| elocution |
training
in, or the art of, public speaking. |
| bipartisan |
a
cooperative effort by two political parties. |
| caucus
|
an
informal meeting of local party members to discuss candidates
and choose delegates to the party's convention. |
| demagogue
|
a leader whose impassioned rhetoric appeals to greed, fear,
and hatred, and who often spreads lies. |
| filibuster
|
an
attempt by a Senator or group of Senators to obstruct the passage
of a bill, favored by the majority, by talking continuously. Because
there is no rule in the Senate over how long a member can speak,
a Senator can prevent a bill from coming up for a vote by talking
endlessly. |
| incumbent
|
a
current officeholder . |
| left-wing |
Liberal.
The labeling system originated from the seating pattern of the
French National Assembly, which put liberals on the left, moderates
in the middle, and conservatives on the right. |
| lobby
|
a
group seeking to influence an elected official, or the act of
doing so. The term originated in the 17th century, when people
waiting to speak with legislators at the English House of Commons
waited in a large atrium outside the legislators' hall, called
the lobby. |
| muckraker
|
a
journalist who seeks out the scandalous activities of public officials.
Derived from the Man with the Muck Rake, a character in John Bunyan's
"The Pilgrim's Progress," who could never look up, only down.
|
| platform
|
The
positions that a party adopts, and stands on, at the beginning
of an election campaign. |
| poll |
A
survey used to gauge public opinion concerning issues or to forecast
an election. |
| primary |
A
state election in which party members vote for a candidate from
within their party. The vote determines how many of that state's
delegates each candidate gets. |
| red
tape |
Government
paperwork and procedures that are slow and difficult. Stems from
an 18th-century British practice of binding official papers with
a reddish twine. |
| veto
|
the
right or power of one official authority or body, esp. the chief
executive, to reject or cancel something enacted by another, such
as a law or budget authorization approved by a legislature. |
