Read the chapter on congress this week. Also read carefully my essential facts about Congress.

Lecture on congressCONGRESS AND THE CHALLENGE OF DEMOCRACY The structure of Congress, both as it was designed by the founders and as it has evolved over the past two centuries, heightens the tension between pluralism and majoritarianism in American politics. Under the Constitution, the system of checks and balances divides complete lawmaking power between Congress and the president. In addition, members of Congress are elected from particular states or congressional districts and ultimately depend upon their constituents to re-elect them. Two facts suggest majoritarian influence on Congress. First, to become law, legislation must be passed by a majority vote in each house. Second, in recent years at least, the party system, which may act as a majoritarian influence on politics, has had a greater impact on the way members actually vote. Considering the thin Republican majority in the House and the evenly split Senate resulting from the election of 2000, Congress will likely be more pluralistic in order to pass legislation on key issues faced by the nation. Much about the structure of Congress reinforces pluralism. The committee structure encourages members of Congress to gain expertise in narrow policy areas. The experience members gain in these areas often leads them to look after particular constituencies or special interests. Furthermore, since the outcome of the legislative process is usually the result of vote trading, logrolling, bargaining, and coalition building, any final product is likely to represent all sorts of concessions to various interests. Chapter 11: Congress 103 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. CHAPTER OVERVIEW The Origin and Powers of Congress The U.S. Congress is a bicameral (two-house) legislature. Its basic structure grew out of the Great Compromise at the Constitutional Convention. As a result of that compromise, each state is represented in the upper house (or Senate) by two senators, who serve staggered six-year terms; in the lower house (the House of Representatives), states are represented according to their population. Members of the lower house serve two-year terms. In 1929, the total number of representatives was fixed at 435. Whenever the population shifts (as demonstrated by a decennial census), the country’s 435 singlemember legislative districts must be reapportioned to reflect the changes and provide equal representation. Duties of the House and Senate The Constitution gives the House and Senate shared powers, including the power to declare war, raise an army and navy, borrow and coin money, regulate interstate commerce, create federal courts, establish rules for the naturalization of immigrants, and “make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers.” However, there are some differences between the House and Senate in their constitutional responsibilities. All revenue bills must originate in the House. The House has the power of impeachment and the power to formally charge the president, vice president, and other “civil officers” of the national government with serious crimes. The Senate is empowered to act as a court to try impeachment, with the chief justice of the Supreme Court presiding. The Constitution gives the Senate some additional powers, such as approving presidential nominations including all federal judges, ambassadors, and cabinet members. The Constitution gives the president the power to negotiate treaties with foreign countries, but the Senate must approve any treaty with a two-thirds majority. Electing the Congress Although elections offer voters the opportunity to express their approval or disapproval of congressional performance, voters rarely reject House incumbents. Although polls show that the public lacks confidence in Congress as a whole and supports term limits, most people are satisfied with their own particular legislator. Incumbents have enormous advantages that help them keep their seats. For example, incumbents are generally much more attractive to PACs and find it easier to obtain funds for re-election campaigns. Incumbents usually have greater name recognition; they acquire this name recognition by using their franking privileges and building a reputation for handling casework. Gerrymandering during redistricting may also work to the benefit of an incumbent. Senate races tend to be more competitive than House races; incumbency is less of an advantage in the Senate, partly because of the greater visibility of challengers in Senate races. When challengers do defeat incumbents, it is often the case that the previous election was close or the ideology and party identification of the state’s voters favor the challenger. Members of Congress tend to be white, male professionals with college or graduate degrees. There are relatively few women and minority-group members in Congress. To remedy this situation, some people favor descriptive representation; others argue that devices such as racial gerrymandering discriminate unjustly against white candidates. Recent court decisions have dealt setbacks to racial gerrymandering. 104 Chapter 11: Congress Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. How Issues Get on the Congressional Agenda Although many issues on the congressional agenda seem to be perennial, new issues do emerge. Sometimes a crisis or visible event prompts Congress to act; at other times, congressional champions of particular proposals are able to win powerful supporters for their ideas. Congressional leaders and committee chairpersons also have the power to place items on the congressional agenda, and they often do so in response to interest groups. The Dance of Legislation Bills become laws by a process that is simple in its outline. A bill may be introduced in either house. It is then assigned to a specialized committee, which may refer it to a subcommittee for closer study and modification. When the subcommittee has completed its work, it may send the proposal back to the full committee, which may then approve it and report it out to the chamber for debate, amendment, or a vote on passage. Actual floor procedures in the two houses differ substantially. In the House, the Rules Committee specifies the form of debate. In contrast, the Senate works within a tradition of unlimited debate and unanimous consent petitions. If a bill passes the two houses in different versions, the differences must be reconciled in a conference committee, and the bill must then be passed in its new form by each house. Once the bill has passed Congress, it is sent to the president for his signature, veto, or pocket veto. The pocket veto can be used only when Congress adjourns. Congress approved a lineitem veto that allowed the president to invalidate particular sections of bills, but the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional. Committees: The Workhorses of Congress The real work of lawmaking happens in the legislative committees. One of the reasons for the committee system is division of labor. The American system of specialized standing committees allows members of Congress to build up expertise in issue areas as they build up seniority in Congress. Standing committees are broken down into subcommittees that allow members to acquire even more specialized expertise. Subcommittee members are often the dominant forces shaping legislation. In addition to their work on standing committees, members of Congress serve on joint committees made up of legislators from both houses; select committees established to deal with special issues; and conference committees, which work out differences between versions of legislation passed by the two houses. Leadership on committees is linked to seniority (although members have the option of secret ballot). Committee hearings represent an important stage in drafting legislation and are often used by legislators as ways of gaining publicity on an issue. Committees themselves differ in terms of style. Some work by consensus; others are more conflictive. Oversight: Following Through on Legislation In addition to its responsibility for passing new laws, Congress must also keep watch over the administration of existing laws. Through this oversight function, Congress is able to monitor existing policies and programs to see if agencies are carrying them out as Congress intended. Oversight occurs in a variety of ways, including hearings, formal reports, and informal contacts between congressional and agency personnel. Since the 1970s, Congress has increased its oversight over the executive branch. Generally, it has done so in an effort to find ways to make programs run better; sometimes it tends to become involved in petty details, making itself vulnerable to the charge of micromanagement. Reliance on a committee system decentralizes power and makes American democracy more pluralistic, yet there is a majoritarian aspect as well, since most committees approximate the general profile of the Chapter 11: Congress 105 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. parties’ congressional membership, and legislation must still receive a majority vote in each house before becoming law. Leaders and Followers in Congress Each house has leaders who work to maximize their party’s influence and keep their chamber functioning smoothly and efficiently. Party leadership in the House is exercised by the Speaker of the House and the minority leader. In the Senate, power is vested in the majority and minority leaders. These four leaders are selected by vote of their own party members in the chamber. Much of their work consists of persuasion and coalition building. Rules and Norms of Behavior An important difference between the two chambers is in the House’s use of its Rules Committee, which serves as the “traffic cop” governing the floor debate. Lacking a similar committee, the Senate relies on unanimous consent agreement to govern the rules of debate. Moreover, unlike the House, the Senate has the power to call for a filibuster to prolong the debate on an issue. Each house has its own formal rules of procedure specifying how debates are conducted in that chamber. In addition, each house also has unwritten, informal norms of behavior that help reduce conflict among people who often hold strongly opposing points of view but who must work together. Some norms, such as the apprenticeship norm, have been weakened; but, over time, successful members of Congress still learn to compromise to build support for measures that interest them. The Legislative Environment Legislators look to four sources for their cues on how to vote on issues. First, rank-and-file party members usually try to support their party when they can, and partisanship has increased in recent years as each of the major parties has become more homogeneous. Second, the president is often actively engaged in trying to persuade legislators to vote his way. The views of the constituents back home are a third factor in how legislators vote. Finally, interest groups provide legislators with information on issues and their impact on the home district. These four influences push Congress in both the majoritarian and the pluralist direction. The Dilemma of Representation Every member of Congress lives in two worlds: the world of presidents and the world of personalized shopping bags. Each member of Congress has to deal with the demands of Washington politics and the politics of his/her home district or state. A central question for representative government is whether representatives should act as trustees who vote according to their consciences or as delegates who vote as their constituents wish them to vote. In the U.S. Congress, members feel a responsibility to both roles. A need to consider the larger national interest pushes them to act as trustees, while the need to face their constituents at the next election leads them to act more like delegates. By and large, members of Congress do not consistently adopt one role or the other. Pluralism, Majoritarianism, and Democracy The American Congress contrasts sharply with the legislatures in parliamentary democracies. Strong party systems and a lack of checks and balances to block government action make parliamentary democracies more majoritarian. Congress’s decentralization and the lack of a strong party system make Congress an institution better suited to pluralist democracy. Moreover, the population of the United States, with an increasing diversity of economic, social, religious, and racial groups, will influence Congress to be more pluralistic.

Congress Lecture- Congress is bilateral consisting of two chambers, the senate and house. It is this way because of the great compromise between the large and small states during the constitutional convention in 1787. The House today has 435 members based on population criteria. Calif is the most populous state and therefore has 53 members. In the senate which consists of a total of 100 members, two from each state favors the small states.

1. How are members of congress elected? This information is part of Article 1 of the constitution. Senators are elected statewide and serve 6 years terms, They can be reelected indefinitely this is known as the incumbency factor. You need lots of money to campaign for election because you have to run statewide, name recognition is very important. House of Representatives candidates for office run in much smaller districts. The average district size is about 750,000 people. House members serve two year terms, and can reelected over and over again. To run for office in congress you need to be 25 years of age for the House, 7 years of residency as a citizen, and for the senate you need to be 30 years of age , have 9 years of residency as a citizen.

2. What is the incumbency factor? This means once in office you can run for reelection. Most congress persons get reelected, this is called the incumbency factor. The reasons they are successful is because of 4 specific reasons. Most constituents know them, this is name recognition, they receive the greater share of campaign contributions, they get more publicity than their challengers, and redistricting favors most incumbents. We will examine redistricting later.

3. Leadership in the House of Representatives- The Speaker of the House is the leader in the House. She is elected by the majority party. She decides what bills will be introduced, what hearings will take place, and what the committee assignments are. Below her is the Majority Leader who follows her orders. The committees are all important, all bills first come to the committees for consideration and study. The committee leaders or chairpersons come from the majority party. The committees can kill bills, change bills, and postpone bills. So the committees have tremendous power over the outcome of all bills. Also each party has a Whip, this is someone who counts the votes to see if bills will pass. Each party also has caucuses or conferences wherein party members along with the Speaker discuss what bills are most important to consider. Last, the House has a rules committee to decide on how many times a bill changed be changed and how long the bills can be debated on the floor of congress. The floor is when and where all members gather to vote on bills.

4. Leadership in the Senate-The boss of the senate is from the majority party and is called the Majority Leader. This person has the same power within the senate as the speaker has in the house. He decides what bills will be considered and how long bills can be debated. During the current session the Majority Leader refuses to consider any bills passed by the house. You need to know this fact. The senate has its own committees it uses to study bills and recommend changes.

5. The senate and its special features-The senate has special voting powers under their rules. One of them is the Filibuster rule. For a bill to pass 60 members must vote for it. The bill will die if 60 members refuse to consider a given bill. Let’s say Bernie Sanders wins the election and wants Medicare for All, The bill would have to be voted for by the majority of members in the House and then be voted for by 60 members in the Senate because of the Filibuster Rule. If 60 votes for a bill are not obtained then the bill dies. This would take a miracle or divine intervention for this to happen.

6. Why is it so difficult to pass bills? When a bill is introduced in the House it must be accepted by a committee, then it goes to all members for a vote, then it must go to the appropriate senate committee and then to the floor of the Senate for discussion and a vote. If the senate changes any part of the bill it then must be examined by the House to find out if they agree to these changes. This process to reach an agreement can take months, then factor in the filibuster and you see that it is an uphill battle to get bills passed. After this process the President must approve of the bill. If vetoed congress needs a two-thirds override to pass the bill.

7. redistricting and congress-Every 10 years a new census is conducted to determine our growing population and where they live. After this is completed each state legislative body must redraw district lines to reflect population shifts. Some states set up redistricting commissions to do this work. This entire process is political, meaning that the majority party within each state will want to draw the lines so that their party has the greatest chance of reelecting their congress persons These are called safe districts.. The Supreme Court has ruled that they will not intervene in the states to change this state directed process. Remember we stated that elections laws are controlled by the states, this is prescribed in the constitution. Election districts are called SMPD’s. or single member plurality districts. In the House each state has a certain number of SMPD’S based on their total population of all residents. These districts elect a single member every two years. For further information see the link below. Also carefully read the information on the role of committees, leadership structures, and the glossary of terms. test 2 study guide will cover questions on Congress taken from this lecture. read this information carefully.

8. congressional committees have the oversight function, this means if they think the president or the executive dept. is not following congressional laws or programs they can subpoena members to come to the committees to explain what they are doing. During the impeachment hearings the Trump administration refused to allow govt officials to testify, this is a clear violation of congressional powers.

9. Congress has the sole power to approve all government spending. Taxing and spending are congressional enumerated powers,

10. examine this list of standing committees before you study committee responsibilities. list of standing committees

The Role of the Committees

The Importance of the Committee System

Congressional committees are the “workhorses” of Congress. As the number of issues brought before Congress grows, lawmakers increasingly rely on the committee system to sift through the facts and determine how issues should be resolved.

Congress is made up of both standing committees and select committees. Generally, standing committees have the power to generate legislation in their particular areas of jurisdiction, such as tax writing or appropriations. Select committees, such as the Senate Special Committee on Aging, are primarily advisory in nature.

Most committees have delegated specific issues under their jurisdiction to subcommittees, whose job is to analyze each issue and eventually make a recommendation to their parent committee (or full committee, as it is sometimes called). Here again, it is vitally important that constituent contacts be made with the subcommittees as early in the process as possible.

In their earliest stages of review, subcommittees welcome input from interested organizations and individuals. At this point, letters and personal visits with members of the subcommittee and their staff can have a tremendous effect on the panel’s recommendations. In many instances, a subcommittee will hold public hearings, either in Washington, DC or elsewhere, where constituents may ask to present their positions.

If your senator or representative is not on the relevant subcommittee, does that mean you have no influence over the outcome? It is true that members of a subcommittee are regarded as “specialists” by their colleagues and, therefore, can wield considerable power in deciding whether or not an issue will be advanced through the legislative process. However, your own senators or representatives, whether or not they are on the subcommittee, often can be effective intermediaries, depending on their personal or political relationships with the subcommittee members.

Floor Action

Once a committee has approved legislation, it becomes eligible for debate on the House and Senate floors, where it may be passed, defeated or amended. Because floor debates often are scheduled on short notice, you should prepare your messages (e.g. e-mails, letters etc.) well in advance. However, keep in mind that timing is extremely critical. Any communications about legislation that is coming up for floor debate should arrive as close to the time of voting as possible.

Conference Action

It is usually the case that the House and Senate pass different versions of the same bill. When that occurs, a handful of members from each chamber are appointed to serve on a conference committee that attempts to work out a compromise.

A conference committee usually consists of selected members of the House and Senate subcommittees that originally developed the legislation. In some instances, conference committees may need to resolve only a few issues; in the case of appropriations bills, there may be several hundred to be reconciled. Constituents whose senators or representatives happen to be on a conference committee can play a crucial role in the deliberations.

The end product of the meetings is a conference report containing a compromise bill and a section-by-section explanation of the agreed-upon compromise. Once both the House and Senate agree to the conference report, the measure is sent to the President for approval (or veto).

The Importance of Staff Contacts

While senators and representatives are the ultimate decision makers, it is important to recognize that their staff members can have significant influence over the course and content of legislation.

Constituents are urged to maintain ongoing contacts with these individuals, especially subcommittee staff and the lawmakers’ own legislative aides. When the time comes to contact a lawmaker about specific legislation, his or her staff aide also should be alerted. This is one way of ensuring that your issues are not lost or overlooked among the stack of legislation that is discussed every day.

Also, keep in mind that every senator and representative maintains an office(s) in his or her home state. These district offices offer an excellent opportunity to build relationships with key staff, channel the latest information back to senators and representatives and generally get your message across to the legislator.

Glossary of Legislative Terms

The following is a listing of terms commonly used in connection with the legislative process:

· Act – The term for legislation that has been passed by Congress and signed into law by the President.

· Amendment – The proposal of a member of Congress to alter the wording of a bill being considered by a subcommittee, committee, or on the House or Senate floor. Amendments can also be offered to add or delete entire sections of a bill.

· Appropriation – Legislation that directs the spending of funds from the federal treasury for a specific purpose, e.g. funding for the Department of Health and Human Services. By custom, an appropriations bill originates in the House, where it is assigned an H.R. number (e.g. H.R. 5027) until it becomes law or is vetoed by the President. Typically, each appropriations bill includes funding for several hundred federal programs.

· Authorization – A law creating a new federal program or extending the life of an existing program. An authorization establishes the framework for operating a federal program, and usually sets the maximum amount of funds that can be given to a program for a period of 3 to 5 years.

· Bill – A proposed law introduced by a member(s) of Congress.

· Budget – The document the President sends to Congress each year outlining federal expenditures and revenues for the upcoming fiscal year. The President’s budget is usually submitted to Congress in late January or early February.

· Budget Resolution – Legislation passed by Congress each year, which sets overall limits on spending and revenues. Congressional committees use the budget resolution as a guide for allocating funds to specific federal programs. The budget resolution does not require the President’s approval.

· Conference – A meeting between House and Senate members to reconcile differences between bills passed by their respective chambers of Congress. Once a compromise has been ironed out, a conference report is issued and voted on by the full House and Senate. The measure is then sent to the President for approval.

· Continuing Resolution – An emergency appropriations bill that provides funding for federal agencies whose regular appropriations bills have not been passed before the end of the federal government’s fiscal year (September 30).

· Entitlement – A federal program that guarantees a certain level of benefits to persons who meet requirements set by law, such as Social Security and unemployment benefits. Congress and the President generally have very little discretion over spending by these programs.

· Fiscal Year – For the federal government, the fiscal year runs from October 1 through September 30.

· Hearings – Committee meetings where testimony is taken from witnesses representing government agencies, private sector organizations and the general public. Most congressional hearings are accessible to the public. Hearings may be held in Washington, DC, or in local communities.

· Mark-Up – A subcommittee or committee meeting for the purpose of writing legislation. Once completed, the measure is ready for debate on the floor of the House or Senate.

· Public Law – A bill after it has been passed by the House and Senate and subsequently approved by the President.

· Reconciliation bill – Legislation that contains changes (usually spending cuts) to existing laws so as to conform – or reconcile – with policies adopted in the budget resolution.

· Rescission – The act of canceling appropriations already enacted into law.

· Standing Committee – A committee that is permanently established by House and Senate rules. Standing committees are empowered to prepare and review legislation (as opposed to select committees, which serve only to advise Congress on a limited range of issues).

· Veto – The President’s formal disapproval of legislation passed by Congress. When Congress is in session, the President must veto a bill within 10 days after receiving it from Congress; otherwise it becomes law without his approval. A bill can become law after a presidential veto if two-thirds of Congress votes to override the veto.

U.S. Senate – Leadership Structure

· U.S. Senate website (Links to an external site.)

· (Links to an external site.)

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· Current Senate leadership (Links to an external site.)

· (Links to an external site.)

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President Pro Tempore

Elected by the majority party, and presides over the Senate.

Republicans

· Majority Leader Elected by majority party. Serves as the principal “voice” of the majority party and sets the legislative agenda for the Senate.

· Assistant Majority Leader Mobilizes support for the majority party position on key votes, and works to maintain lines of communications between the majority leadership and rank-and-file Members.

· Republican Policy Committee Chairman Leads the Policy Committee in developing policy positions. Serves as the party’s communicator and educator on key policy issues.

· Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee Principal fundraising vehicle for Senate Republicans. Provides financial assistance to promising candidates for the Senate.

Democrats

· Minority Leader Elected by minority party. Serves as the principal “voice” for the legislative priorities of the minority party.

· Assistant Minority Leader, Democratic Whip Mobilizes support for the minority party position on key votes, and works to maintain lines of communications between the minority leadership and rank-and-file Members.

· Democratic Conference Chairman Leads the Republican Conference, which is used to organize and communicate with members of the Republican Party.

· Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Leads the Policy Committee in developing minority policy positions. Serves as the party’s communicator and educator on key policy issues.

· National Democratic Senatorial Committee Principal fundraising vehicle for Senate Democrats. Provides financial assistance to promising candidates for the Senate.

U.S. House of Representatives – Leadership Structure

· U.S. House of Representatives website (Links to an external site.)

· (Links to an external site.)

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· Current House leadership (Links to an external site.)

· (Links to an external site.)

·

Speaker of the House

Elected by the full House. The Speaker has several formal duties including, but not limited to, calling the House to order, referring bills to committees, recognizing Members for speaking purposes, and signing bills passed by the House.

Democrats

· Majority Leader Elected by Democratic Caucus, and serves as primary advocate for the party’s agenda.

· Majority Whip Mobilizes support for party’s positions on key votes and works to maintain lines of communication between party leadership and rank-and-file Members.

· Chair of the Democratic Caucus Vehicle used by Democrats to organize and communicate with their members. Caucus Chairman presides over meetings of all House Democrats.

· Assistant Speaker Works with the caucuses and as a liaison to the Appropriations Committee.

· Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Principal fundraising vehicle for House Democrats. Provides financial assistance to promising candidates for the House.

Republicans

· Republican Leader Speaker’s likely successor should that position become vacant. Serves as an advocate for the legislative priorities of the majority party and sets the legislative agenda.

· Republican Whip Mobilizes support for party positions on key votes and works to maintain lines of communication between minority leadership and rank-and-file Members.

· Chair of the Republican Conference Leads the Republican Conference, which is used to organize and communicate with members of the Republican Party.

· Chair of the Republican Policy Committee Leads the Republican Conference forum for policy development.

· National Republican Congressional Committee Principal fundraising vehicle for House Republicans. Provides financial assistance to promising candidates for the House.

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Under Modules go to the online lecture to get information to answer these questions. 10 points For full credit you need at least one full page.

1. Name the three important functions that congress performs?

2. The section on congressional committees indicates what committee’s do. What are the most important things that they do?

3. The committee oversight function is very important? What is the main purpose for using this function?

4. What is redistricting? When is it done? Who gains an advantage from this process?

5. Why do we have a Bicameral Congress?

6. Define incumbency? What factors produce it?

7. Explain the legislative process, how a bill becomes a law. What happens when one chamber disagrees with the other during this process?

8. What is the filibuster rule? Which chamber uses it?

9. Who is the boss of the House of Representatives? What powers does she have?

10. How much control over legislation does this boss have?

11. Who controls the operations of the Senate?

12. Go to the glossary section of the lecture and define these terms, bill, act, authorization, committee, public law.

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Dissucsion

Please discuss why it is so difficult to get legislation passed through congress. Congress will not seriously consider health care reform, immigration reform, or social security reform just to name a few of the areas that need immediate attention. Several reasons are that we structurally have a bicameral congress, incumbents who have been in power too long, and a separation of powers system that requires presidential approval for all bills. Discuss these obstacles when you give your opinions on this topic. (250 words).

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Short answer

1. When congress persons submit a bill, where does the bill go for first consideration?

2. Why do the vast majority of members of congress in both chambers get reelected when most members of the public disapprove of their poor productivity? What are the incumbency factors, mention 4 of them.

3. Who controls the house of representatives, what powers does she have?

4. Who controls the senate, what powers does he have?

5. What is redistricting? Who controls this process, the states or the national government?