|
Party-line Vote
A party-line vote in a deliberative assembly (such as a constituent assembly, parliament, or legislature) is a vote in which a substantial majority of members of a political party vote the same way (usually in opposition to the other political party(ies) whose members vote the opposite way). Sources vary on what proportion of party members must adhere to the party line in order for the vote to constitute a "party-line" vote. For example, in the United States, the ''Congressional Record'' has stated: "A party-line vote is one on which a majority of Republicans vote one way and a majority of Democrats vote another. 2. A bipartisan vote is one in which a majority of Republicans and a majority of Democrats vote the same way". Another source defined this event for purposes of classifying votes for research purposes as "one where 90 percent of the majority party votes against 90 percent of the minority party". Party-line votes are also noted to reflect the degree to which the divis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deliberative Assembly
A deliberative assembly is a meeting of members who use parliamentary procedure. Etymology In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke described the British Parliament as a "deliberative assembly," and the expression became the basic term for a body of persons meeting to discuss and determine common action. Characteristics ''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'' by Henry Martyn Robert describes the following characteristics of a deliberative assembly: * A group of people meets to discuss and make decisions on behalf of the entire membership. * They meet in a single room or area, or under equivalent conditions of simultaneous oral communication. * Each member is free to act according to their own judgement. * Each member has an equal vote. * The members at the meeting act for the entire group, even if there are members absent. * A member's dissent on a particular issue constitutes neither a withdrawal from the group, nor a termination of membership. Types ''Ro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology or the will of their donors or constituents. Whips are the party's "enforcers". They try to ensure that their fellow political party legislators attend voting sessions and vote according to their party's official policy. Members who vote against party policy may "lose the whip", being effectively expelled from the party. The term is taken from the "whipper-in" during a hunt, who tries to prevent hounds from wandering away from a hunting pack. Additionally, the term "whip" may mean the voting instructions issued to legislators, or the status of a certain legislator in their party's parliamentary grouping. Etymology The expression ''whip'' in its parliamentary context, derived from its origins in hunting terminology. The ''Oxford English ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Partisanship
A partisan is a committed member of a political party or army. In multi-party systems, the term is used for persons who strongly support their party's policies and are reluctant to compromise with political opponents. A political partisan is not to be confused with a military partisan. United States In the United States, the meaning of the term has changed dramatically over the last 60 years. Before the American National Election Study (described in Angus Campbell et al., in ''The American Voter'') began in 1952, an individual's partisan tendencies were typically determined from their voting behavior. Since then, "partisan" has come to refer to an individual with a psychological identification with one or the other of the major parties. Candidates, depending on their political beliefs, may choose to join a party. As they build the framework for career advancement, parties are more often than not the preferred choice for candidates. Wherein there are many parties in a system, c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States House Of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being the Upper house, upper chamber. Together they comprise the national Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the United States. The House's composition was established by Article One of the United States Constitution. The House is composed of representatives who, pursuant to the Uniform Congressional District Act, sit in single member List of United States congressional districts, congressional districts allocated to each U.S. state, state on a basis of population as measured by the United States Census, with each district having one representative, provided that each state is entitled to at least one. Since its inception in 1789, all representatives have been directly elected, although universal suffrage did not come to effect until after ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Majority Leader
In U.S. politics (as well as in some other countries utilizing the presidential system), the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.USLegal.com (accessed April 11, 2013) United States In the federal , the roles of the Majority Leader and the |
Primary Election
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the country and administrative divisions within the country, voters might consist of the general public in what is called an open primary, or solely the members of a political party in what is called a closed primary. In addition to these, there are other variants on primaries (which are discussed below) that are used by many countries holding elections throughout the world. The origins of primary elections can be traced to the progressive movement in the United States, which aimed to take the power of candidate nomination from party leaders to the people. However, political parties control the method of nomination of candidates for office in the name of the party. Other methods of selecting candidates include caucuses, internal selection by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pork Barrel
''Pork barrel'', or simply ''pork'', is a metaphor for the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district. The usage originated in American English, and it indicates a negotiated way of political particularism. Political science Scholars use it as a technical term regarding legislative control of local appropriations. In election campaigns, the term is used in derogatory fashion to attack opponents. Typically, "pork" involves national funding for government programs whose economic or service benefits are concentrated in a particular area but whose costs are spread among all taxpayers. Public works projects, certain national defense spending projects, and agricultural subsidies are the most commonly cited examples. Citizens Against Government Waste outlines seven criteria by which spending in the United States can be classified as "pork": # Requested by only one chamber of Congress # No ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Positions Filled By Presidential Appointment With Senate Confirmation
This is a list of positions filled by presidential appointment with Senate confirmation. Under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution and law of the United States, certain federal positions appointed by the president of the United States require confirmation (advice and consent) of the United States Senate. These "PAS" (Presidential Appointment needing Senate confirmation) positions, as well as other types of federal government positions, are published in the ''United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions'' (''Plum Book''), which is released after each United States presidential election. A 2012 Congressional Research Service study estimated that approximately 1200-1400 positions require Senate confirmation. Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Department of Agriculture * Secretary of Agriculture * Deputy Secretary of Agriculture * Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm Production and Conservation * Under Secretary of Agricultur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Treaty
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations An international organization or international organisation (see spelling differences), also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is a stable set of norms and rules meant to govern the behavior of states a ..., individuals, business entities, and other legal persons. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, pact, or exchange of letters, among other terms. However, only documents that are legally binding on the parties are considered treaties under international law. Treaties vary on the basis of obligations (the extent to which states are bound to the rules), precision (the extent to which the rules are unambiguous), and delegation (the extent to which third parties have authority to interpret, apply ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powers of the Senate are established by Article One of the United States Constitution. The Senate is composed of senators, each of whom represents a single state in its entirety. Each of the 50 states is equally represented by two senators who serve staggered terms of six years, for a total of 100 senators. The vice president of the United States serves as presiding officer and president of the Senate by virtue of that office, despite not being a senator, and has a vote only if the Senate is equally divided. In the vice president's absence, the president pro tempore, who is traditionally the senior member of the party holding a majority of seats, presides over the Senate. As the upper chamber of Congress, the Senate has several powers o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bill (law)
A bill is proposed legislation under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature as well as, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an '' act of the legislature'', or a ''statute''. Bills are introduced in the legislature and are discussed, debated and voted upon. Usage The word ''bill'' is primarily used in Anglophone United Kingdom and United States, the parts of a bill are known as ''clauses'', until it has become an act of parliament, from which time the parts of the law are known as ''sections''. In Napoleonic law nations (including France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain and Portugal), a proposed law may be known as a "law project" (Fr. ''projet de loi''), which is a government-introduced bill, or a "law proposition" (Fr. ''proposition de loi''), a private member's bill. For example the Dutch parliamentary system does not make this terminological distinction (''wetsontwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
