question

Which of the following did the framers of the Constitution conceive of as the center of policymaking in America?

answer

Congress

question

The foremost attraction for the job of serving in Congress is

answer

the power to make key public policy decisions.

question

Which of the following is NOT one of the perquisites which go with the job of being a member of Congress?

answer

subsidized housing in the Virginia or Maryland suburbs of D.C.

question

________ privileges refer to the free use of the mails enjoyed by Congress.

answer

Franking

question

The most prominent characteristic of a Congressperson?s job is

answer

hard work

question

A myth about members of Congress is that they

answer

are overpaid, underworked, corrupt, and ineffective.

question

The United States House of Representatives has ________ members.

answer

435

question

The United States Senate has ________ members.

answer

100

question

How many senators are elected from each state?

answer

two

question

Which of the following is TRUE about the minimum age requirements for members of Congress set forth in the Constitution?

answer

One must be at least 30 years of age to serve in the Senate.

question

The income and occupations of members of Congress

answer

would, for the most part, make them members of the elite in American society.

question

African Americans constitute ________ of the United States Senate.

answer

less than 10 percent

question

In terms of religion, most members of Congress are

answer

Protestant.

question

The most common prior occupation for members of Congress is

answer

law

question

Relative to the total population, the most underrepresented group in Congress is

answer

women

question

Overall, members of Congress can ________ of the American people.

answer

possibly claim substantive representation, but not descriptive representation

question

Millionaire Senator Edward Kennedy sponsoring a bill to help the poor and disadvantaged would be an example of

answer

substantive representation.

question

Incumbents are those

answer

already holding office.

question

In most congressional elections, challengers

answer

lose

question

The single most important advantage to someone trying to get elected to Congress is

answer

being an incumbent

question

Comparison between members of the House and Senate concerning the impact of incumbency on their reelection chances shows that one of the reasons that senators have a smaller advantage is because they

answer

are more likely to be held accountable on controversial issues.

question

Reasons that incumbent senators have greater competition than incumbent members of the House include all of the following EXCEPT

answer

voters are less likely to know the issue positions of their senators than their representatives.

question

Which of these candidates would most likely get elected?

answer

a representative running for reelection

question

Compared to members of the House, senators are

answer

more likely to face difficult reelection opponents.

question

Studies have shown that presidential ________ in an election have little effect on the success of the party?s candidates for the House and Senate.

answer

coattails

question

Which of the following is NOT one of the three primary activities that members of Congress engage in to increase the probability of their reelection?

answer

oversight

question

An example of casework by a member of Congress is

answer

helping a constituent gain citizenship.

question

The pork barrel and casework are examples of

answer

opportunities for credit-claiming by members of Congress.

question

An especially important asset for incumbents running for reelection is their

answer

service to constituents.

question

The ________ is the list of federal projects, grants, and contracts available to cities, businesses, colleges, and institutions which members of Congress seek to locate in their district to promote the interests of their constituency.

answer

pork barrel

question

Federal grants and contracts that members of Congress try to obtain for their constituents are collectively referred to as

answer

the pork barrel.

question

Members of Congress engage in each of the following activities that increase the probability of their reelections EXCEPT

answer

party voting.

question

What accounts for the success of congressional candidates?

answer

advertising, credit-claiming, and position-taking

question

Which of the following is NOT true about incumbents?

answer

They usually face very tough challengers, especially in races for the House.

question

Which of the following statements about those who challenge incumbent members of the House is TRUE?

answer

They are usually not well-known.

question

In the House races of 2004, the typical incumbent outspent the typical challenger by

answer

15 to 1.

question

Which of the following statements about money in Congressional elections is FALSE?

answer

It costs more money to elect a president than to elect a member of Congress.

question

The role of party identification in voters? choices in congressional campaigns is

answer

moderately important, even though party identification is not as strong as it used to be.

question

Party loyalty at the voting booth is

answer

still a good predictor of voting behavior.

question

House incumbents typically receive

answer

generous support from their party campaign committees.

question

On average, most of the money raised by a candidate for Congress comes from

answer

individual contributions.

question

A single Political Action Committee

answer

can at most account for only a small percentage of a winner?s total spending.

question

When Political Action Committees contribute money to members of Congress they are usually seeking

answer

access to policymakers.

question

Which of the following statements about the role of money in congressional elections is FALSE?

answer

Challengers usually outspend incumbents.

question

All of the following may increase the likelihood that an incumbent is defeated EXCEPT

answer

campaign funding.

question

After each federal census,

answer

the membership of the House is reapportioned

question

Occasionally, a major political tidal wave rolls across the country and throws large numbers of incumbents of a given party out of office. When did this last occur?

answer

1994

question

Nebraska?s legislature is the only one in the United States that is NOT

answer

bicameral

question

Bicameralism means that a legislative body is one

answer

with two houses, providing checks and balances on policymaking.

question

To be sent to the president, a bill must be passed by

answer

both the House and the Senate.

question

The House ________ Committee reviews most bills coming from other committees before they go on to the full House, thus performing a traffic cop function.

answer

Rules

question

Articles of impeachment must be passed by

answer

the House.

question

House seats are up for election every

answer

two years

question

A Senate seat is up for election every

answer

six years.

question

Which of the following is TRUE about the Senate as compared to the House?

answer

more influential in foreign affairs

question

According to the Constitution, revenue bills must originate in the

answer

House

question

Nominees to the United States Supreme Court must be confirmed by

answer

the Senate

question

According to the Constitution, once impeached, federal officials are then tried in the

answer

Senate.

question

The House Rules Committee

answer

reviews most bills coming from committee before they go to the full House

question

The Constitution gives the House of Representatives the power to

answer

initiate all revenue bills.

question

One of the key differences between the House and Senate is that the House

answer

has more policy specialization.

question

One of the key differences between the House and Senate is that the Senate

answer

is less dependent on seniority for determining power

question

The real differences between the House and the Senate lie in their

answer

organization and centralization of power.

question

The filibuster

answer

is unique to the Senate.

question

________ members present and voting can halt a filibuster by voting for cloture.

answer

Sixty

question

The filibuster is a technique used in the

answer

Senate to prolong debate in order to kill a bill.

question

To cut off debate and end a filibuster is known as

answer

cloture.

question

To end a filibuster requires ________ members present and voting to cut off debate.

answer

60

question

Which of the following congressional offices is mandated by the Constitution?

answer

Speaker of the House

question

Which of the following does the Speaker NOT play a role in?

answer

recommending which members should be expelled from the House for failure to support the party?s positions on bills

question

The ________ is next in line after the vice president to succeed a president who resigns, dies in office, or is impeached.

answer

Speaker of the House

question

The minority whip

answer

keeps a close head count on key votes, and attempts to keep party members in line.

question

Which of the following statements about the majority leader of the House of Representatives is FALSE?

answer

The majority leader exercises substantial control over which bills get assigned to which committees.

question

The ________ has the job of presiding over the Senate, breaking ties when necessary.

answer

vice president

question

The most powerful person in the Senate is the

answer

majority leader.

question

Most important congressional activity is done

answer

in meetings of standing committees and their subcommittees

question

Most of the business of Congress takes place

answer

in committees and subcommittees

question

A ________ committee is one appointed for a limited, specific purpose, such as that set up to investigate the Watergate scandal.

answer

select

question

Appropriations, Judiciary, and Armed Forces are all examples of ________ committees.

answer

standing

question

When the House and the Senate pass different versions of the same bill

answer

a conference committee is appointed to resolve differences.

question

Legislative ________ is the process of monitoring the bureaucracy and its administration of policy.

answer

oversight

question

When members of Congress hold a hearing to question a cabinet member on how a law is being carried out, they are engaging in

answer

legislative oversight.

question

The seniority system gave a decisive edge to House members from ________ districts

answer

safe

question

House and Senate committees

answer

all have a majority of members from the majority party in that chamber.

question

Members of Congress seek committees that will help them achieve each of the following goals EXCEPT

answer

a salary increase

question

Traditionally, Congressional committee chairpersons have been chosen through

answer

the seniority system.

question

Members of Congress who informally band together in groups to promote and protect mutual interests (e.g., mushroom growers) form what are called

answer

caucuses.

question

Caucuses in Congress

answer

A) press committees to hold hearings. B) push their preferred legislation. C) mobilize votes for favored legislation. D) all of the above

question

Congressional reforms of the 1970s

answer

decentralized power and democratized Congress

question

Republican congressional reforms in the 1990s included all of the following EXCEPT

answer

committee chairs were given complete control over the timing of bills under consideration

question

Which of the following is responsible for responding to congressional requests for information and providing non-partisan studies?

answer

Congressional Research Service

question

Committee staff is responsible for all of the following EXCEPT

answer

providing services to constituents

question

Which of the following offices is responsible for making economic projections about the performance of the economy, the costs of proposed policies, and the economic effects of taxing and spending alternatives?

answer

Congressional Budget Office

question

Only ________ can formally submit a bill for congressional consideration.

answer

members of the House or senators

question

Most bills formally submitted for consideration in Congress

answer

are quietly killed off early in the process

question

Basically, Congress is a(n) ________ decision-making body.

answer

reactive and cumbersome

question

The president?s most common method of attempting to influence Congress is to

answer

hold regular meetings with the party?s leaders in Congress.

question

Presidential leadership of Congress in promoting the chief executive?s programs is

answer

at the margins, as a facilitator.

question

The parties in Congress are most cohesive

answer

when electing their official leaders.

question

The English politician and philosopher Edmund Burke favored the concept of legislators as ________, using their best judgment to make policy in the interests of the people.

answer

trustees

question

Some prefer the concept of legislators as ________, mirroring the preferences of their constituents.

answer

instructed delegates

question

The best way constituents can influence congressional voting on legislation is to

answer

elect a representative or senator who agrees with their views.

question

On a typical issue, the primary determinant of a congressional member?s vote is

answer

personal ideology.

question

) Legislators who use their best judgment to make policy in the interests of the people are called

answer

trustees.

question

Most members of Congress would be considered

answer

politicos.

question

Constituencies influence policy mostly by

answer

the initial choice of the representative

question

Which of the following statements about constituency influence is FALSE?

answer

Legislators whose votes on routine issues are out of step with their constituents are rarely reelected.

question

In the relationship between lobbyists and members of Congress,

answer

members of Congress can ignore and embarrass lobbyists

question

If Congress has increased the scope of government it is because

answer

that is what constituencies want.

Chapter 12 Congress – Flashcards

Unlock all answers in this set

Haven't found what you were looking for?

Search for samples, answers to your questions and flashcards