Deck 9: Congress

Question 1

Committees dealing with appropriations, taxes, and finance are sometimes called __________.

A) conference committees
B) juice committees
C) task forces
D) joint committees

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Majority and minority party whips attempt to __________.

A) maintain contact with party members
B) punish party members who ignore party leaders
C) organize PACs for presidents
D) maximize the influence of special-interest caucuses

Answer 2

A

Question 3

There are __________ seats in the House of Representatives.

A) 385
B) 415
C) 435
D) 455

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The real leader of the Senate in terms of power is the ___________.

A) vice president
B) president pro tempore
C) majority leader
D) speaker

Question 5

States with the __________ populations gain seats.

A) largest immigrant
B) most diverse
C) fastest-growing
D) youngest

Question 6

The __________ holds a leadership position in the Senate, although the position has none of the House Speakership's potential for control chamber organization and proceedings.

A) speaker
B) majority leader
C) minority whip
D) majority whip

Question 7

Who determines party ratios on each committee?

A) the Speaker of the House
B) the president of the Senate
C) the majority party
D) the president's cabinet

Question 8

__________ occurs when a district's boundaries are devised to maximize the political advantage of a party or racial group.

A) Redistricting
B) Reapportionment
C) Gerrymandering
D) Ticket-splitting

Question 9

In the 112th Congress, women comprise 51 percent of the population but only about ___________ percent of the membership.

A) 5
B) 10
C) 17
D) 20

Question 10

How many members of Congress hold college degrees?

A) one-third
B) only half
C) two-thirds
D) nearly all

Question 11

The description of Congress and its powers is found in Article __________ of the Constitution.

A) I
B) II
C) III
D) IV

Question 12

Senators must __________.

A) be 35 years old
B) live in the states they represent
C) have been a citizen for seven years
D) be a member of a state bar association

Question 13

What is a formal requirement for being a member of the House of Represenative?

A) Members must reside in the state of representation.
B) Members must be 35 years old.
C) Members must be born in the United States or its territories.
D) Members must be 30 years old.

Question 14

Though fairly powerless, the position of president of the Senate is held by the __________.

A) vice president
B) senior House representative
C) speaker of the Senate
D) Senate majority leader

Question 15

The Founders intended Congress to be __________.

A) run according to informal norms
B) the dominant branch of government
C) chosen by public-spirited state legislators
D) run by powerful, experienced senior members

Question 16

The selection of a House Speaker has become __________.

A) a Cabinet issue
B) the Senate's responsibility
C) the larger states' task
D) a partisan matter

Question 17

James Madison proclaims in Federalist Paper 51 that Congress _________.

A) is "first in the hearts of the people"
B) has "access to the pockets of the people"
C) is "the most respected branch in government"
D) is "the most trusted branch in government"

Question 18

A congressperson getting money added to the budget for highway construction in the his or her home district is practicing __________.

A) pork barrel funding
B) gerrymandering
C) franking
D) log rolling

Question 19

Congress is composed of __________ voting members.

A) 535
B) 100
C) 435
D) 50

Question 20

Reapportionment is __________.

A) re-allocating the federal budget based on the latest U.S. census
B) allocation of seats among the states based on the latest U.S. census
C) re-drawing the congressional district boundaries
D) a form of gerrymandering

Question 21

Congressional members who become experts and are influential in a few policy areas are said to be __________.

A) few and far between
B) specializing
C) gerrymandering
D) reciprocating

Question 22

Congressional oversight mainly involves monitoring the __________.

A) bureaucracy
B) global policy
C) executive branch
D) state courts

Question 23

A major function of subcommittees is to __________.

A) raise campaign funds for members
B) initiate discharge petitions, when necessary
C) return all bills to the House or Senate for deliberation
D) screen bills with little chance of passage

Question 24

The committee that reconciles the differences between the House and Senate versions of the same bill is the __________ committee.

A) ad hoc
B) conference
C) rules
D) select

Question 25

Which of the following presidents had the most vetoes overridden?

A) Ronald Reagan
B) George H. W. Bush
C) Bill Clinton
D) George W. Bush

Question 26

What term refers to the actions that Congress takes to allow agencies and departments to operate?

A) supplemental bills
B) authorizations
C) appropriations
D) federal budgeting

Question 27

A committee formed to investigate a specific problem is called a(n) ____________.

A) select or special committee
B) ad hoc committee
C) subcommittee
D) special subcommittee

Question 28

Powers of Congress that are explicitly stated in the Constitution are referred to as what?

A) implied powers
B) informal norms
C) enumerated powers
D) common law

Question 29

A supermajority in the U.S. Senate requires __________ votes.

A) 51
B) 55
C) 60
D) 100

Question 30

Congressional explicit constitutional powers include __________.

A) the power to declare war
B) the power to nominate judges
C) command of the armed forces
D) the power of majority leaders

Question 31

What congressional agency checks on the efficiency and effectiveness of executive agencies?

A) the Federal Communications Commission
B) the Congressional Research Office
C) the Government Accountability Office
D) the Congressional Budgeting Office

Question 32

Which set of powers allows Congress to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out the Constitution?

A) enumerated powers
B) legislative powers
C) implied powers
D) representative powers

Question 33

The phrase "you support my bill, and I'll support yours" exemplifies which congressional norm?

A) specialization
B) appropriation
C) logrolling
D) socialization

Question 34

The committee chairs are selected by __________..

A) the president of the Senate
B) the Senate majority leader
C) party whips
D) special committees

Question 35

What is necessary to end a filibuster or a close debate on an issue?

A) senatorial vote
B) 3/4ths vote of members
C) cloture vote
D) ending vote

Question 36

_________ minimize(s) friction and encourage(s) civility both on and off the floor of Congress.

A) Ethics codes
B) Seniority rules
C) Parliamentary rules
D) Informal norms

Question 37

Earmarks are __________.

A) a series of cloture votes
B) actions within joint committees
C) money set aside in the budget at the request of a member
D) agency financing authorization

Question 38

Standing committees are split into smaller entities called __________, which hold jurisdiction over part of a committee's area of responsibility.

A) low committees
B) subcommittees
C) joint committees
D) door committees

Question 39

Why are taxation/appropriations bills introduced only in the House?

A) House members are, and have always been, directly elected by the people.
B) The Senate is likely to filibuster appropriations bills.
C) Congressional procedure evolved in this direction over time.
D) Appropriation bills can, in fact, be introduced in the Senate.

Question 40

Which is one of the newer criteria influencing members' choices of committee assignments?

A) the way particular committees are run
B) the interests of their reelection constituencies
C) committee oversight electors
D) media coverage

Question 41

Factors that prevent congressional action and lead to public dissatisfaction include __________.

A) low partisanship
B) weak lobby groups
C) resurgences of congressional norms
D) anti-majoritarian rules

Question 42

What does Congress do? Describe three main functions.

Question 43

What is required to stop a filibuster?

Question 44

How is the work of Congress done in committees?

Question 45

What are the advantages of incumbency for members of Congress?

Question 46

What do political action committees (PACs) attempt to accomplish?

A) to please conservative lobbyists
B) to develop a support network
C) to call earmarks into question
D) to prevent veto action

Question 47

C-SPAN viewers are considered __________.

A) highly educated
B) strongly conservative
C) extremely liberal
D) poorly informed

Question 48

How did the Seventeenth Amendment alter the Constitution?

Question 49

How does Congress implement its oversight duties?

Question 50

Give two examples of informal congressional norms.

Question 51

What are whips?

Question 52

Americans seem to love their members of Congress but not Congress as a whole. What evidence exists for this statement and how can we explain this phenomenon?

Question 53

How do the constituencies of senators and representatives differ?

Question 54

Is Congress representative? Why or why not?

Question 55

What is a unified government?

Question 56

What is meant by "standing for" representation?

Question 57

What is the significance of task forces and ad hoc committees?

Question 58

Explain how seats in the House of Representatives are reapportioned.

Question 59

Two nearly identical bills-both with bipartisan support-are introduced in the House and the Senate. Describe their paths to becoming laws.

Question 60

What is the function of the conference committee?

Question 61

Why has the public supported Congress less than the other two branches?

Question 62

What are the jobs of the Speaker of the House? the Senate's president pro tempore? the Senate's majority and minority leaders? Which positions tend to be more powerful? Why?

Question 63

What are the mechanisms of congressional oversight? Are they effective?