and organizations) and the state. |
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Definition
| the power of the judiciary to interpret and overturn actions taken by the legislative and executive branches of government |
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Definition
| a theory of judicial decision-making in which judges make decisions by deciphering the correct interpretation of the law and the relevant portion of the Constitution, and determining whether there is a conflict between the two. |
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Definition
| the principle that judges deciding a case must carefully weigh the decisions of their predecessors in similar cases and come tot he same decision if the basic elements of the case before them are the same. |
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Definition
| the practice judges engage in when they limit the exercise of their own power by only overturning past decisions when they are clearly unconstitutional. |
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Definition
| the tendency of judges to give themselve leeway in deciding whther to adbide by past court decisions or not, which allows them to consider possible outcomes, public opinion, and their own preferences before issueing a ruling. |
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Definition
| the theory of judicial decision-making in which judges use their own policy preferences in deciding cases. |
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Definition
| the theory of judicial decision-making in which judges consider their own policy preferences as weel as the possible actions of the other branches of government when making decisions. |
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Definition
| the individual who represents the federal government in the Supreme Court. |
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Definition
| a brief written by someone who is not a party to a case but who submits information or an argyument related to the dispute at hand. |
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Definition
| the custom by which the senior senator from the state in which there is a district court vacancy assists the president in selecting a replacement for that seat. |
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| functions of political parties |
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Definition
- mass electoral choice --> cognitive shortcut
- popular influence in government
- government responsiveness and electoral competition
- widely inclusive organizations --> many different type of Repubs and Dems
- mobilize voters
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