UNFILTERED NEWSWIRE

A

• Advice and Consent The Senate's constitutional power to approve the president's nominees by majority vote and to ratify treaties by a two-thirds vote.
• Amendment A proposed change to a bill.
• Appropriations The laws that actually provide money for government agencies.
• Attorney General The head of the Justice Department and the nation's top law enforcement officer, appointed by the president and a member of the cabinet.

B

• Ballot Initiative A way for citizens to put a proposed law or constitutional change directly on the ballot by gathering signatures.
• Battleground State Another name for a swing state: a state that could go either way and where campaigns focus their effort.
• Budget Resolution Congress's blueprint for spending and taxes.

C

• Capitol Hill The Washington, D.C.
• Caucus A group of lawmakers who meet to coordinate, either a party's members in a chamber or members who share an issue.
• CDC The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the federal agency that tracks disease outbreaks and gives public health guidance.
• Censure A formal statement of disapproval or reprimand by a chamber of Congress.
• Chief Justice The head of the Supreme Court and of the federal court system.
• Chief of Staff The president's top aide, who manages the White House staff and controls who sees the president.
• CIA The Central Intelligence Agency, which gathers intelligence about foreign countries and threats, mostly overseas.
• Cloture A Senate vote to end debate on a bill so a final vote can happen.
• Committee A smaller group of lawmakers focused on one subject.
• Confirmation Hearing A Senate committee hearing in which senators question a nominee, such as a judge or cabinet pick, before the full Senate votes.
• Congress The part of the government that makes federal laws: the Senate and the House of Representatives together.
• Continuing Resolution A temporary spending bill that keeps the government funded at current levels when full-year spending bills are not finished.

D

• Debt Ceiling The legal limit on how much the Treasury can borrow to pay bills Congress has already approved.
• Democrats Members of the Democratic Party, the other major party.
• Department of Agriculture The agency for farming and food.
• Department of Commerce The agency that promotes U.S.
• Department of Defense The department that runs the U.S.
• Department of Education The federal agency for education policy, federal student aid and loans, and civil rights enforcement in schools.
• Department of Energy The agency for energy policy and research, the national laboratories and the nuclear weapons stockpile.
• Department of Health and Human Services The agency over most federal health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the FDA, the CDC and the National Institutes of Health.
• Department of Homeland Security Created after the 9/11 attacks, it oversees border security, immigration enforcement, the Secret Service, disaster response, airport security and the Coast Guard.
• Department of Housing and Urban Development The agency for housing programs: public housing, rental help, fair housing and some mortgage insurance.
• Department of Justice The federal government's main law enforcement and legal agency, led by the Attorney General.
• Department of Labor The agency that deals with workers: wages and hours, workplace safety, unemployment benefits and job statistics.
• Department of the Interior The agency that manages federal public lands such as national parks, plus wildlife protection and relations with Native American tribes.
• Department of Transportation The agency for roads, aviation, railroads and transit safety.
• Department of Veterans Affairs The agency that provides health care and benefits to military veterans.
• DHS Short for the Department of Homeland Security.

E

• Earmark Money in a spending bill set aside for a specific project, usually in a lawmaker's home state or district.
• Electoral College The system that elects the president.
• EPA The Environmental Protection Agency, which writes and enforces rules on air, water and chemical pollution.
• Executive Order A written directive from the president telling federal agencies how to carry out the law.

F

• FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Justice Department's main investigative agency.
• FCC The Federal Communications Commission, which regulates radio, television, phone and internet networks and the airwaves they use.
• FDA The Food and Drug Administration, which approves drugs and medical devices and oversees food safety and tobacco.
• Federal Reserve The nation's central bank.
• Filibuster A tactic in the Senate to delay or block a vote by continuing debate.
• Freedom Caucus A group of hard-line conservative House Republicans, formed in 2015, known for pushing for deep spending cuts.
• FTC The Federal Trade Commission, which protects consumers and enforces competition laws against unfair business practices.

G

• Gerrymandering Drawing election district lines to give one party or group an advantage.
• GOP A nickname for the Republican Party, short for "Grand Old Party."
• Government Shutdown What happens when funding lapses: non-essential federal operations stop and many workers are furloughed or work without pay until Congress passes funding.

H

• House The U.S.

I

• Impeachment The House's formal accusation against an official, passed by a simple majority.
• Independent A voter or officeholder who is not a member of either major party.
• IRS The Internal Revenue Service, the part of the Treasury that collects federal taxes and enforces tax law.

L

• Libertarian Party A smaller party that favors minimal government in both economic and personal matters.
• Lobbying Efforts by individuals or groups, often paid, to influence lawmakers and officials on policy.

M

• MAGA Short for "Make America Great Again," Donald Trump's campaign slogan.
• Majority Leader The top leader of the party with the most seats in a chamber.
• Markup A committee meeting where members debate, change and vote on a bill before it goes to the full chamber.
• Midterms Elections held halfway through a president's four-year term, when all 435 House seats and about one-third of Senate seats are up for election.
• Minority Leader The top leader of the party with fewer seats in a chamber, who organizes the opposition.

N

• National Security Council A White House group that advises the president on foreign policy and security.
• NSA The National Security Agency, which collects and analyzes electronic communications for intelligence and protects government networks.
• Nuclear Option A Senate maneuver that changes its rules by a simple majority instead of the usual higher threshold, for example to limit the filibuster on certain votes.

O

• Omnibus Bill One very large bill that bundles many spending measures or many policies into a single vote.

P

• Pardon The president's power to forgive a federal crime and erase its punishment.
• Pentagon The headquarters of the Department of Defense, in Arlington, Virginia.
• Pork Barrel Government spending on local projects meant mainly to win votes in a lawmaker's district.
• President The head of the executive branch and commander in chief.
• Press Secretary The White House's chief spokesperson, who briefs reporters on the president's positions and actions.
• Primary An election in which voters in a party choose their nominee for the general election.
• Progressive Caucus A group of lawmakers on the left wing of the Democratic Party who work together on shared priorities.

Q

• Quorum The minimum number of members who must be present for a chamber or committee to do business, usually a majority.

R

• Ranked Choice Voting A voting method in which voters rank candidates in order.
• Recess Appointment When the president fills a job without Senate approval while the Senate is on a break.
• Reconciliation A special budget process that lets some tax and spending bills pass the Senate with a simple majority of 51 instead of 60, so a filibuster cannot stop them.
• Redistricting Redrawing the boundaries of election districts, usually after each 10-year census, though some states do it at other times.
• Republicans Members of the Republican Party, one of the two major parties.
• Rider An extra provision, often unrelated, attached to a bill, usually one that is likely to pass.
• Roll Call A vote where each member's vote is recorded by name.

S

• Sanctions Penalties such as freezing assets or banning trade or travel, used to pressure a country, company or person.
• SCOTUS An abbreviation for the Supreme Court of the United States.
• SEC The Securities and Exchange Commission, which regulates the stock market and protects investors.
• Secretary of Defense The civilian head of the Defense Department and a member of the cabinet, in charge of the military under the president.
• Secretary of State The head of the State Department, the president's chief foreign policy adviser and a cabinet member.
• Senate The 100-member upper chamber of Congress, with two senators from every state serving six-year terms.
• Sequestration Automatic across-the-board spending cuts that take effect when Congress does not meet budget targets.
• Signing Statement A statement a president issues when signing a bill, often saying how the administration will interpret it or objecting to parts.
• Speaker of the House The leader of the House of Representatives, chosen by its members.
• State Department The agency that runs U.S.
• Subcommittee A smaller panel within a committee that handles a narrower part of its topic.
• Subpoena A legal order that requires someone to testify or hand over documents.
• Sunset Clause A provision that makes a law or part of it expire on a set date unless Congress renews it.
• Super PAC An independent group that can raise and spend unlimited money to support or oppose candidates, but cannot coordinate directly with their campaigns.
• Supreme Court The highest court in the country.
• Swing State A state where either party has a realistic chance of winning, so it is not reliably one party's.

T

• Tariffs Taxes on imported goods, paid by the importing business and often passed on to consumers as higher prices.
• Trade The buying and selling of goods and services across borders.
• Trade Deal An agreement between countries that sets terms of trade, such as tariffs, quotas and rules.
• Trade Deficit When a country buys more goods and services from abroad than it sells abroad.
• Trade War When countries raise tariffs on each other's goods in rounds of retaliation.
• Treasury Department The agency that manages federal money: it collects taxes through the IRS, pays the government's bills, borrows money and enforces many sanctions.
• Trump Donald Trump, who was the 45th president and returned to office as the 47th president on January 20, 2025.

V

• Veto The president's rejection of a bill passed by Congress, which sends it back unsigned.
• Veto Override When Congress passes a bill into law over the president's veto.
• Vice President The second-highest officer in the executive branch, first in line to become president, and president of the Senate.
• Voter ID Rules that require voters to show identification at the polls.

W

• Whip A party leader who counts votes and works to make sure members vote with the party.
• White House The president's official home and office in Washington, D.C.