| A | B |
|---|
| Filibuster | a Senate tactic to delay/stop votes |
| Quorum | necessary number to conduct business |
| Legislate | to make laws |
| Whip | liason between members and leaders |
| Senate Term | 6 Years |
| House Term | 2 Years |
| appropriations Committee | controls spending in Congress |
| Power to Impeach | the House can vote to say a federal office holder should be removed |
| Power to Convict | the Senate can vote by 2/3rds to remove a federal office holder |
| Speaker of the House | Elected by the majority party |
| President of the Senate | Vice-President of the USA |
| Senate Membership | 100 |
| House Membership | 435 |
| Cabinet | the heads of executive departments who advise the president |
| Pardon | power to forgive federal crimes |
| President's term | 4 years |
| Electoral College | members of this body vote for presidents |
| Contituency | the voters that live in an elected official's district |
| Appeal | the process of taking a case to a higher court |
| the Supreme Court | These 9 Justices are the final court of appeal in the USA |
| jurisdiction | a court must have this to 'hear' a case |
| Treaty | an agreement with a foreign nation that is approved by the Senate |
| Executive Agreement | an agreement between the President and a foreign leader |
| Bureaucracy | an administrative structure that handles everyday business of government |
| precedent | lower courts use this to guide their rulings |
| opinion | a written ruling of the Supreme Court |
| the President | the head of the executive branch |
| entitlement | programs that all citizens may apply for |
| NATO | A defensive military alliance created during the cold war |
| OAS | a regional organization to solve problems in the Americas |
| UN | a world organization to maintain world peace |
| Capitalism | an economic system of free markets and private property |
| Socialism | a mixed economic system with mostly free markets but with a large government role |
| judicial activism | Belief that judges should adapt the law to present circumstances |
| judicial restraint | Belief that judges should make decisions based on the intent of the original Constitution |
| communism | an economic system in which the government controls the means of production |
| supply and demand | idea that the desire for goods and the goods available result in price |
| deficit spending | when the government spends more than it receives in taxes |
| balanced budget | when the government spends only as much as it receives in taxes |
| Number of Supreme Court Justices | 9 |
| term of Supreme Court | Life |
| judiciary committee | can question judicial appointees in the Senate |
| armed services committee | has hearings to discuss important national military issues |
| exclusive jurisdiction | a case that may only be heard by federal courts |
| concurrent jurisdiction | a case that may be heard by state or federal courts |
