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Pols Exam 2 > Final Exam > Flashcards

Final Exam Flashcards

(113 cards)

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1
Q

What type of representation is Congress lacking?

A

Descriptive representation.

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2
Q

In an election between a male and female candidate perceived as equally qualified, what is expected of the female candidate?

A

Encounter a vote deficit relative to their male counterparts.

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3
Q

Why are women underrepresented in Congress?

A

Fewer women than men become major party nominees for office.

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4
Q

How do the odds of reelection for incumbents differ between the House and Senate?

A

The odds of reelection in the Senate are often not as handsome as they are for House incumbents.

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5
Q

What is an example of casework?

A

A member of Congress helping a constituent get a federal loan.

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6
Q

What argument would a critic of term limits make?

A

Term limits lead to a loss of institutional expertise.

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7
Q

What is the role of party whips in Congress?

A

Lean on any waverers whose votes are crucial to the passage of a bill.

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8
Q

What is the purpose of a conference committee?

A

To iron out the differences between Senate and House versions of a bill and report back a compromise bill.

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9
Q

What is a congressional caucus?

A

A group of members of Congress who share some interest or characteristic.

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10
Q

How does Congress usually conduct legislative oversight?

A

By holding hearings.

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11
Q

What would be the most likely result if the filibuster were eliminated?

A

The minority party would have less influence on legislation.

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12
Q

What is an example of unorthodox lawmaking?

A

Referring a bill to several committees at the same time.

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13
Q

What has contributed to polarization in Congress?

A

The increasingly one-sided partisan makeup of House districts.

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14
Q

What information is most important to predict senators’ voting decisions on a foreign policy bill?

A

Their ideology.

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15
Q

How does malapportionment in the U.S. Senate compare to that of upper houses in other democratic countries?

A

The Senate is the most malapportioned.

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16
Q

What is widely accepted as grounds for impeachment of the president?

A

A grave offense.

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17
Q

How is the history of presidential succession characterized?

A

About one in five presidents succeeded to the job because they were vice president when the incumbent president either died or resigned.

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18
Q

How do prime ministers differ from presidents?

A

Prime ministers never face divided government, while presidents often do.

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19
Q

What is a duty of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)?

A

Prepare the president’s budget.

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20
Q

What trait do top aides in the White House most likely have in common?

A

Complete loyalty to the president.

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21
Q

How did Hillary Rodham Clinton’s actions as First Lady set her apart?

A

She took on more policy responsibility and visible leadership.

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22
Q

What is the presidential veto most useful for?

A

Preventing legislation.

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23
Q

When do presidents have an easier time influencing Congress to pass legislation?

A

When they have public support.

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24
Q

What advice would improve a newly elected president’s chances of success in Congress?

A

Send legislation to Congress early during the first year in office.

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25
Why does the president infrequently use the strategy of bargaining with Congress?
The president needs to bargain only if this coalition does not provide a majority.
26
What can Congress do to stop the president from initiating military action opposed by most members?
It could pass a resolution that could not be vetoed, ending American participation in hostilities.
27
Why has the War Powers Resolution been ineffective?
Presidents have dismissed it as unconstitutional and often ignored its requirements.
28
What factor makes it more difficult for the president to influence public opinion through speeches?
Extreme partisan polarization.
29
What is the relationship between presidents and the media likely to be?
Adversaries.
30
Since the presidency of Lyndon Johnson, what type of presidents have Americans chosen?
Often championed constraints on government and limits on spending.
31
How would the tax burdens of two taxpayers earning $50,000 and $150,000 differ under a progressive taxation system?
The higher-earning taxpayer would pay more taxes and would also pay higher rates of tax.
32
How do social insurance taxes differ from other taxes?
They are earmarked for a specific purpose.
33
What is a negative consequence of running a national debt?
Current budget expenditures must go to paying interest on the debt.
34
What would a supporter of tax expenditures most likely argue?
They encourage charitable contributions and home ownership.
35
How does the tax burden in the United States compare to other democracies with developed economies?
The United States has one of the smallest tax burdens.
36
Why is the future of Social Security uncertain?
There are proportionately fewer working members to support proportionately more retirees.
37
What does incrementalism generally lead to?
Slight upward growth of agency budgets over time.
38
What are uncontrollable expenditures?
Expenditures determined by previous obligations to eligible beneficiaries.
39
Why is it difficult to significantly reduce the federal budget?
Much of the federal budget does not come up for reauthorization on a regular basis.
40
Who makes the final decisions on the budget proposal to Congress?
The President.
41
What happens during budget reconciliation?
Program authorizations are revised to achieve required savings.
42
What is the difference between authorization and appropriation?
Authorization sets the maximum spending level, and appropriation funds programs within that spending limit.
43
Why does Congress often fail to meet its own budgetary timetable?
There has been too much conflict over the budget.
44
What evidence supports the argument that government grows in a democracy due to equality of suffrage?
The growth of Medicaid expenditures.
45
How does the federal budget help to limit the scope of government?
Government is constrained by scarce resources.
46
Which economic policy position is more likely to be held by Democrats than Republicans?
The importance of keeping unemployment low.
47
How are changes in the rate of inflation measured?
By the Consumer Price Index.
48
What do monetarists believe generates inflation?
Having too much cash and credit in circulation.
49
What tool does the Federal Reserve System use to affect the money supply?
Buying and selling government bonds.
50
How do Keynesian economic theorists differ from advocates of supply-side economics?
In their views on how the tools of fiscal policy should be used and the appropriate scope of government.
51
Why are entitlement programs sometimes called 'social insurance' programs?
People pay into them and later get money from them.
52
Among which group is the poverty rate in the United States especially high?
Families headed by single women.
53
How do people experiencing relative deprivation perceive themselves?
Not doing well economically compared to some reference group.
54
Why do many scholars believe the official poverty rate underestimates actual poverty in the U.S.?
The count can conceal millions who quickly drop into and out of poverty.
55
How does the distribution of wealth compare to income distribution in the U.S.?
Compared to income, wealth is even more unequally distributed.
56
What limitation did the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act place on welfare programs?
It set a lifetime maximum of five years for welfare benefits.
57
What best describes the impact of the 1996 welfare reforms?
The percentage of the population receiving welfare decreased, though the overall poverty rate did not.
58
How did President Obama's approach to reforming Social Security differ from George W. Bush's?
Obama did not advocate for privatization of Social Security.
59
Compared to countries with less generous social benefits, how do European countries differ?
They have higher tax rates.
60
What proposal would a conservative most likely offer to create new jobs?
Reduce regulations on business.
61
Where is the center of policymaking?
Congress.
62
What are the attractions to the job of being a member of Congress?
Power to make key decisions for public policy.
63
What is substantive representation?
Represent the interest of people with groups, i.e., different backgrounds or ethnicities.
64
What are pork barrel projects?
Federal projects, grants, and contracts available to state and local governments that politicians love to take credit for.
65
What are the advantages of incumbency?
Advertising, credit claiming, position taking, weak opponents, and campaign spending.
66
What are the disadvantages that can lead incumbents to lose?
Scandal, corruption, and losing supporters due to redistricting.
67
What do PACs buy with their money?
Access to policymakers and their support.
68
What is bicameralism?
Dividing legislature into two houses, the act of checks and balances.
69
What is impeachment?
The act to remove a president from office.
70
What is the process of impeachment?
The House votes and goes to the Senate court, where the Senate tries the president and needs a ⅔ vote for it to happen.
71
What are the differences between the House of Representatives and the Senate?
House: 435 seats (population), lower house with more rules and influence on budget matters. Senate: 100 seats (2 per state), upper house with more influence on foreign affairs.
72
What do congressional whips do?
Make sure members of the party stay in line and assist majority/minority leaders.
73
What is a filibuster?
Only the Senate is allowed, excessive and wasteful lengthy debate to control the legislative agenda.
74
Why are committees and subcommittees important to Congress?
They do the work for Congress, write/rewrite and draft legislation, and make suggestions about laws.
75
What are the different types of committees?
Standing, joint, conference, and select committees.
76
What is presidential power according to Neustadt?
Power to persuade, not command.
77
What does the 22nd Amendment state?
Limits presidents to 2 terms, or a maximum of 10 years.
78
What are the responsibilities of the vice president?
In control of the Senate and vote in case of a tie among the Senators.
79
How does the President control the bureaucracy?
Appoint high-level administrators, recommend agency budgets, and issue executive orders.
80
What are the OMB, NSC, and CEA?
Policy-making bodies in the executive branch.
81
What is the role of the Office of Management and Budget?
Prepare the president's budget.
82
What is the National Security Council's role?
Links presidents to key foreign and military policy advisors.
83
What does the Council of Economic Advisers do?
Advise the president on economic policy.
84
What are the different types of vetoes?
Presidential, pocket, line item, and legislative veto.
85
What is a midterm election?
Congressional election not accompanied by a president's election.
86
What are electoral mandates?
Perception that the people strongly support the president's policies and views.
87
What does the War Powers Resolution (1973) require?
The president to consult with Congress before using military force.
88
How does the president use the press?
To get the message across to the people and gain public support.
89
How do presidents use public opinion?
To show they are more favored than Congress and to reinforce stronger party support.
90
What is the budget process?
Formulation, enactment, implementation, and auditing.
91
What is incrementalism?
Prediction of this year’s budget from last year's.
92
What is the military industrial complex?
Relationship between the military hierarchy and defense industry.
93
What is budget reconciliation?
Congress rewrites an authorization bill to make changes in spending and revenues.
94
What are authorization and appropriations bills?
Authorization changes a discretionary government program, and appropriation funds it.
95
Which committees write tax codes in Congress?
Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee.
96
What is the budget?
A policy document allocating expenditures and benefits.
97
What are uncontrollable expenditures?
Required by law and determined by the number of beneficiaries.
98
What is the major reason why the national debt increases?
Government borrowing and excessive spending.
99
Where does the U.S. government get its revenues?
Mostly from income taxes.
100
What are tax expenditures?
Money that the government loses to tax reductions, exemptions, and credits.
101
What does the 16th Amendment state?
Congress can collect an income tax.
102
What are social welfare policies?
Policies that provide benefits to individuals based on entitlement or means testing.
103
What is income distribution?
Share of all income across the populations.
104
What are entitlements?
Congress has obligated itself to pay a certain level of benefits to a number of recipients.
105
What are means-tested programs?
Government programs providing benefits only to individuals who qualify based on specific needs.
106
What are Medicare and Medicaid?
Medicare is for the elderly, and Medicaid is for the poor.
107
What is the poverty line?
The income threshold to consider someone poor.
108
What are the different taxation systems?
Progressive, regressive, and proportional.
109
What are the different tax revenue sources?
Personal and corporate taxes, and sin taxes.
110
What income level is considered poor for a family?
Income level which a family can have a basic or austere quality of life.
111
What are the differences between the welfare systems in Europe and America?
America has fewer benefits but lower taxes, while Europe offers free college but has higher taxes (up to 65%).
112
What are the different taxation systems?
Progressive: Income goes up, taxes go up. Regressive: Income goes up, taxes go down. Proportional: Same income, same tax rate.
113
What are transfer payments?
Benefits given by the government directly to people, such as social security and food stamps.

Pols Exam 2 (2 decks)

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