Congress Chapter 7

Congress We will cover: Intentions of Framers/Changes The Constitution and the Legislative Branch Functions How Congress is Organized-differences between two houses/powers Committees Members Apportionment

Constitution and the Legislative Branch Article I creates a bicameral legislative branch of government The upper house is the Senate and states receive two representatives The lower house is the House of Representatives which is apportioned by population The Senate has a six-year term with 1/3 of the seats up for reelections every two years House members serve two-year terms

Continuity and Change Framers of US Constitution placed Congress at the center of the government In early years, Congress held the bulk of power Face of Congress is changing as women and minorities have achieved seats Presidency has become quite powerful, particularly since FDR Congress now generally responds to executive branch legislative proposals. Confidence in Congress

Table 7.3: What is a typical day like for a member of Congress?

Table 7.2: What are the key differences between the House of Representatives and the Senate?

Table 7.1: What are the powers of Congress?

Figure 7.3: How are the House of Representatives and the Senate organized?

Functions Lawmaking-Budget Representation (trustee delegate-politico) Oversight Constituent Service Other

The Representational Role Of Members Of Congress How should an elected official represent his/her constituents? Trustee - representatives use their own best judgment Delegate - representatives vote the way their constituents want them to Politico - representatives act as trustee or delegate depending on the issue

How Members Make Decisions Political parties Divided/unified government Constituents Colleagues and caucuses Logrolling Interest groups, lobbyists, and political action committees Staff and support agencies

The Law-Making Function of Congress Only a member of the House or Senate may introduce a bill buy anyone can write a bill Over 9,000 bills are proposed (every 2 year session) and fewer than 5-10% are enacted Most bills originate in the Executive Branch A bill must survive three stages to become a law committees, the floor, and the conference committee. A bill can die at any stage.

The Budgetary Function Congressional Budget Act of 1974 Reconciliation Timeline on budget process Pork and Earmarks

The Oversight Function War Powers Act (1973) Congressional review Confirmation of Presidential appointments Senatorial courtesy Impeachment

Figure 7.5: How does a bill become a law?

Congress and the President Especially since the 1930s, the president has seemed to be more powerful than Congress However, Congress retains several key powers vis-a-vis the president funding powers oversight impeachment/removal

Congress and the Judiciary Courts can overturn laws if unconstitutional Congress reviews judicial nominees Role of senatorial courtesy Congress also sets court’s jurisdiction

Role of Parties in Organizing Congress Parties and their strength have important implications in Congress Committees are controlled by the majority Committees set the agenda

Table 7.5: What were the committees of the 111 th Congress?

Different Types of Congressional Committees Standing Committee - continues from one Congress to the next Joint Committee - set up to expedite business between the two houses Conference Committee - special joint committees that resolve differences in bills passed by either house Ad hoc, special, or select committees - temporary committees designed for a specific purpose

Committee Membership Members often seek assignments to committees based on Their own interests or expertise A committee’s ability to help their prospects for reelection Pork: legislation that allows representatives to bring home the “bacon” to their districts in the form of public works programs, military bases, or other programs designed to benefit their districts directly Access to large campaign contributors

Committee Chairs These individuals have tremendous power and prestige Authorized to select all subcommittee chairs Call meetings Recommend majority members to sit on conference committees Can kill a bill by not scheduling hearings on it Have staff at their disposal Seniority vs loyalty to the party in the House Seniority still important in the Senate Both Chambers have term limits for chairs

Running for Office and Stying in Office Incumbency Being in office helps a person stay in office name recognition access to free media inside track on fund-raising district is drawn to favor incumbent , an average of 95% of incumbents who sought reelection won their primary and general elections races

Table 7.4: What are the advantages of incumbency?

Members of Congress Congress is older, better educated, whiter, and richer than most of us However, great strides have been made, Currently, both California senators are women Can a man represent a woman? Can a white person adequately represent the views of a black person?

Figure 7.1: How many women and minorities serve in Congress?

Apportionment and Redistricting The Constitution requires that all Americans be counted every ten years by a census Census determines the representation in the House of Representatives Redistricting (the redrawing of congressional districts to reflect changes in seats allocated to the states from population shifts)is done by states legislatures and, of course, always has political overtones When the process is outrageously political, it is called gerrymandering and is often struck down by the courts

Figure 7.2: What is gerrymandering?

Table 7.6: What are the congressional support agencies?

Figure 7.4: What is the partisan composition of the 112 th Congress?