Exam 10: Congress: Politics on Capitol Hill

How are committee chairs selected in the majority-party caucus?

Legislators typically eschew casework,as it is burdensome to the staff and emphasizes benefits for individuals over the good of the whole district.

Despite a constitutional mandate for __________,no member of the Senate has received this harsh discipline since the Civil War,though several members of the House have received this discipline after concurrence by a two-thirds majority.

"Pork" legislation may aid the district of a member of Congress by __________.

__________ can provide valuable information,political intelligence,and reelection funding,making legislators with whom they agree more effective.

The __________ is the counterpart to the majority leader in the House opposition party.

In __________,Republicans captured control of both houses of Congress for the first time in forty years.

A rise in party unity is indicative of __________.

Successful members of Congress share the same policy interests as voters,according to the __________.

The Senate relies on a(n)__________,negotiated by the majority and minority leaders,to govern consideration of a bill.

In the House of Representatives,who is second in authority to the Speaker of the House?

The __________ in Congress makes it particularly vulnerable to special interest groups and to the appeals of highly paid lobbyists.

The true leader of the Senate is the __________,elected by the majority party.

What does the term packing describe?

The __________ decides who shall be recognized to speak on the House floor,and rules on points of order (with advice from the parliamentarian),among other responsibilities.

Although the Constitution allows states to create their own legislative boundaries,gerrymandering in favor of any partisan or racial group is expressly forbidden by law.

What is the meaning of Tip O'Neill's comment,"All politics is local"?

Research has shown that divided party control of the House and Senate is one factor that contributions to congressional __________.

The __________ is where congressional members of each party gather to select their leadership at the beginning of each term.

__________ is the process of allotting congressional seats to each state according to its proportion of the population.