| A | B |
|---|
| bicameral | 2 houses of Congress (House and Senate) |
| gerrymandering | dividing a geographic are into voting districts to give an unfair advantage to one party in an election |
| session | a meeting to transact business |
| appropriations bill | a bill that involves money for a specific use; must begin in House |
| standing committee | a committee that always exists in Congress |
| select committee | a temporary committee of Congress formed to deal with a particular issue; they meet until the task has been completed |
| conference committee | a joint committee of congress made of members from the House and Senate to work on the details of a law |
| expressed powers | congressional powers specifically stated in the Constitution |
| implied powers | congressional powers not stated in the constitution, but suggested by the necessary and proper clause |
| pocket veto | an indirect veto by the president, received within 10 days of Congress adjourning |
| veto | to reject or disapprove |
| pocket veto | the president's power to kill a bill if congress is not in session by not signing it for 10 days |
| pigeonhole/tabling | to set a congressional bill aside in a committee without considering it |
| non-legislative powers | powers of the Legislative Branch that do not affect Congress' ability to make laws |
| checks and balances | powers that each branch has to make sure that no one branch gains too much power |
| separation of powers | there are 3 branches of government and they all have their own powers |
| federalism | the division of power between the national, state, and local governments |
| reserved powers | found in the 10th amendment; these powers are given to the states |
| concurrent powers | shared by the different levels of government (national, state, and local) |
| voice vote | a method of voting in which those who support the vote say yea and those who are against say nay |
| standing vote | a method of voting in which those who support a bill stand to vote |
| roll call vote | a method of voting in which each member of Congress' name is called and they announce his/her vote |
| impeach | when the President, Vice-President, or Supreme Court Justice are formally charged with a wrongdoing |
