Legislative Branch Vocabulary Two

permanent committees

• standing committees

• joint committees

• conference committees

• committee of the whole

the position assigned to the vice president of the United States by the Constitution that allows the vice president to preside over debates and break tie votes

• president of the senate

• speaker of the House

• president pro tempore

• Senate majority leader

the person who presides over the Senate in the absence of the president of the Senate

• Speaker of the House

• Senate Majority leader

• Senate Minority Leader

• President pro tempore

the most powerful position in the Senate, elected by the majority's party caucus

• Senate Majority Leader

• Senate Minority Leader

• President of the Senate

• President Pro Tempore

a tradition that says the most senior majority senator on a committee becomes the committee chair

• seniority rule

• cloture

• filibuster

• minority rule

when opponents of a measure take control of the Senate floor and refuse to stop talking in an effort to prevent the measure from coming up for a vote

• filibuster

• cloture

• oversight

• deficit

an end to debate

• filibuster

• bills

• apportionment

• cloture

a provision attached to a bill that bears little relationship o the bill's main topic

• resolution

• cloture

• rider

• filibuster

a document that a majority of House members sign to force a bill out of committee

• discharge petition

• quorum

• roll-call vote

• pocket veto

the number needed to legally conduct business

• quorum

• veto

• filibuster

• joint resolution