Speaker of the House: the highest-ranking member of the House, usually the senior

member of the majority party

President pro tempore: the highest-ranking member of the Senate after the President of
the Senate (who is the vice president), usually the senior member of the majority party
Filibuster: a senator who talks endlessly or the act of talking endlessly to prevent a vote
or action on an issue
Cloture: the process of the Senate where it can vote to limit debate on a bill; it can stop a
filibuster
Several types of committees exist in the House and Senate. They include:
StandingBills are usually referred to a standing committee. They are permanent and
have a specific area of responsibility.
Ad hocAn ad hoc committee is temporary for the purpose of creating or enforcing
mandates for a specific reason. Congress disbands an ad hoc committee when the need is
fulfilled.
JointA joint committee consisting of members from both the House and Senate forms to
address important issues needing special attention from both. Joint committees make
unified recommendations to the whole Congress.
ConferenceA conference committee has members from both houses and forms to settle
differences between similar bills passed separately in the House and Senate.
House Rules CommitteeThis committee, specific to the House, sets rules of debate for
particular bills. Examples include time limits for debate and types of amendments
members can add.

Types of Policies:
Social welfare policies address the well-being of citizens and include programs like
education and health insurance. The goal of these policies is to "promote the general
welfare"
Economic policies include the government's budget, which includes government taxing
and spending rules. Economic policy also establishes rules for businesses. The goal of
economic policy is to grow the productive capacity of the economy, while keeping
unemployment and inflation low.
Environmental policies address concerns related to the impact of human activity on

Earth. The goal, of course, is to minimize the negative effects on air, water, wildlife, and
land that result from our activities,
Defense policies include laws and programs related to maintaining the armed forces. The
goal of defense policy is to protect the safety and security of the country and its citizens.
Defense policy often intersects with foreign policy.
Policies can also have externalities, which are unintended consequences of a decision.
Externalities can be positive or negative and are called "third party costs" or "third party
benefits." An example of a negative externality is pollution caused by a policy
encouraging new factories to operate and create jobs for a certain area.

Cabinet: a group of advisers to the president, composed of the heads of the executive
departments and other officials as determined by the president
Red tape: a set of complex rules and procedures set by a bureaucratic agency to carry out
a policy

Voter turnout: voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot during
an election
Primary election: a process through which voters choose the candidates who will run
for political office
Midterm election: U.S. general election held two years after every presidential election
where all seats in the House are up for election as well as one-third of the Senate seat