U.S. GOVERNMENT | A resilient balance of institutions
08 June 2008
Glossary: How the United States is Governed
Appellate: A court that hears cases appealed from lower courts. Some courts have both original jurisdiction (that is, cases may be tried first in the court) and appellate jurisdiction.
Bill: Legislation introduced in either the House or the Senate.
Bill of Rights: Name given to the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution because they specifically protect the rights of individuals.
Cabinet: The President's closest advisors, consisting of the Vice President and, by law, the heads of the 15 Executive Branch departments. The President or Congress may also accord cabinet-level status to other top officials.
Caucus: In U.S. presidential politics, a system used by some states to select delegates to state and national nominating conventions. In a caucus, local party members gather to discuss candidates and issues, and then vote. In Congress, a caucus is a meeting of members of the same political party or special interest group.
Chamber: A legislative body. The U.S. Congress is comprised of two chambers: the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. Chamber also refers to the hall where each body meets to conduct official business.
Checks and balances: System set forth in the U.S. Constitution which divides governing power between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches. Each branch exercises some form of authority over the others, thereby balancing power across many individuals and institutions.
Conference Committee: A meeting between U.S. Representatives and U.S. Senators to resolve differences when two versions of a similar bill have been passed by the House and Senate. Identical bills must pass in both chambers before the bill can be presented to the President.
Confirmation: The act of the U.S. Senate approving a presidential nominee to an executive branch post or federal judgeship.
Congressional Record: The official transcript of the proceedings of the U.S. Congress.
Constitution: The basic laws and principles of a nation that define the powers and responsibilities of government and the rights of the people. The United States has a written constitution, but constitutions in some other nations are unwritten.
Department: The highest administrative division of the Federal Government, comparable to a ministry in parliamentary systems. Departments are created by law, and the head of a department is called a secretary (except for the head of the Department of Justice, whose title is Attorney General).
Electoral College: In U.S. presidential elections, the Electoral College is the group of electors who actually cast ballots for the President. When a voter casts a ballot for a presidential candidate, he or she is actually voting for a slate of electors from their state who will cast their ballots for their candidate.
Excise tax: A tax on the production or sale of specific products. In the United States, excise taxes are commonly levied at the federal, state, and local levels on products such as alcohol and tobacco.
Markup: An activity of committees and subcommittees in the U.S. Congress in which proposed legislation is considered section by section, debated, revised and/or amended.
Parliamentarian: In the U.S. Congress, the official who, being an expert on House or Senate rules and procedures, assists the officers in legislative procedures, including the assignment of bills to appropriate committees.
Primary: An election held among candidates of the same party to decide which one will represent the party in the general election.
Proportional representation: System of representative government in which the political makeup of the legislative branch is based on the number of votes each party receives.
Republic: System of government in which the ultimate powers of government rest with the people who elect representatives to formulate policy and carry out the laws.
Single-member district: A geographic district from which a single member is elected by a majority or plurality of the popular vote to represent it in a legislative body.
Veto: An act by the President that rejects legislation passed by the Congress, thereby preventing its enactment. The Congress can override a veto by passing the legislation with a two-thirds majority in each chamber.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
The White House
http://www.whitehouse.gov
Click on "Your Government" for a general overview of the structure of the federal government and links to the websites of executive departments and agency and to other branches of government.
America.gov
http://www.america.gov
Thomas
http://thomas.loc.gov/
"Thomas" is a service of the Library of Congress, and is an official source of legislative information. It contains links to congressional calendars, vote records, legislation (both proposed and passed), and other useful legislative information.
FirstGov.gov
http://www.firstgov.gov
FirstGov is the U.S. Government's official Internet portal for information about government benefits, services, and information. FirstGov also provides links to the websites of state, local and tribal governments.
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
http://www.ncsl.org/
Provides current information about the structure and activities of state legislatures. Click on "Legislatures" and "Websites" for links to individual states' legislature websites, state constitutions, and legislation.
National Association of Counties (NACo)
http://www.naco.org/
Contains general information about the structure and responsibilities of county governments. Also provides extensive databases with demographic and economic statistics for individual counties.
PUBLIC POLICY RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS
Private-sector "think tanks" are often the birthplace of new ideas and innovation in the public policy arena. Their scholars conduct original research and review the philosophical, economic, social, cultural and political implications of public policies. The following are the websites of some influential think tanks representing a cross-section of the political spectrum:
Brookings Institution
http://www.brookings.org
The Heritage Foundation
http://www.heritage.org
American Enterprise Institute
http://www.aei.org
The Cato Institute
http://www.cato.org
The Urban Institute
http://www.urbaninstitute.org
C-SPAN
http://www.c-span.org/
C-SPAN is a service of the cable television industry and provides live television coverage of the proceedings of the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and other forums where public policy is debated or discussed. The C-SPAN website provides current and archived news and information about politics, public policy and governmental actions.
