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The American Electoral College: Origins, Development, Proposals for Reform or Abolition

Description: This report is a comprehensive annotated bibliography of substantive books, monographs, articles, and documents treating the origins, evolution, and current operational characteristics of the U.S. electoral college system, as well as proposals for its reform or abolition. An explanatory introduction is provided for readers unfamiliar with the issue.
Date: June 2, 1979
Creator: Neale, Thomas H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Elections Reform: Overview and Issues

Description: This report discusses several issues as the Congress considers legislation to reform the voting process, a number of issues have emerged as part of the debate: the reliability of different types of voting technologies; voting problems and irregularities in the 2000 election; problems for militaryand overseas voters; the electoral college; and early media projections of election results. Both sessions of the 107th Congress considered and debated federal election reform legislation, and the Help … more
Date: September 2, 2004
Creator: Coleman, Kevin J. & Fischer, Eric A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Evolution of the Senate's Role in the Nomination and Confirmation Process: A Brief History

Description: This report discusses the process of Advice and Consent in the Senate. Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution states that the President "shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other Public Ministers and Counsels, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all Other Officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law…."
Date: July 2, 2008
Creator: Palmer, Betsy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Export Administration Act of 1979 Reauthorization

Description: The Export Administration Act of 2001 was introduced on January 23, 2001. Hearings were held by the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and the bill was reported for consideration by the full Senate by a vote of 19-1 to March 22, 2001. A companion version in the House, H.R. 2581, was introduced by Rep. Gilmanon July 20, 2001. The House International Relations Committee reported the measure with 35 amendments on August 1. The Export Administration Act of 1979 expired on August … more
Date: January 2, 2003
Creator: Fergusson, Ian F.; Shuey, Robert; Elwell, Craig K. & Grimmett, Jeanne J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Recess Judges

Description: This report discusses the recess clause and takes a look at the history of recess appointments. Under Article II of the Constitution, the President is empowered "to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session." Presidents have used the recess appointment power on more than 300 occasions to place judges on the district, appellate, and U.S. Supreme Court level. This practice slowed after the 195… more
Date: February 2, 2005
Creator: Fisher, Louis
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Item Veto and Expanded Impoundment Proposals

Description: In recent years conflicting budget priorities and divided political control have accentuated the institutional tensions between the executive and legislative branches inherent in the federal budget process. President Clinton, like his two predecessors, called for an item veto, or possibly expanded impoundment authority, to provide him with greater control over federal spending. This report provides a brief history of impoundment and discusses the debate surrounding the line item veto.
Date: July 2, 2003
Creator: McMurtry, Virginia A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Line Item Veto Act: Procedural Issues

Description: At various times, Congress has given the President statutory authority not to spend appropriated funds. That authority was elaborated and made more systematic with the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, which permitted the President to delay the expenditure of funds (deferral authority) and to cancel funds (rescission authority). To rescind funds, the President needed the support of both houses within 45 days.
Date: December 2, 1996
Creator: Fisher, Louis & McMurtry, Virginia A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Mid-Session Review of the President’s Budget: Timing Issues

Description: The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 established for the first time the requirement that the President annually submit a budget to Congress. Under current law (31 U.S.C. 1105(a)), the President is required to submit his annual budget on or after the first Monday in January, but no later than the first Monday in February.
Date: August 2, 2004
Creator: Keith, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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President Obama's First-Term U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominations: An Analysis and Comparison with Presidents Since Reagan

Description: This report seeks to inform the current debate in three ways: first, by providing a statistical analysis of President Barack Obama's nominees, during his first term, to U.S. circuit court of appeals and U.S. district court judgeships, and of any actions taken on their nominations by the Senate Judiciary Committee and the full Senate; second, by using various statistical measures to compare the success of President Obama's judicial nominees, during his first term, in advancing through the Senate… more
Date: May 2, 2013
Creator: McMillion, Barry J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Presidential Funerals and Burials: Selected Resources

Description: This report is a brief resource guide for congressional staff on funerals and burials for Presidents of the United States. It contains an overview of past practices for presidential funerals and selected online information resources related to official and ceremonial protocols, past presidential funerals, congressional documents, and other documents and books.
Date: March 2, 2018
Creator: Kreiser, Maria & Mast, Brent W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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A Presidential Item Veto

Description: During a news conference on November 4, 2004, President George W. Bush stated that he “would like to see the President have a line-item veto again, one that passed constitutional muster. I think it would help the executive branch work with the legislative branch to make sure that we’re able to maintain budget discipline.” The Supreme Court struck down an earlier version of item-veto authority (the Line Item Veto Act of 1996) in Clinton v. City of New York, 524 U.S. 417 (1998), but several statu… more
Date: December 2, 2004
Creator: Fisher, Louis
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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